One thing I love about college football is the great traditions: Running through the T, UGA VI, Roll Tide, Dotting the I, Touchdown Jesus, Hail to the Victors, Rocky Top, the list goes on and on.
Of course there are some traditions that need to go away. One of them is the Big Ten's idea of "Power Football" which to the rest of the college football world means, SLOW.
Now for full disclosure I am a Tennessee fan, but I spent a good deal of time living in Ohio so I know plenty about Big Ten football. It is not just Ohio State in the BCS Championship games the past two years, it is the conference as a whole compared to the SEC.
Every time someone writes a column about how slow or behind the times Big Ten football is, all the fans do is rush to defend their conference and do not stop to look at the facts.
Since the start of the BCS era in 1998, the SEC has won four BCS Title games: Tennessee in 1998, Florida in 2006, and LSU in 2003 and 2007 (add to that Auburn could have had their shot in 2004). Compare that to the lone Big Ten BCS Champion, Ohio State in 2002.
Overall, the SEC is 11-4 in all BCS games and the Big Ten is 8-9. Want more? The SEC won all four of its BCS games the past two years by a combined score of 161-62. While the Big Ten lost all four BCS games the past two years by a combined score of 90-73.
Now, people can point out some Big Ten wins over SEC schools the past two years such as Michigan over Florida in the 2008 Capital One Bowl or Penn State over Tennessee in the 2007 Outback Bowl. However, those are not the games people will remember. Most fans only remember the games by the teams at the top.
Big Ten school, media, and fans need to admit they have a problem against schools in the SEC, Pac-10, and Big XII. they need to get faster and stop believing in "Three yards and a cloud of dust."
One weakness that the Big Ten has compared to the SEC is that their media is not as tough. Look at what happens once a coach in the SEC starts to struggle, they are gone. Look at Ed Orgeron at Ole Miss, after three dismal years he is gone and they go out and bring in Houston Nutt (who had a bad end at Arkansas).
Now take a look at Kirk Ferentz at Iowa. After the huge win over LSU in the 2005 Capital One Bowl, the next three years Iowa went 7-5, 6-7, and 6-6. Do you think Kirk Ferentz would be the coach at Iowa right now if the Hawkeyes were in the SEC? No way! The fans and media would demand his head.
Once the Big Ten admits they have a problem, they can finally stop defending their "power football" and work to fix the problem and recruit all speed and not just one or two players, because all the other speed players are headed down south and the only time Big Ten teams will see that speed is when they are running by them in the BCS Championship Game.
27 comments Last one added 11 months ago — Leave a Comment
Justin Goar about 1 year ago
ok, i'm taking the pop corn i didn't finish with the 6-6 jayhawk article and settling in to await the responses.
good luck, michael!!!
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Jimson Cuenta about 1 year ago
LSU FOOTBALL
A TRADITION . . . SINCE AUGUST 2003
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Justin Goar about 1 year ago
are you baiting me, jimson?
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Nic Gulas about 1 year ago
Jimson, I agree with that LSU statement, but thats still 4 times as long as the tradition that is Kansas football, a tradition since last September.
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Tim Pollock about 1 year ago
I guess I don't get it.
Admit they have a problem? Like at an intervention? Who is going to admit this problem on behalf of the entire Big 10?
This is going to get ugly...
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Alex Whang about 1 year ago
Michigan - Spread
Purdue - Spread
Minnesota - Spread
Northwestern - Spread
Indiana - Spread
Illinois - Spread
Ohio State - Spread (2 seasons ago) - will implement some spread looks with Terelle Pryor
Penn State - Spread (3 seasons ago) - will implement spread again with Daryll Clark as the new starter
Michigan State, Iowa, Wisconsin are the only teams in the Big 11 that can say they actually run a traditional Big Ten power offense. (Michigan State also ran a spread offense 2 seasons ago fyi)
Though the SEC has definitely been the more successful conference of late I don't know how attributing the difference in success can be placed on Big Ten Teams failure to move past power football, because by my count 8 of 11 teams will be running a variation of the spread next season.
