Big Ten Roundtable of Bloggers

By Adam Kiefaber

This week the Roundtable for Big Ten Bloggers was created.

You can see the new feature that was added to Buckeye Lane on the right part of the screen. Under the Big Ten Bloggers logo, there is list of the most recent stories from the newly created network.

The association was started to try to increase the volume of sports blogs Big Ten fans take in. We don’t want Buckeye fans just visiting the Ohio State sites, especially as it becomes closer to the season. Information on our rival Big Ten schools is just as important.

I will put up links to the Big Ten Blogs shortly.

However, our first round of questioning as begun and can be found at Badger Tracker. At that site you should be able to find answers from the other Big Ten Bloggers.

1a. The press and the coaches will be predicting the Big Ten champ at the Hyatt Regency in Chicago on Wednesday. That’s fine, but overdone. In lieu of boilerplate predictions of who will come out on top, which Big Ten team will be the most surprising? Remember, surprises can be good or bad; the underdog who comes out of nowhere to share the title is just as surprising as the favorite who winds up with five losses and no bowl bid.

Everyone seems to agree that the top four teams in the Big Ten will consist of Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State and Wisconsin (in some sort of order). I don’t see any of those teams having losing seasons, so that can’t be the surprise. The popular pick has to be Illinois, but I can’t pick a team that a lost home game to Ohio University last season. Phil Steele’s College Football Preview and second to last in Lindy’s Big Ten 2007 Preview. Minnesota returns 15 starters and loses the fewest lettermen in the Big Ten (12). The main reason came to me when I was watching the Big Ten Media Day on Tuesday. New head coach Tim Brewster seemed as though he was the only Big Ten coach with a pulse. One could tell that he is extremely excited for upcoming season. Also, an easy non-conference schedule includes Bowling Green, Miami (OH), Florida Atlantic and North Dakota State (that should be four wins). I expect at least three wins in the team’s eight Big Ten games- so that is a 7-5 record and a bowl game. That’s somewhat surprising.

Also, sometimes a record is misleading due to who you play and who you don’t play in the Big Ten, but it still can get you in a bowl game. Lookout for Indiana and Iowa because both don’t have to play Michigan or Ohio State. Also, Northwestern doesn’t have to play Penn State or Wisconsin.

1b. Imagine it’s December, and the consensus in the media is that your team’s season was “surprising.” Is this a Good Thing or a Bad Thing? What would have to happen for you to consider your team’s season surprising?

That can mean two different things. The good-thing perspective would include a national title run for the Buckeyes. People expect the Buckeyes to contend for the Big Ten title, but questions at some key offensive positions has many members of the media picking the Buckeyes to be third or fourth in the Big Ten. If a QB steps up and the Buckeyes run the table, that would surprise people. The bad-thing perspective would include a QB controversy where all three frontrunners (Todd Boeckman, Rob Schoenhoft and Antonio Henton) all disappoint. It could cause the Buckeyes to miss a bowl game for the first time since ‘99.

2. A preseason player of the year will also be dubbed in Chicago. For your team to succeed, which player or unit is going to have to put forth a “player of the year” performance? What’s the one position that would take your team to the next level if it performs above expectations?

Obviously, the answer in Ohio State is the QB position. If the Buckeyes can get a solid performance from their QB then there is no limit to what this team could achieve. Boeckman is a fifth-year junior, who hopefully knows the system by now. Schoenhoft is a strong-armed sophomore, who is my personal favorite right now. And Henton is a Troy Smith clone, who didn’t appear ready in a ugly spring game performance. See Quarterback Question? for my breakdown on the Buckeyes QB position.

3. Which Big Ten team’s out-of-conference schedule would you most want to have this year? Why? Do you think your team will have out-of-conference losses this year?

I will take the Wisconsin’s out-of-conference schedule. They have three home games against Washington State (Sept. 1), The Citadel (Sept. 15) and Northern Illinois (Oct. 20). The Citadel should be cake. NI lost a bunch of talent, but are still a solid MAC team relatively close to Wisconsin. I like the Washington State game to open the season. WSU is not one of the best teams, but besides Illinois it will be the only team from the Big Ten to open against a BCS conference school. The main reason I like the Badgers’ non-conference schedule is because their one road game is in Las Vegas, against UNLV. I’m always looking for an excuse to go there.

Ohio State out-of-conference schedule is weak. After playing Texas the last two years and about to be playing University of Southern Cal for the next two years, this year is kind of a joke. No way the Buckeyes lose to Youngstown State, Akron or Kent State at home. The only loss that could happen would be a visit to Washington, but the Buckeyes should be heavily favored in that game as well.

4. Here’s a chance to look like a complete genius in a few months: pick the biggest in-conference upset that will happen this season. Justify your prediction!

This upset will blow your minds- Minnesota will defeat Wisconsin on November 17th (last week of the season). The previous two weeks, Wisconsin visits Ohio State and then plays Michigan at home. Then without anytime off, the Badgers will take a deep breath and jump on a bus and head to Minnesota. I don’t care how the Badgers did in the previous two games, they will relax and expect an easy win over their Gopher rivals. New coach Tim Brewster will have his team pumped up and wanting to take back the Paul Bunyan’s Axe. The Gophers lost last year 12-48 to Wisconsin, so this is a big upset.

5. Say something nice about the Big Ten school whose name precedes yours alphabetically. Say something mean about the one that comes after.

I have to say something nice about Northwestern and something mean about Penn State.

Let’s get out all the mean stuff about Penn State. Okay, the Buckeyes could have had RB Curtis Enis, but thought it would be funnier to send him a recruiting letter entitled ‘Curtis Penis.’ Oh wait, that really isn’t mean, as it is true. As a Bengals’ fan the name Ki-Jana Carter makes me feel like I just got ripped of on a $50 steak that tasted like bologna. The school known as ‘Linebacker U’ should change their nickname to ‘Linebacking Disappointment’- Brandon Short had 62 tackles his rookie year in the NFL, but hasn’t come close to that for the rest of his career (159 tackles in last four seasons- that’s just less than 40 tackles a season)- LaVar Arrington was a freak in college, I actually thought he would be the next great linebacker, but look at his stats LaVarr’s Stats from ESPN.com. His numbers are terrible and he isn’t even on a team right now. Paul Posluszny is next, have fun in Buffalo. Here is a good stat, since Arrington and Short were drafted in 2000, no other PSU linebacker was drafted in the last six entire NFL Drafts.

Northwestern is a good school academically. Also, they have a good running back in Tyrell Sutton. Sutton won the Big Ten’s Freshman of the Year in 2005 when he rushed for 1,474 yards. Last year, Sutton topped the 1,000-yard mark again.

The Wildcats won two of their last three games last including a 21-7 win on the road against Iowa. And they do return 15 starters.

Sorry that was the best I could do for Northwestern.

6. USC: great football program, or greatest football program? Also, how about that SEC? Damn, those guys are fast!

USC is a great team. SEC will always be the strongest conference.

(stay tuned for more Big Ten Roundtable of Bloggers Questions)