Yup, Ohio State got a share of yet another Big Ten title (33rd in school history) but there were more surprises than ho-hum developments during the conference’s 2008 football season that ended last Saturday. Joe Paterno, 81, proved he could still recruit and coach (even if it was from the press box on game day) leading his Penn State team to a co-title with the Buckeyes and along the way showed the Nittany Lions were the best in the Big Ten.
Before the season there was expectation that Wisconsin, Illinois and maybe even Michigan would out-do Penn State in the conference race to see if any team could finish ahead of Ohio State. Instead the Badgers, Illini and Wolverines faltered, while Penn State, Michigan State, Northwestern and Iowa enjoyed surprising celebration seasons.
Here’s a summary and report card from Sports Headliners on Big Ten teams with remarks and grades based on preseason expectations and actual performance.
Put the Gophers down for a B-. Losing the last four games was bad and on a family Web site I can’t write the word that describes Minnesota’s performance in the 55-0 final game loss to Iowa, but remember the Gophers were a popular choice before the season to finish last in the conference. The Gophers, 1-11 in 2007, won four marshmallow-like nonconference games, and then won three of their first four conference games defeating Indiana, Illinois and Purdue. Two of the wins were on the road.
The Gopher season changed after a 24-17 loss to Northwestern that if played differently might have gone into overtime and led to a Gopher victory. Coach Tim Brewster’s play-to-win style produced an opening game closing minute win against Northern Illinois, but a late fourth quarter interception by a Northwestern defender sent the Gophers on their way to four consecutive losses.
On Monday offensive line coach Phil Meyer announced his resignation. Yesterday Tim Davis, an assistant at Alabama, joined up with Brewster as running game coordinator/offensive line coach. Expect, too, that in the upcoming bowl game (site not determined) the Gophers run some plays with the quarterback under center and show modifications in their play package trying to liven up an offense that produced six points in two of the last three games.
Hardly anyone thought the Gophers would win more than four, five, or six games, and fewer foresaw bowl eligibility. Mostly behind an improved defense under coordinator Ted Roof, the Gophers won seven, lost five and despite the awful finish surprised the Big Ten and made improvement.
With three national championship appearances since the start of the new millennium, it’s difficult to give Ohio State anything better than a B+ for a 10-2 season. The Buckeyes had almost all their starters back from the national championship game against LSU last winter but hopes of making the next title game vanished with a 35-3 third game loss to USC. Ohio State (what else is new?) will be formidable again next season, in search of its second national championship since 2003, but may not be so powerful if junior running back Beanie Wells goes pro. Good news for Gopher fans is that they won’t have to hear anymore about all-honors linebacker James Laurinaitis, the former Wayzata High School star who is a Buckeye senior.
Penn State, 11-1, has a nice collection of senior players, but none as important as junior quarterback Daryll Clark. He was among the conference’s most efficient passers and his running ability brought to life a Penn State offense that had struggled at the quarterback position the year before. Seems like when Penn State commits to an option quarterback (see Michael Robinson and 11-1 season in 2005) the Nittany Lions have an offense, plus there’s always a good defense in Happy Valley. This season Penn State led the Big Ten in scoring offense and defense. Give the Lions an A grade with an asterisk that it would have been A+ if not for a 24-23 loss at Iowa.
Who can blame them for crying in their beer in Madison? Before the season, except for Ohio State, the Badgers looked like the Big Ten’s best. Three games into the year Wisconsin was 3-0 and ranked No. 8 in the country. Then the Badgers blew a 19-0 lead at Michigan, lost the game and things were never the same. Wisconsin lost four of the next five games before recovering to win against three season ending softies, Indiana, Minnesota and Cal-Poly. It’s a D+ grade for the Badgers who finished 3-5 in the conference, 7-5 overall. Coach Brett Bielema, 12-1 in his first season and 9-4 last year, better do something about his fading popularity in Dairyland.