WEEK ONE: FOOTBALL PREVIEW

By Adam Kiefaber

If you didn’t already know, the countdown for the regular season has begun.

There are only 20 days until the season kicks off.

On August 30th, teams like Rutgers, Louisville and LSU will take the field.

Big Ten teams will have to wait till that Saturday on September 1st.

Here is a quick breakdown of the Big Ten games.

Northeastern at Northwestern @ noon- on the Big Ten Network
Northwestern is predicted to finish near the bottom of the Big Ten Standings. Lindy’s Big Ten Preview has Northwestern finishing eighth, Phil Steele’s College Football Preview has them finishing tied for eighth and the Sporting News has the Wildcats in last. They do open their season against a D1AA team in Northeastern, so that should be an easy win, right? Last year, Northwestern lost to the New Hampshire Wildcats (34-17), who happen to be in the same conference as Northeastern. In 06, New Hampshire lost a heartbreaker to Northeastern, 36-35 in overtime. Northwestern should be improved this year with 16 returning starters and will roll over Northeastern. Final Score: Northwestern 28-10

UAB at Michigan State @ noon- on ESPN2
Michigan State is not expected to do great things in 2007. Lindy’s Big Ten Preview has MSU finishing ninth in the Big Ten Standings, Phil Steele’s College Football Preview has them finishing tied for eighth and the Sporting News has the Spartans in ninth. This is a good year to play UAB, the Blazers are coming off a disappointing 3-9 season where he return only eight starters. UAB is 1-15 in their first road game since ’91, while MSU has won eight straight home openers. Expect Michigan State to not have any trouble against UAB. Final Score: Michigan State 27-9

Appalachian State at Michigan @ noon- on the Big Ten Network
Michigan is the popular pick to win the Big Ten in 2007. Lindy’s Big Ten Preview has the Michigan winning the Big Ten as does the Sporting News. Phil Steele’s College Football Preview has the Wolverines finishing in a first-place tie with Penn State. Appalachian State has won back-to-back D1AA National Championships. Last year, the Mountaineers finished with a 14-1 record, with their only loss coming in the opener at N.C. State. If there was ever a college football game that reminds me of #1 seed vs. #16 seed in the NCAA Basketball Tournament, this is it. The #1 seed, Michigan in this case, always wins. Final Score: Michigan 35-10

Youngstown State at Ohio State @ noon- on the Big Ten Network
Ohio State is predicted to finish near the top of the Big Ten standings. Lindy’s Big Ten Preview has Ohio State finishing third, Phil Steele’s College Football Preview has them finishing third and the Sporting News has the Buckeyes in fourth. Jim Tressel used to be YSU’s head coach from ’86 through ’00, there he had a record of 137-57-2 and won four D1AA National Championships. Last year, YSU finished 11-3 and lost to Penn State 37-3. OSU should have no trouble with the Penguins. Final Score: Ohio State 28-7

Florida International at Penn State @ noon- on the Big Ten Network
Penn State is another team that is expected to compete for the Big Ten title. Lindy’s Big Ten Preview has Penn State finishing fifth in the Big Ten standings, Phil Steele’s College Football Preview has them tied for first and the Sporting News has the Nittany Lions in third. Fortunately for Penn State, the Golden Panthers finished the ’06 season with a 0-12 record. Penn State will easily take care of Florida International. Final Score: Penn State 45-3

Missouri vs. Illinois (in St. Louis) @ 3:30- on ESPN2
Illinois is a popular pick to be one of the surprise teams in all college football and not just in the Big Ten. Lindy’s Big Ten Preview has Illinois finishing sixth in the Big Ten standings, Phil Steele’s College Football Preview has them finishing seventh and the Sporting News has the Fighting Illini in eighth. Illinois has 17 returning starters and another great recruiting class coming in. Missouri, on the other hand, is expected to compete for a BIG 12 Championship. The Tigers seem to be the pick to win the BIG 12 North division. The Tigers QB Chase Daniel is among the best in the country. Final Score: Missouri 28-17

