Monday, November 19, 2012

B1G Week 12 Recap


The post-season berths are looking more defined after week 12, and it is looking like it will be a very rough bowl season for the B1G again.  Nebraska moved closer to playing for a conference championship in just their second year in the league, and Ohio State continues to feel stupid about not taking a bowl ban last season. 

The Good:
The Ohio State vs Wisconsin game was one of the first well played football games in the conference this entire season.  Yes, it was low scoring, but it wasn’t sloppy. Both defenses really stepped up and dominated the ball game.  I was really impressed with John Simon from OSU who now leads the league in sacks. The Badgers did a great job in slowing down the dominant Buckeye offense as well, too bad their offense couldn’t help them out much.

Northwestern finally held onto a 4th quarter lead in East Lansing in what was a close to unwatchable game.  The Wildcats are going to play in the Capital One or Outback Bowl it looks like at this point, which means they will play an SEC team close to the top 10.  Man, that will be about as bad as if Nebraska plays Oregon in the Rose Bowl. 

Matt McGloin set the Penn State record for passing touchdowns on Saturday.  As a former walk-on, this is quite the feat.  I know they have changed their offensive mind-set, and this record will likely not stay around too long, but congratualation to him.  McGloin put up 395 yards against Indiana, and Penn State continues to impress.

The Bad:
Michigan State is a train wreck, and I think they are going to struggle on the road against Minnesota.  If it wasn’t for their surprising win against Wisconsin earlier this season, they would be eliminated from bowl contention already.  This team just did not improve as the season went on, which is usually a reflection on the coaching staff.  How much longer will the Sparty faithful put up with average at best, especially when Narduzzi will be sought after again this offseason?

The Ugly:
The Purdue vs Illinois pillow fight.  Did anyone even watch this garbage?  How do you beat the Illini by 3 points?  I thought that was a glorified scrimmage.  The sad thing is that Purdue can clinch a bowl game with a win this weekend against Indiana.  Go Big Ten!
 
Week 11 Power Rankings:
1.       Ohio State (no change)
2.       Nebraska (no change)
3.       Michigan (no change)
4.       Penn State (no change)
5.       Wisconsin (no change)
6.       Northwestern (no change)
7.       Michigan State (no change)
8.       Minnesota (no change)         Man the bottom 5 teams are atrocious
9.       Indiana (no change)
10.   Purdue (no change)
11.   Iowa (no change)
12.   Illinois (no change)

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