[NU Sports] Our feelings are hurt again (fwd)

[Mike Nolan]

> Yeah I will start the discussion by saying this game is a stepping stone  for 
> both teams going into next season.  I was watching a game last weekend  and 
> Illinois just landed a top 15 wide receiver for next year. I expect both  
> Illinois and NU to make bowl games next season. Both offense I believe will be  
> scoring at will on teams.

Unfortunately, I have a board meeting to attend in CT this weekend and 
will miss seeing the Illinois game until I get back and can watch it on
TIVO.  I probably won't see much of the Michigan-OSU game, either.  (I 
should have access to the Internet, so with luck I'll be able to sneak in 
some updates on the games during the meeting but I doubt I'll be able 
to listen to the WGN play-by-play.  Keep updating the list throughout 
the game, my friends!

Are there any teams in the conference that couldn't be bowl contenders in 
2007 at this point?

Indiana is just one win away from it this year, as is Minnesota, and no
reason to expect them to be worse next year. 

I'm not sold on the Zookster yet, but I agree their recruiting list looks 
fairly respectable, as does Northwestern's.

Michigan State is likely to be better (or at least more consistent) than 
this year, even if they will be shopping for a new head coach and are 
losing their best QB in at least a decade.  

If it takes 6-6 to be bowl eligible, it's more than just theoretically 
possible for EVERY school in the conference to be bowl eligible next year, 
as long as they all win all 4 of their non-conference games and then have
at least two conference wins.   

NU drops Penn State and Wisconsin from the schedule in 2007 and 2008, so
that could mean 1-2 more 'likely' conference wins for us, even if Indiana
and Minnesota are on the rise.  Give us a mulligan against Michigan State
and give us Indiana and Minnesota instead of the Nittany Lions and Badgers 
and we might still be talking about becoming bowl eligible this year, 
especially if we hadn't fumbled the non-conference schedule.

But a 12 game schedule with no open week is going to be brutal again
next year.  Thankfully we have an open week in 2008, but we get Ohio State 
and Michigan back-to-back in both 2007 and 2008, as the conference openers
next year!  Do the schedule planners just hate us?
--
Mike Nolan