Author: David Shama

Think the Big Ten isn’t having a difficult time in football?  The BCS standings have Boise State and Cincinnati, Western Athletic Conference and Big East Conference schools, ranked ahead of Iowa, the top rated Big Ten team.

The first six schools in the standings are: Florida, Alabama, Texas, Boise State, Cincinnati and Iowa.  A WAC school ahead of everybody from the Big Ten?  Woody Hayes and Bo Schembechler must be fuming in their graves.

Opinion by some who follow college football is that the following conferences are better than the Big Ten: Southeastern, Pac-10, Big 12 and Big East.  The SEC is in a class by itself with Florida and Alabama both in the league’s East Division.  LSU at No. 9 and South Carolina at No. 23 give the 12 member league four teams in the BCS top 25 rankings.

The Big Ten has four teams also, with No. 13 Penn State, No. 19 Ohio State and No. 21 Wisconsin joining Iowa in the rankings.  But based on this season and past performance the Big Ten isn’t impressive.  Watching conference teams leads an observer to see fewer extraordinary players and sometimes less team speed on defense than the elite teams in other parts of the country.

Ohio State, the conference’s poster program for success, couldn’t win signature games against Southern California this season and last.  The Buckeyes were one of six Big Ten schools to lose bowl games after last season.  Iowa was the only winner.  And in the last three years the Big Ten has lost all six of its BCS bowl games.

Forty or more years ago it was a good argument as to whether the Big Ten or SEC played the better football.  In that era Big Ten teams played black athletes when many other schools didn’t.  In the 1950s, 1960s and early 1970s the Big Ten was more active than any other conference in its recruiting and playing of African-Americans.  Other conferences were segregated or much more restrictive about opportunities. That edge is long gone.

The Big Ten has been in decline since the 1970s when for the first time it started losing Rose Bowl games with surprising frequency, coming up short in nine of 10 games.  More recently Ohio State, for example, has lost three of its last four bowl games, including two games for the national championship.

This season the Big Ten may deserve better than to be ranked behind four other conferences.  It’s questionable that the Big East is superior, that’s for sure.  And those who are anti-Big Ten shouldn’t go too far in their excitement over conferences like the WAC, Big East and Mountain West (TCU is No. 8 in the BCS standings).  Teams like Boise State and TCU play schedules that aren’t all that challenging.  Boise’s weak schedule will keep the Broncos from a place in the national championship game.

But give a lot of other schools and conferences across the country credit for improvement and achievement.  College football’s limitation on the number of scholarships that schools can provide has created more parity across conferences and the country.  The marquee schools can’t hoard players like they once did.

More and better athletes in the south, southwest and west are stocking team rosters with greater talent than in the past.  Schools with geographic proximity to that talent often have an advantage in recruiting.  There’s an edge some places, too, in academic admissions regarding who gets into one school versus another.

Coaching makes a difference and few would argue that the Big Ten is a league of great coaches.  Certainly Kirk Ferentz at Iowa deserves the label.  Based on longevity and reputation, Penn State’s Joe Paterno does, too.  Ohio State’s Jim Tressel, who has won one national championship and lost in two other title games, is a good coach.  Michigan’s Rich Rodriquez must prove he can have the same success in Ann Arbor that he created coaching West Virginia.

The commitment of Big Ten schools to producing winners may not be as all consuming as it once was.  At places like Florida and Alabama they have no problem justifying a 24-7, 365 day commitment to football.

In college football, as in life, you get what you ask for.  Looks like the Big Ten needs to ask for more.

Talk about name dropping.  The Vikings 24-year-old Adrian Peterson continues to have his name statistically included with the most famous running backs in pro football history.

After 36 games in the NFL, Peterson is second only to Jim Brown in average yards rushing per game (103.5 versus 104.3).  Peterson has the second highest yards per carry average (5.16) among pro football players in their third seasons.  Paul Lowe is first at 5.39.

So far in Peterson’s career he has rushed for over 100 yards in 50 percent of his games, the best percentage in NFL history. Barry Sanders at 49.7 and Brown at 49.2 are second and third.

With 10 more regular season games on the schedule, Peterson is near joining the all-time top 10 rankings for third year players in three categories—total rushing yards, touchdowns and attempts.  Have he and offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell established a range in number of carries he will have each game this season?

“Oh, no, not at all,” Peterson said yesterday.  Still, Peterson, who is averaging 20 rushing attempts per game this season, will receive plenty of opportunities.

