Here's a controversial opinion: the Big Ten has been pretty bad at football this year.
Last week, the Big Ten had possibly its worst day ever, going 8-5 against a powderpuff slate. In Week 3, the Big Ten faced tougher opponents with mixed results. The good news is that the Big Ten as a whole played better; the bad news is that it was still pretty bad, leading to an abysmal 4-7 record.
The Big Ten is 1-10 against the P5 schools (ACC/Big 12/Pac-12/SEC/Notre Dame), meaning that it's hard to write about the conference as though they're on par with other major teams. Unless one can find a way to relish the absurdities of the conference, caring about the Big Ten in 2014 is an exercise in despair.
Penn State 13, Rutgers 10
Conference play kicked off with Penn State-Rutgers, in Rutgers' first-ever Big Ten game. The Scarlet Knights' much-maligned defense had a strong performance, but Gary Nova's antics cost them the game.
The Rutgers defense asserted its will from the get-go, shutting out Penn State for the first half. After scraping out a couple field goals in the third and fourth quarter to pull within 10-6, Christian Hackenberg led PSU on a beautiful two-minute drill to take the lead. In response, Nova threw his fifth interception of the game (after attempting to throw the ball five yards past the line of scrimmage) to seal the Penn State win.
It was a rough introduction to the Big Ten for Rutgers, which handled the pressure as well as could be expected in front of a record home crowd. The school probably shouldn't have given head coach Kyle Flood a two-year contract extension before the game, but at least it's a confident gesture.
West Virginia 40, Maryland 37
In 2013, Maryland's highest point of the season was stomping West Virginia. This year's rematch ended in heartbreak for the Terrapins.
The Mountaineers raced out to a 28-6 lead, but Maryland came back with a combination of red zone defense (2-5 in the red zone) and big plays from C.J. Brown and Stefon Diggs. Late in the fourth quarter, Maryland had a punt return from Will Likely to tie the score, and then allowed West Virginia to drive for the game-winning field goal.
Bowling Green 45, Indiana 42
The Big Ten's struggles with the MAC continued, as Indiana lost a perfectly winnable game to Bowling Green. It was a back-and-forth shootout; the Falcons and the Hoosiers traded the lead ten times. In the end, Indiana's defense couldn't prevent an 88-yard touchdown drive in two minutes, giving up the winning score with nine seconds to go.
It's hard to diagnose Indiana's problem. Their defense is fine on a per-play basis; though the secondary has horrible technique, the problem is that they faced 113 plays. On offense, the Hoosiers haven't been able to translate yards to as many points as they should.
Give some credit to Shane Wynn, whose 10 catches for 139 yards gave Indiana its best chance to win. Indiana drops to 2-15 on the road under Kevin Wilson, leaving even the most optimistic Hoosiers fans in despair about the lack of progress.
Iowa State 20, Iowa 17
Penn State fans: ecstatic about being 3-0.
Nether Iowa nor Iowa State entered this year's edition of the Cy-Hawk Series at their best. Iowa State was 0-2, and Iowa struggled in its win over Ball State. What would happen? Another deflating loss for the Hawkeyes, of course.
The Hawkeyes acquired a 14-3 halftime lead, after which quarterback Jake Rudock and the Iowa coaches decided to go into a shell. Two Iowa State touchdowns forced them to play catch-up, and Marshall Koehn hit a field goal to tie the game at 17 for Iowa. But the Cyclones drove against a faltering Hawkeye defense, kicking a 42-yard field goal with two seconds left to win it.
Iowa has lost 12 times as a double-digit favorite since 2006, easily the worst in the Big Ten in that span. If Iowa fires Kirk Ferentz tomorrow, they owe him another $14 million. Hawkeye fans are beyond done with Ferentz, and for good reason: he's the personification of the Big Ten's complacent mediocrity.
Michigan 34, Miami (Ohio) 10
Michigan wanted to rebound from a crushing loss against Notre Dame, while Miami entered on an 18-game losing streak. The Wolverines needed a glorified scrimmage, and the RedHawks were the perfect moribund opponent – even if the game was in question for far too long.
The Wolverines got out to a quick 10-0 lead, but three turnovers in the second quarter let Miami tie the game. Derrick Green has his first good game for the Wolverines, rushing for 137 yards and two touchdowns, and the Michigan defense smothered Miami. Ugly or not, winning put them in the top half of the Big Ten on Saturday.