Also, just because Big Ten teams may not have beaten an SEC team on the biggest stage, I don't know how you can automatically dismiss the victories by Michigan and Penn State. By your logic, if fans don't remember it than it doesn't really matter, so i guess since most people can't remember who won the national title in 1938 I guess that means Tennessee didn't actually win it that year.
I also don't follow how fan and media pressure translates to the increased success of one conference over the other. Ed Ogeron wasn't fired because of higher media scrutiny, he was fired because he made a bone head coaching decision in handing over the starting QB job to Brent Schaefer before he landed on campus and went winless in SEC play for the first time in 25 years.
You state facts time and time again how the SEC has fared better than the Big Ten, however your argument has numerous holes and fails to show how Power football has actually led to the disparity in success between the Big Ten and SEC.
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Michael Shibley about 1 year ago
It has more to do with total team speed. Yes I understand that guys like Pryor and Clark are speed guys, however they are only one of a few on the team. Compare that to the SEC teams where the whole team can fly to the ball.
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Adam Rothlisberger about 1 year ago
I disagree with a few of the teams you put on there that you claim run the spread.... for one.. Michigan never ran a spread. When Michael Robinson was qb at Penn State he lined up in shotgun... but they never ran the spread. Iowa with Brad Banks ran more of a spread than either one of those two teams.
Anyways Mike... the Big 10 doesn't really have any problems.. a lot of teams are starting to implement the spread offense now as Alex stated and the only team with more speed than anyone in the Big 10 would be Florida. LSU wasn't really all that much faster than Ohio State in the NC last year.. they were just clearly the better team. Wisconsin only lost to Tennessee last year in their bowl game by 4 points and were in position to win. So if your whole theory is correct maybe Tennessee doesn't really belong in the SEC?.. because according to you because they are in the SEC they are way faster and should have destroyed such a powerful team like Wisconsin right? Not to mention the year before when Wisconsin beat Arkansas in their bowl game and only let DMAC run for 89 yards... know how many yards he ran for on Tennessee that year... 181.
My only point is that ya the SEC is the best conference right now in terms of athletes... but they are just as top heavy as any other conference.
SEC has: Florida, Auburn, Georgia, LSU, Tennessee.
Big 10 has: Ohio State, Wisconsin, Penn State, Michigan.
Pac 10 has: USC, Oregon.
ACC has: Virginia Tech, Clemson, Miami.
Big 12 has: Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Texas A&M
These are just the list of teams expected to be good next year... every conference has a sleeper or two but just looking at that list pretty much tells the story that every conference is in the same boat as the Big 10 in being top heavy.. including the SEC.
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john brewer about 1 year ago
you forgot to mention in your artcle about the fact that ohio state has beaten an SEC team ONCE since 1931.
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Adam Rothlisberger about 1 year ago
Ya because they play against so many of them every year.. plus i never made this argument for the sake of Ohio State either... I was talking about the Big 10 has a whole... in case you didn't read what I even wrote.
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craig bullis about 1 year ago
Actually, they have are 3-10-1 since 1931 against SEC, 7-11-2 all-time. Bowl record is 0-9, but regular season record all-time is 7-1-2. Record against LSU is 1-1-1.
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john brewer about 1 year ago
no adam i read it. i just picked osu as an example. any way you slice the pie, the amount of repsect vs. the truth is way out of wack when it comes to the big ten. using osu as another example. how many top ten teams has osu played in the regular season in the last ten years? 9 think about that. it means there conference is weak. really weak. and top heavy? the reason you are mentioning osu michigan penn state and wisconsin is because the conference is bottom heavy. and those four teams regularly beat each other. these SEC teams have been in the top ten in the last 10 years. uga florida alabama south carolina tennessee auburn lsu kentucky arkansas. that is 9 out of 12 the other three vandy mississippi and miss state have each beaten just about all of those teams in the last 10 years. take a look at http//preseason.stassen.com/over-under/teams.html notice the number of teams you used in your example are at the bottom of the list. led by the mighty over over over rated michigan wolverines. this kind of thing is what gets so much going when the truth is told. also notice the florida is always over-rated. but that is espn for you. the SEC hates ESPN. for example collegegameday has been to gainesville 12 times since the show started. it has been to athens 1 time since the show started. who has won more football games in the last ten years uga or florida? uga. get the picture?
