[NU Sports] Around the league (was: Rants and bias ...)

[SjT (Stephen J. Truog)]

> I saw most of the other BT games  yesterday- on the
> tube- (couldnt get 
> Wisc/Iowa though on the West Coast)and I believe
> outside of Mich, we could beat 
> anyone ,though every one of them could beat us as

Exactly. I agree that our season really starts in the
final seven games. We should be 3-2, but will likely
be 2-3, meaning four is a must, but five wins are
probably necessary.

Can we do that? Absolutely. The best team on the
Oct/Nov slate is likely Purdue, but their defense is
pretty porous and we could hang with them if our
offense plays well and defense tightens up. Minny and
EMU are gotta wins, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and MSU
are all could wins and Purdooo a maybe ... but we have
to stop the turnovers, penalties and
inconsistent/uninspired play.

As for a trip around the league yesterday ...

* PSU just has to be heartbroken (no pun intended).
Their D, despite being on the field most of the game,
played amazing and well enough to win. But blasted
turnovers early (for the first TD) and some
questionable play calling kept them from the W and
allowed Mike Hart to will Michigan to victory. With
OSU, Wisky and Purdue all visiting Happy Valley, I
still like the Nits to go 11-1 and get into the BCS,
but they really need to get over the Michigan mental
block and this was the year to do it.

* WISCONSIN has been flirting with disaster lately and
sooner or later will get burned. Somehow, lowly Iowa
got a player two steps behind the Badger secondary on
fourth and forever at the end of the game but the pass
was a hair too long. Iowa's young and will be tough by
the end of the season, but will lose some games they
should win, too (like the last two weeks). As for UW,
they're 4-0 right now, but unimpressive.

* OHIO STATE is probably the most impressive team so
far in the league with a solid D and improving O. They
can coast for awhile, but that game at PSU will be a
huge test to see if they're legit.

* ILLINOIS was inconsistent, but showed a lot of
potential. If they cut down the turnovers, they're 4-0
right now and could give PSU fits next week.

* PURDUE was impressive on O as expected, but their D
really disappointed me in allowing Minny to hang in
the game. As I said, it's lucky for them that only
teams east of Toledo seem to be able to play defense
in the league this year, but they gotta improve on
that.

* MSU is 4-0, but are games against ND and the Big
East really proving much these days? We'll see with
Wisky coming into Spartan Stadium. But unlike a lot of
teams, they seem to be maximizing the talent they have
now with minimal mistakes and smart coaching.

And how appropriate was it to see the Irish fans
waving white flags yesterday? Hopefully Purdue can
complete the Big Ten sweep next week and make the
Irish remember why they don't want to join our league
again.:) Bet they're glad they negotiated that bogus
B(C)S payout for years they don't make the bowl scene
... too bad there isn't a clause in there for no money
if they aren't even bowl eligible.

Right now, I'd have OSU/PSU and Wisky still fighting
it out for the Big Ten title. Michigan is dangerous
and will be a factor, but really they shouldn't have
won that game yesterday aside for Hart's heart and
PSU's mental block against big M. I think two of them
get BCS bids and one heads to Orlando. But with PSU
slipping up again at Michigan and OSU and UW visiting
Beaver Stadium, I doubt we'll have an unbeaten champ
this year. Probably at least a two-team tie at the
top.

Michigan probably heads to Tampa now unless they slip
up somewhere besides UW/OSU at the end (maybe MSU?)
and that leaves Purdue for the Alamo. All five are
bowl locks.

The rest of the picture is a mess. MSU, Illinois and
Iowa seem likely to be headed for the postseason,
while Indiana and NU still have a shot if they get
their acts together. Minny is the longest of
longshots.

So let's hope for improvement next week (maybe even
steal a game if Michigan's still celebrating PSU) and
then come out firing for the final two months.

GO CATS!!!
-SjT

* * * * * * * * *
STEPHEN J. TRUOG
sjtruog at yahoo.com
GO CATS!!!


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