Iowa vs. Northern Illinois (in Chicago) @ 3:30- on ESPNU
Iowa was disappointing last year and finished with a 6-7 record, after starting the year 4-0 until a 38-17 loss to Ohio State. However, Iowa did beat Northern Illinois last season 24-14, and the Huskies are losing a lot of talent this season. Lindy’s Big Ten Preview has Iowa finishing fifth in the Big Ten standings, Phil Steele’s College Football Preview has them finishing tied for fourth and the Sporting News has the Hawkeyes in fourth. I expect Iowa to improve its record to 7-0 against NIU. Final Score: Iowa 35-21

Washington State at Wisconsin @ 3:30- on ABC
Wisconsin had a great season last season finishing 12-1, now they return 16 starters and should compete for the Big Ten title. Lindy’s Big Ten Preview has Wisconsin finishing second in the Big Ten standings, Phil Steele’s College Football Preview has them finishing tied for fourth and the Sporting News has the Badgers in second. I expect Wisconsin to win their 10th straight season opener, but they can’t look past the Cougars who had impressive road wins against Oregon State and UCLA last year. They also beat Oregon and played powerhouse USC close, losing 28-22. Final Score: Wisconsin 21-10

Purdue at Toledo @ 7:00- on ESPNU
Purdue quietly finished with a 8-6 record in ’06, however they didn’t have play to Michigan or Ohio State. Lindy’s Big Ten Preview has Purdue finishing seventh in the Big Ten standings, Phil Steele’s College Football Preview has them finishing tied for fourth and the Sporting News has the Boilermakers in sixth. Toledo finished a disappointing 5-7 last year. This season, you have to expect an improvement, but the team has a question mark at quarterback. I expect the Rockets to be a good team, however Purdue is lucky that they play them in week one. Final Score: Purdue 42-35

Indiana State at Indiana @ 8:00- on Big Ten Network
Indiana will have a lot of emotions when they open the season without coach Terry Hoeppner. I remember I interviewed Hoeppner before his Miami (Oh.) Redhawks took on this same Indiana State football team. You could tell Hoeppner was pumped up and eager to prove that his team belonged in the Top 25. The previous year, Miami finished #10 in the Top 25, when they had that magical season with Ben Roethlisberger. Indiana has consistently improved since Hoeppner came on as head coach. The 16 returning starters will have a lot to play for and will beat up on the Sycamores. Lindy’s Big Ten Preview has Indiana finishing last in the Big Ten standings, Phil Steele’s College Football Preview has them finishing 10th and the Sporting News has the Hoosiers in 10th. Final Score: Indiana 35-7

Bowling Green at Minnesota @ 8:00- on Big Ten Network
Minnesota new coach Tim Brewster will have his team ready to go in their opener against Bowling Green. Lindy’s Big Ten Preview has Minnesota finishing 10th in the Big Ten standings, Phil Steele’s College Football Preview has them finishing last and the Sporting News has the Golden Gophers in seventh. Bowling Green won’t be a pushover, I think QB Anthony Turner will finally breakout and have a big season. However, Minnesota is my surprise pick in the Big Ten, so I can’t pick against them already. Final Score: Minnesota 28-21

Most of opening weekend Big Ten games will be extremely boring. I would imagine that only the true fans will watch their favorite team’s game and that will be it.

Elsewhere there will be some pretty good games during the opening weekend: Below is my Top Ten:

Week One
September 1st

1) Tennessee at California (ABC- 8:00 p.m.)
2) Wake Forest at Boston College (ABC- 3:30 p.m.)
3) East Carolina at Virginia Tech (ESPN- noon)
4) Georgia Tech at Notre Dame (NBC- 3:30 p.m.)
5) Oklahoma State at Georgia (ESPN2- 6:45 p.m.)
6) Kansas State at Auburn (ESPN- 7:45 p.m.)
7) Florida State at Clemson (ESPN- 8 p.m. Sept. 3rd)
8) Western Michigan at West Virginia (3:30 p.m.)
9) Washington State at Wisconsin (ABC- 3:30 p.m.)
10) LSU at Mississippi State (ESPN- 8:00 p.m. Aug. 30th)