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Adam Rothlisberger about 1 year ago
Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin, Iowa, Michigan, and Illinois have all been ranked in the top ten the last 10 years... you mentioned 9.. I mentioned 6.... HUGE difference?... not at all. Michigan must be terrible and overrated.. wait a second they beat Florida... explain that to me please?!... Look I'm not claiming that the Big 10 is better than the SEC.. I'm simply pointing out the facts that the SEC is top heavy like every other conference.... the Big 10 has 4 legit teams this year and that is excluding Michigan who nobody really knows yet what will happen there. If Bama doesn't perform well this year then the SEC will only have 4-5 legit teams.. and the 5th is only if you consider Tennessee legit...
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Ben Weixlmann about 1 year ago
The Big 10 is one of the best conferences year in and year out...I don't know where you're getting at.
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Michael Shibley about 1 year ago
They are a good conference right now...not one of the best. Right now the SEC and Big XII are much better top to bottom and the Pac-10 is better as well. Just look at what USC has done to the Big Ten teams in the Rose Bowls the past few years.
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Ben Weixlmann about 1 year ago
Look what USC's athletic department has done the past few years.
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bowlbasaur golden bears about 1 year ago
lol the "big ten speed" is a giant myth... you really think if you lined up all the players in the big 10 and all the players in the SEC and averaged their 40 times they'd be much different? nope
however if you want to make an argument, you can say "SEC has better line play by its top teams", or "SEC has better coaching top to bottom" or something that actually is relevant
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Jonah Booker about 1 year ago
Typical SEC fans flaming!! No wonder the rest of the country talks down on SEC fans. Their basic lack of knowledge when it comes to football is non existent. I love how teams in the SEC haven't done a d**n thing lately and they live off the conference hype. Hint Hint Tenn!!
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Justin Goar about 1 year ago
"Their basic lack of knowledge when it comes to football is non existent."
i agree 100%.
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Mark Rupert about 1 year ago
Big 10 denial, at least its constant, no matter what the results. Good article. I guess you have to be a SEC fan to understand.
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blake gantz about 1 year ago
This is the most idiotic blog post I've seen in a long while. Talk about ignorance.
"Now, people can point out some Big Ten wins over SEC schools the past two years such as Michigan over Florida in the 2008 Capital One Bowl or Penn State over Tennessee in the 2007 Outback Bowl. However, those are not the games people will remember. Most fans only remember the games by the teams at the top."
Oh great...just throw out the games that don't support your argument. I'm sure you'll toss out Wisconsin beating Arkansas in the 2007 capital one bowl as well. And I'm sure you think Tennessee sure looked much faster in that narrow 4-point victory over Wisconsin last year don't you?
"Big Ten school, media, and fans need to admit they have a problem against schools in the SEC, Pac-10, and Big XII. they need to get faster and stop believing in "Three yards and a cloud of dust.""
The Big 12?? Right....because Ohio State sure looked slow when they pounded Texas in 2006 down in Austin...or when they barely lost to the eventual champion Texas team in 2005 in Columbus. They sure looked slow obliterating a Les Miles coached OK State team in 2004 as well. Hell, have you already forgotten that Ohio State won a national championship in 2002 after beating a Miami team oozing with speed and talent?
Your problem is you're only viewing what Ohio State has done the past 2 years in the title games. Losing to Florida was a problem of overconfidence and a lack of respect for Florida. But give the Gators credit, they were the better team. Then losing to LSU was a matter of an OSU team that was "rebuilding" ending up in a title game when everyone in front of them lost. They weren't supposed to even be in that game. Don't fault OSU for getting beat by a 100% healthy LSU team that was the best in the country. LSU was better.
