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Big Ten Round Table Week 7: Northwestern Wildcats
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Northwestern's defense will likely not have much to
celebrate against Michigan State
(AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
A close win last weekend against FBS doormat Miami didn’t make fans of the Northwestern Wildcats happy. Neither did it do much for my prediction which had the ‘Cats easily covering the spread.
As the season goes on, it appears that the hope for a surprise Northwestern run is misplaced. This Northwestern team is more about survival than celebration.
And so they will have to keep on surviving through a tough Big Ten season. With Illinois and Indiana still remaining, it appears that a bowl game is likely, but to be safe, the ‘Cats will have to pull off one upset somewhere. Could it be this week against Michigan State?
I tackle that subject and more in this week’s Big Ten Round Table.
1. We are midway through (most) the college football season. Give us an assessment of where your team stands right now. If you had to give an overall grade, what would it be?
Northwestern would have to grade out as a C, because no team has been more decidedly average than the ‘Cats.
They just can’t seem to put teams away and that will likely hurt them again as the Big Ten season continues on.
Plus, the loss to Syracuse doesn’t help things.
The Wildcats still have a chance to make it to .500 in conference, but it would have been nice if they had taken care of business against Minnesota.
Instead, they have to hope for an upset against Iowa, or this weekend against Michigan State, the last two potential victims for the ‘Cats.
Either way, it appears, Northwestern has enough to get back to a bowl game, they just might not like the venue as much as San Antonio.
2. What is your take on the Big Ten at the midway point? Who surprised you, who let you down?
The Big Ten is showing itself to be a well-balanced league, nothing different than what I imagined at the beginning of the season. No one is spectacular in the group, but that is something that I think we are going to have to get used to in the Big Ten.
As far as surprises, on the good side, you have Iowa. I didn’t think that the pre-season rankings could possibly be correct, but Iowa have acquitted themselves well. And you have to like the way that Wisconsin has played for the most part.
On the bad side, Illinois’s collapse has just been pathetic. There is nothing worse than a team that looks like it has given up and it appears that the Illini are trying to get Ron Zook a pink slip. This was a team that should have been competing for one of the top three spots in the league. Instead, they should be lucky there is no relegation to the MAC.
3. First half offensive and defensive MVPs? Best coach of the first half?
Offensive MVP: It is strange year in the Big Ten. No player is really Heisman-worthy, which is a rarity. I have to go with Minnsota wide receiver Eric Decker, even though he was shut down slightly against Purdue.
Defensive MVP: O’Brien Schofield, Wisconsin – 6.5 sacks, 74 total tackles, 2 forced fumbles
Coach of the half: Kirk Ferentz -- He hasn't had the letdown that I thought his team was destined for. That alone is reason to give him this award.
4. How many bowl teams will the Big Ten have?
Unfortunately, 8 -- Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin.
I think the Big Ten would be better off if they would go a year where more teams were disappointed. It would rekindle some of the fire lost in the conference.
But that would require that they schedule real teams in the non-conference season, and that isn’t going to happen.
The sad thing is how many teams on the list will just be scraping in with 6 wins. Maybe the Big Ten deserves a grade: D for dreadfully boring.
5. As always, give us your take on your team this weekend!
Northwestern has a tough task traveling to Michigan State. Despite Michigan State’s multiple personalities, it looks more and more like they may be the better team this season.
I thought this one might go the ‘Cats’ way back in February. I think I am going to change that stance.
Unless Michigan State puts together one of their trademark meltdowns, the less than stellar defense that Northwestern has shown so far will not be able to contain them.
Michigan State 35 Northwestern 18
6. The Big Ten has agreed to a deal with the Gator Bowl that will pit a Big Ten team against a team from the SEC. Do you like the new bowl lineup that has three New Year's Day bowl games against SEC opponents before the Rose Bowl?
The Big Ten really likes pain. That is the only scenario where scheduling three games against the deep SEC conference makes sense.
First of all, bowl games on New Year’s Day and after should be a rare thing, for any conference. It should be reserved for only the best of the best, and not a grab at filling drab television schedules.
Jamming this many inter-conference games on one day with the same two conferences just doesn’t make for a compelling story.
Second, when you look at how deep the SEC can go and still put a quality product on the field, the Big Ten cannot compete. The conference would have a hard time if they sent their number three team against the SEC’s number seven team.
There is just such a wide disparity of talent that a close standing comparison will rarely end up with a tally in the win column for the guys up north.
Add to that another trashing in the Rose Bowl, and the Big Ten will not see a respectable bowl record for some time.
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