Michigan's Resurgence One of Many Surprises as Big Ten Season Begins

The Big Ten season is now upon us, and who would have thought that Michigan would be 3-0, Michigan State would be 1-2, and the Big Ten would lose two games to the MAC? I don't think anyone could honestly say this is how they saw it.

I know I didn't.

I expected Michigan State to be 3-0 and Michigan to be 2-1 or 1-2. How three weeks can change an opinion. One play, one drive, one score, and it changes the way we look at this season. 

One thing we can also say is that the Big Ten will get absolutely no respect this year, and I don't think I could argue with that. Michigan, Penn State, Wisconsin, and Ohio State are a combined 11-1, the rest of the conference is 13-7.

Wisconsin is not that good, Michigan is still working on 'teachable moments,' and Ohio State needs to get TP to feel more comfortable in the offense. So even with the top teams 11-1, it's a bit misleading.

Penn State is the one team that looks as though it could play in a BCS bowl this year. They have experience all over the field, and a QB and RB who want to revenge last years mistake against Iowa.

With a few teams below .500 in non-conference play, I expect Michigan State to be the one to bounce back. Their defense is too good, and should be better in Big Ten play. 

The Big Ten season always plays tougher than people would think. It's not that they are better than any other conference, but when they play each other, they play hard from start to finish.

Expectations are now turned upside down and inside out. But that's about all the non-conference schedule did for the Big Ten. It told a tale of weak teams, who lost to MAC schools, who play with less talent, supposedly. 

Michigan was by far the biggest surprise. A team diluted of talent last year has rebuilt overnight to stun Notre Dame, becomes ranked in the AP poll, and beat two interstate teams. They played well on some plays, they played poorly on others. Overall, the only thing that matters is the record, 3-0.

Five teams in total finished these first three weeks with a 3-0 record, with Michigan leading the way in points scored, 114. Penn State allowed the least points with 20, showing why they may be the team to beat in the Big Ten.

Defense wins championships, and it doesn't hurt to have a pretty good offense too.

The biggest surprise was Central Michigan's win over Michigan State. It doesn't mean all too much now that the BT season is on the horizon, but it gives us insight into what kind of teams they are.

Iowa barely survived Northern Iowa, but beat Iowa St. and Arizona pretty handily. Indiana was the fifth 3-0 team in the conference, and had trouble with both Eastern Kentucky and Western Michigan. 

Michigan State looked like the old Michigan State, losing games they should win, blowing leads they should hold, and allowing their mistakes to cost them the game. D'Antonio has preached discipline and it seems to cost them at least one game so far, will it cost them anymore? I'm not sure.

Although State has lost two games, they played hard, and should have won both of them. Kirk Cousins looks like he should lead them through the Big Ten this year. He possesses a strong arm, and a leadership role for these Spartans. In his loss to Notre Dame, he threw for 300 yards and a couple of TD's. 

Northern Illinois was the other MAC team to win, but that wasn't too far fetched. Purdue was not looked at as a serious contender for anything Big Ten. But to be like Michigan and Illinois of last year, and Michigan State this year, losing to teams they should beat does not bode well for the conference.

Michigan should continue their winning ways when they open the BT season against Indiana on Saturday. Both teams come into the Big House undefeated and Michigan should be the one that leaves unscathed. 

Defense was less than stellar in first half; Redeem themselves in second half

Michigan had trouble in the first half against Eastern's offense on Saturday. The Eagles had time of possession won, and were looking as though they were going to try to shock the Big House; scoring 17 points and only trailing by seven heading into the third quarter. 

Michigan, however, wouldn't allow that this year. The passing game was off, if non-existent, and they would lean on the the o-line and deep stable of running backs to win this game. Amassing 380 yards on the ground was a great sign that the offensive line is growing and the playbook is coming together. 

The other problem, well, that was the defense. They played the first half on their heels, and it showed in t.o.p. The defense did not look great. In the second half, they seemed to adjust and drop a goose egg on Eastern's offense. 

Boubacar Cissoko looked like he was favoring his hip or his leg. Every time I saw him after a play, he looked like he was out of the game and limping around. Hopefully, it isn't much. 

A side note: I was also stunned that the referees were making late review calls, misjudging pass interference calls, and downright slowing the game down because they didn't feel their gut was right. I was less than thrilled with them today.