I'm sure you think OSU would finish 5th in the SEC like Tommy Tuberville...but I guess by that account, Florida would finish what...4th in the Big Ten last year since they got beaten by Michigan with "power" football right?
If you want facts, here's the facts: The big ten has a 95-78 record all time against the SEC.
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Michael Shibley about 1 year ago
It is not throwing out games that don't support my argument. The BCS games are the games that are the big games that people remember. When the chips have been down the past few years, the Big Ten teams have whiffed. It is not just Ohio State the past two years, in the last five Rose Bowl's the Big Ten has been in, they are 0-5. When you have the top teams playing each other in the bowl games the SEC and Pac-10 have dominated the Big Ten.
When given a month to prepare for the BCS bowl games, the SEC and USC have out coached the Big Ten teams.
And I do know about the all-time record but many of those wins happened when the Big Ten had the best brand of football. The SEC has it now and the Big Ten will eventually need to change or get left even further behind. But hey if OSU beats USC and then wins the National Title by beating an SEC team then I'll change my opinion.
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Ryan Staab about 1 year ago
How easily people forget that had Missouri beaten Oklahoma (like they were supposed to) and West Virgina beat Pitt (again, like they were supposed to) Ohio State wouldn't have been in New Orleans facing LSU. I don't think anyone expected both those upsets to happen (then again, the 2007 season was insane in terms of upsets), and I remember how happy everyone at Ohio State was just to go to the Rose Bowl (anyone else remember the team and fans passing out roses after beating Michigan?)
Yeah, Ohio State had no business playing LSU that year, but had other teams done what they were supposed to, we wouldn't even be having this conversation. I'm as disappointed as anyone else that the Buckeyes lost to LSU, but c'mon people, take into consideration that Ohio State wasn't the only team from last year not playing up to their BCS ranking.
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Brett Lissenden about 1 year ago
You're suggestions in the article are ridiculous. Just because Ohio State has been trounced two years in a row does not mean the entire Big Ten is bad. The SEC has been great the past few years and far better than the Big Ten, but the Big Ten has been consistenly better than pretty much all other conferences except maybe the Big 12. It's not just a matter of speed over power as you suggest -- I'd take any Big Ten team over Miami's speed right now. I agree that Ohio State has embarassed themselves and I think they should be outlawed from the next few national championships, but you can't pin their failures on the Big Ten as a whole. Hopefully the Big Ten teams can figure out how to beat Ohio State this year.
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Mike Dahmus about 1 year ago
So the SEC is better than the Big Ten as long as you only count the top games; because after that the other teams (Tennessee) are so demoralized they just phone it in, while the Big Ten teams (Penn State) are delusional enough to think the games matter for something? (you're our bitches)?
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chris thacker about 1 year ago
nice sophomoric and biased article
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Nathan Blunck 11 months ago
when you look at articles like this, recent history is all that matters unfortunately. has the SEC surpassed the Big 10 in terms of quality football? the argument can be--and has been--abundantly made. i'm an iowa fan so i'm a little biased towards the big ten. i'm going to point to iowa as my case in point. beat florida in 2004 outback bowl (?), beat lsu in 2005 bowl game, and got royally screwed by the refs in the 2006 outback bowl against florida--the hawks didn't play well, but they were 1 onside kick away from making it really interesting. florida fans don't want to look back at any of those games because they won the championship in '07. i'll give the SEC this decade, maybe even the late 90's. so fifteen years of dominance. soon the Pac-10 will get their run where they have more than USC on a consistent basis, then the Big 12 will get more than Texas and OU (i think this has started, see kansas, missouri, and texas tech). bottom line is cycles happen everywhere. will the big 10 fade into irrelevance? no. will the SEC always be the most dominant conference in the nation? no. pride comes before the fall. SEC wins for now, but who's next
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