TCU 30, Minnesota 7
Through two games, Minnesota pulled out comfortable wins despite being outgained. TCU demonstrated why that trend is not sustainable for the Golden Gophers.
The Horned Frogs snuffed out Minnesota's running game, a rather important component of a run-first offense. David Cobb ran for only 41 yards on 16 carries, Mitch Leidner threw three picks when forced to take to the air, and TCU used short-field touchdown drives to take a commanding 24-0 halftime lead. By the time Minnesota scored its lone touchdown, both teams were playing backups.
TCU is better than their public perception; they ought to be ranked. Minnesota is worse than their public perception; they're lacking in talent, can't pass and have an iffy defense. Even so, the Golden Gophers could still make noise in the Big Ten, given the ramshackle state of the conference.
Washington 44, Illinois 19
In Weeks 1 and 2, Illinois barely put away two cupcake opponents. Washington showed the close calls were no fluke by dominating the Illini.
It was never close; Washington led 21-3 at the end of the first quarter and 38-12 at the half, thanks in part to two defensive touchdowns from Shaq Thompson. Illinois played a sloppy, miserable game they had no chance of winning. Don't tell Illinois head coach Tim Beckman that, though.
Tim Beckman: You take out 21 points on three plays and were in this football game. Yes, he really said that.
— Steve Greenberg (@SLGreenberg) September 14, 2014
That quote is taken out of context pretty badly, but still: Illinois football! Feel the excitement!
No. 11 Notre Dame 30, Purdue 14
Notre Dame was fresh off a shutout of Michigan, and Purdue was coming off a three-score loss to a MAC school. Purdue's hate of Notre Dame kept the game close, but eventually the talent disparity was too great as the Fighting Irish beat the Boilermakers in Indianapolis.
Purdue was feisty in the first half, grabbing a 14-10 lead in the second quarter and ceding little ground on defense. But the Boilermakers allowed a last-minute touchdown before the half, and they couldn't string together an offensive drive in the second half until it was too late.
Danny Etling had a relatively good game – 27 of 40, 234 yards, two TDs and two INTs – but Purdue's offense was as maneuverable as a half-deflated hot air balloon. Give credit to wide receiver DeAngelo Yancey for being a ray of sunshine in the loss, but this is likely the peak of Purdue's season.
| School | W-L | Rank | Prev |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio State | 2-1 | 1 | 7 |
| Nebraska | 3-0 | 2 | 12 |
| Michigan State | 1-1 | 3 | 1 |
| Penn State | 3-0 (1-0) | 4 | 6 |
| Michigan | 2-1 | 5 | 10 |
| Maryland | 2-1 | 6 | 8 |
| Rutgers | 2-1 (0-1) | 7 | 2 |
| Wisconsin | 1-1 | 8 | 5 |
| Purdue | 1-2 | 9 | 14 |
| Indiana | 1-1 | 10 | 4 |
| Iowa | 2-1 | 11 | 11 |
| Minnesota | 2-1 | 12 | 3 |
| Illinois | 2-1 | 13 | 9 |
| Northwestern | 0-2 | 14 | 13 |
Nebraska 55, Fresno State 19
Nebraska did what overwhelming favorites are supposed to do and dominated Fresno State on the road. Tommy Armstrong Jr. was an efficient distributor en route to a 34-5 lead, and the Blackshirts shut down the Bulldogs' offense until the game was out of reach.
The only downside: the game was played in prime time on the West Coast, meaning the game ended at a bedtime-unfriendly 1:30 AM Eastern Time. Come on, Nebraska, some of us need beauty sleep.
And who sat out this week?
- Michigan State thanked its lucky stars that it cut ties with Jayru Campbell.
- Northwestern tried not to think about being 0-6 after bye weeks under Pat Fitzgerald.
- Wisconsin continued to help Joel Stave as he battles the yips.
That's all for this week. Week 4 features some great matchups: Iowa-Pittsburgh, Maryland-Syracuse, Utah-Michigan, Indiana-Missouri, Rutgers-Navy and Nebraska-Miami. And remember: no matter how bad the Big Ten is, it could always be worse.