Does Peterson think about having his name included with such high past achievers like Brown and others?  “I reflect on it from time to time and it always puts things in perspective for me, and just keep me focused on my goals and the ultimate goal,” he answered.

Peterson has said he wants to rush for 2,000 yards and win NFL MVP this season.  Of course, a Super Bowl championship is presumably the ultimate goal.  He rushed for a league best 1,760 yards last season and leads the NFL now with 618.

This week’s issue of Sports Illustrated names the best players in the NBA and puts the Wolves Al Jefferson at third team center.  Former Wolves forward Kevin Garnett is on the first team and his Celtics are predicted to defeat the Lakers in the NBA finals.  Former Wolves’ coach Flip Saunders will win coach of the year, according to the magazine for directing a comeback season by the Wizards.

Common opinion is the Vikings will have a difficult game in Pittsburgh on Sunday against the Steelers, but the defending Super Bowl champs (4-2) have won four games against teams that have won a total four games.

Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger talking about the best attribute of former Vikings assistant Mike Tomlin, now head coach of the Steelers: “I think you hear it a lot, and I think it’s maybe overused sometimes, but I think he is a players’ coach. His age helps, that he can relate to the guys. If we have suggestions or comments about things, he listens to us. He’s willing to change if it’s in the best interest of the players and the team.”

Vikings tight end Visanthe Shiancoe leads the team in touchdown receptions with five in six games.  He had seven last season.  Former Vikings assistant coach Dean Dalton joked with Shiancoe when he told him: “I said you know Brett Favre put Bubba Franks (Favre’s former Packers teammate) into about five Pro Bowls in a row as the king of the one yard touchdown, because he’s (Favre) so effective on the play action on the goal line.  Shiancoe said, ‘Hey, I am all for it.’ ”

Wide receiver Sidney Rice had the biggest day of his pro career last Sunday, catching six passes for 176 yards.  Dalton is impressed with Rice’s athleticism including the ability of the 6-4 receiver to leap high and catch the ball.  “We’ve seen in some one-on-one matches that he really knows how to adjust his body to the ball and take it away from defenders,” Dalton said.

It helps Rice and the other receivers that they count on Favre to put the ball close to them.   “Brett is so accurate with the ball that he tries to put the BB through the key hole,” Dalton said.

Favre talking about what he does to keep his 40-year-old right arm healthy: “I ice when I feel like I need to. When’s the last time I iced? I couldn’t tell you. I’ve been pretty blessed. The good Lord has blessed me with a great arm and the ability to make some plays. But I probably should take better care (of my arm).  I say that but it’s been 19 years, but if it hurts I take care of it.  I play the game a certain way and just been pretty fortunate.”

Vikings defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier said yesterday he hopes his defense will force Pittsburgh to throw 40 to 45 times on Sunday.  He also said a decision hasn’t been made on injured cornerback Antoine Winfield’s availability for Sunday. It’s a possibility that nickel back Benny Sapp will fill in for Winfield.

Special teams coach Brian Murphy said a decision has yet to be made on the availability of the injured Percy Harvin.

The competition for the MIAC football championship and an automatic bid to the NCAA Playoffs remains close.  Of the four MIAC football games played last Saturday, none were won by more than seven points and two went into overtime.  Gustavus beat Carleton 28-21 by scoring a touchdown with 14 seconds left in the game while Augsburg defeated Concordia in overtime by seven points, 27-20. Coach John Gagliardi’s Saint John’s team defeated St. Thomas by three points in overtime, 20-17, and now leads the standings.  Hamline lost to Bethel 20-17 on a last second field goal.

The Gophers, who play preseason WCHA favorite Denver at home tonight and tomorrow night, will look for scoring help from sophomore forward Jordan Schroeder who saw an eight game scoring streak dating back to last season end this past weekend against North Dakota.  He was held scoreless in both games of a weekend series for just the second time (also last October at Wisconsin) in his college career.

Wild right wing Petr Sykora has 20 or more goals in each of his last 10 NHL seasons, sharing the longest active streak in the NHL with Calgary’s Jarome Iginla and Nashville’s Jason Arnott, according to Elias Sports Bureau.

The Wild is one of only six NHL teams to have two 300-goal scorers–Owen Nolan (407) and Sykora (301).

Former Bloomington Jefferson star Jeff Saterdalen will be inducted into the St. Cloud State Athletic Hall of Fame on Saturday.