Big Ten Football Morning Coffee: Montee Ball to Rush for Zero Yards on Saturday

Rise and shine, friends. Here's what's going down in the Big Ten today.

Montee Ball will officially not be participating in the spring game, according to Wisconsin, and that's probably just as well. James White and sophomore-to-be Melvin Gordon should both be capable of putting on a show for the fans (who will probably be sparse), and whatever this iteration of the Wisconsin offense looks like will be dramatically different once Danny O'Brien shows up anyway.

Michigan safety Josh Furman is facing trial on numerous charges, including domestic violence, assault and illegal entry. But two key witnesses testified that they weren't afraid of Furman at the time of the incident, they were trying to restrain him. It's going to be interesting to see what case the prosecution makes, because right now it looks like everyone involved is telling the judge that Furman didn't do anything wrong.

As far as on-field issues go for the Wolverines, Kyle Meinke notes that while it was nice to see Russell Bellomy and Thomas Rawls step up as key backup contributors at QB and RB respectively, the defensive line is nowhere near where it was last season.

Michigan State's redshirt freshman Darien Harris is making huge strides at linebacker, according to the Lansing State Journal. He's getting this opportunity because starter Chris Norman has been limited by injury, but with the way coaches are raving, it might not be a surprise to see Harris work his way into the rotation.

Beer! To those of you who can't sit through a three-hour college football game without the comfort of one, two, or many more than two tasty adult beverages (and we're guessing that comprises a lot of the Minnesota fan base), good news! At TCF Bank Stadium, Gopher fans will now be able to purchase beer at the game. Look, it's either that or watch Minnesota football sober. Your call.