College Football 2011: Who Will Be the Best Rookie Coach in Big Ten Football?
You might argue that Bo Pelini of Nebraska is a first-year coach in the Big Ten, but he's no rookie head coach. He has brought life and victories back into the Nebraska football program. Pelini is 30-12 in three years with the Cornhuskers.
Let's take a look at the four rookie head coaches for 2011 and rate their chances in the revamped, two-division Big Ten Conference.
Ohio State's Luke Fickell: Can Talent Overcome the Blemish on the Program?
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Luke Fickell is now the interim head coach of the Ohio State Buckeyes for the entire 2011 Big Ten football season. Due to Jim Tressel's resignation, Fickell's tour of duty was extended from five to 12 or 13 games.
Terrelle Pryor's decision not to return to Ohio State probably makes handling the difficult decision of who plays quarterback for the Buckeyes a bit easier. Whoever Fickell chooses won't be looking over his shoulder for Pryor to start Game 6 on the schedule.
The choices at QB are senior Joe Bauserman, who seems to be the choice if you want to play "Tressel Ball," or freshman Braxton Miller, who is considered the quarterback of the future. Thankfully, the winner of the quarterback derby has some solid talent around him.
Despite Dan Herron's five-game suspension, the Buckeyes have a trifecta of capable running backs ready to go in Jordan Hall, Jaamal Berry and Rod Smith. Wide receiver may be a question mark for the first five games, while wide receiver DeVier Posey sits out his suspension.
Though the Buckeye defense is untested as a group, they have plenty of talent. Nate Williams and John Simon will anchor their line, Johnathan Hankins should be able to patrol the middle of the defense and the secondary features playmakers Travis Howard and Tyler Moeller.
Fickell's biggest challenge is to prevent the off-the-field stuff to distract his team. He's got Wisconsin to contend with in the Leaders Division and Michigan State and Nebraska as potential headaches from the Legends Division.
Ohio State could win the Leaders Division if they can beat Wisconsin on October 29th.
Michigan's Brady Hoke: Can He Restore the Tradition and Win in the Big Ten?
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Brady Hoke stepped into a Michigan job that is steeped in tradition. The memories of legendary coach Bo Schembechler never seem to fade in Ann Arbor.
Now the former U of M assistant coach and San Diego State head coach must prove he can win in the Big Ten, and he's blessed with some talent that could put the Wolverines easily above .500 this year. The two items that must get better are quarterback Denard Robinson and Michigan's defense.
Robinson was featured in another article as one of the Big Ten quarterbacks to watch, and he can be both spectacular and unpredictable. He was responsible for 32 touchdown as he scored 14 running with the ball and threw 18 touchdown passes. The problems were offensive turnovers and a porous defense.
The major repairs needed on defense are now the responsibility of former Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Greg Mattison. Mattison is a former U of M defensive coordinator and a friend of head coach Hoke.
Three Wolverines who stood out on defense in spring practice are nose tackle Mike Martin, outside linebacker Jake Ryan and safety Carvin Johnson. If their teammates also improve, U of M won't be listed among the worst defenses in college football.
Iowa, Nebraska and Michigan State will be difficult to beat, so the Wolverines are not a Legends Division contender. However, if the players respond well to Hoke and his coaches, the Michigan program will take solid steps to restoring a winning tradition.
Indiana's Kevin Wilson: Facing New Challenges
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No one can accuse Kevin Wilson of playing it safe. He is considered one of the most creative and successful offensive coordinators in college football, and yet, he chose to leave the safety of his job at Oklahoma to be the head coach at Indiana.
Indiana is traditionally recognized as a basketball school, and the Hoosiers were a miserable 1-7 in the Big Ten last year. Wilson's first major task is to replace now graduated quarterback Ben Chappell.
Chappell was by far the Indiana offensive standout as he threw for 3,295 yards and tossed 24 touchdown passes His successor seems to be sophomore Dusty Kiel, who played well in the spring game.
Wilson is fortunate that 15 starters are returning from last year's squad. The new head coach will also benefit from running his spread offense with an experienced group of wide receivers.
Eight of the returning starters are on defense, so the new staff hopes to bring new success to this group.
Wilson might be able to duplicate last year's 5-7 record, though a lot will depend on how quickly his players adapt to his offensive and defensive playbooks.
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Minnesota's Jerry Kill: Can Success Elsewhere Bring Big Ten Success?
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Jerry Kill was a successful head coach at Saginaw Valley State in the 90s, Southern Illinois from 2001-07 and the last three years at Northern Illinois. Now, he opens the season as Minnesota's head coach with plenty of holes to fill and many questions about his team.
His first challenge is to replace the best player from last year's squad—now graduated quarterback Adam Weber. MarQueis Gray, a senior with limited Big Ten game experience, is the front-runner at QB.
The strength of the Gophers' offense, as in years past, may be in their running game. It features seniors Duane Bennett and DeLeon Eskridge, who was Minnesota's leading rusher in 2010.
Last season''s team leader in pass receptions—Da'Jon McKnightis out with a knee injury and the defense is still under reconstruction.
Kill and the Gophers have a tough schedule, which includes playing USC and three other top 25 teams in the preseason rankings. They may only match their 3-9 record from 2010.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
