In a 12-hour span on an early fall Saturday, the Big 10 plummeted from a legitimate contender for the nation’s top football conference to the ranks of the sullied and beaten.
Old standbys Michigan and Ohio State, along with promising newcomer Iowa, all began the 2005 season ranked among the nation’s elite.
Michigan entered the weekend ranked No. 3 by the Associated Press; Ohio State No. 4; and Iowa No. 8.
Three teams from one conference ranked in the AP poll’s top EIGHT. Three teams from one conference wake up Sunday morning with losses.
Maligned on the national scene for several seasons, this season would prove to the country that the Big 10 could still play a little football. Overlooked by the powerful SEC and Big 12 conferences, which top to bottom feature explosive offenses and incredible speed defenses, the Big 10 banked on bringing itself back to prominence through a deep and talented league.
Besides the Michigan, Ohio State and Iowa trio, Purdue lurked as a preseason darkhorse, ready to make the leap should any – or all – of the favorites falter.
Instead of spearheading a resurgence of the league, however, the “Big Three” came crashing down last weekend, culminating in red faces from State College, Pa., to Minneapolis, Mn.
Michigan took the initial fall, losing its nationally televised showdown with longtime rival Notre Dame, 17-10.
The Wolverines, critics argued, would build on last season’s thrilling Rose Bowl loss to Texas behind a young offense. Sophomores-to-be, QB Chad Henne and RB Michael Hart, would team with senior wideout Steve Breaston to give the Maize and Blue a balanced and high-scoring offense.
The only concern was a porous defense. But heck, with the talent stockpiled on the offensive side, who needed a defense? Michigan would outscore its opponents. A trip to the Rose Bowl was an attainable goal.
With apologies to Lee Corso, Not so fast my friend!
As the showdown in Ann Arbor unfolded, strangely it was the Michigan offense that sputtered. The defense played superbly, limiting the Irish to 244 total yards of offense – including 104 on the ground.
But the super-charged offensive unit never got on track, particularly the vaunted rushing attack. Michigan accumulated 114 hard-fought rushing yards (at 3.9 yards/carry). If you blinked, you missed Hart’s contributions: three carries, four yards.
Michigan’s frustrations came to a boil midway through the fourth quarter. Trailing 17-3, the Wolverines drove inside the ND five-yard line. The drive stalled, however, when Henne muffed a snap. The Irish recovered inside the endzone, effectively ending Michigan’s comeback hopes.
Around the time Michigan’s hopes faded, Iowa kicked off against intrastate rival Iowa State. Perhaps the most anticipated season in the program’s history, Kirk Ferentz preached caution all summer long, downplaying his highly regarded team.
Hawkeye fans – along with regional and national media – ignored Ferentz’s worries, believing it was typical coach speak. Iowa, coming off three straight 10-win seasons, featured All-Big 10 QB Drew Tate, LB’s Abdul Hodge and Chad Greenway, and a healthy stable of running backs.
Everyone in the Hawkeye state salivated at the prospects of Iowa, led by a coach increasingly labeled as the country’s best, rolling through the Big 10 and securing a date in the Rose Bowl.
No one saw this one coming.
Heading a couple of hours west to Ames, the Hawkeyes’ national title aspirations were swallowed in a whirlwind of crimson defensive dominance.
Iowa State completely dominated the Hawkeyes from the get-go. Iowa fumbled on the game’s third play – the first of four turnovers on the day – and after a three-and-out drive yielded minus-6 yards, Iowa again turned the ball over on its third possession.
Iowa State converted that second turnover into a two-play, 12-yard scoring drive, grabbing a 6-0 lead it would never relinquish in a 23-2 thrashing.
Not only did the Hawkeyes trail the entire game, they never seriously threatened Iowa State. Compounding problems for Iowa, Tate suffered a concussion after making a tackle on an interception return – an INT that was the result of Tate overthrowing his intended target by five yards.
Iowa fans can take solace in history. Last season, Arizona State annihilated the Hawkeyes in an early-season nonconference game before Iowa rebounded to reach the Capital One Bowl and notch a 10-win season.
While Ferentz’s crew could still duplicate that performance, it appears unlikely following the Ames debacle. Even if it does happen, the team and its rabid fan base would be left unfulfilled, knowing an early September Saturday in Ames effectively squashed national title hopes.
Hopes that had been building for eight months.
After an afternoon of hope-crushing games, all eyes in the Big 10 turned toward Columbus for Ohio State’s primetime showdown against Texas.
Little did Ohio State know when it scheduled this monster battle against second-ranked Texas that it would be playing not just for Big 10 pride, but Big 10 legitimacy. In college football’s de facto playoff – its regular season – it was not a stretch to believe that any thoughts of the conference being represented in the BCS title game rested on Ohio State.
And with a fellow top-five ranked team lining up opposite of the Buckeyes, OSU’s toughest regular season game was now. In other words, a Buckeye loss would likely shut the Big 10 out of the BCS picture.
In the second weekend of September.
Early on, it looked like Vince Young was personally inserting the dagger into the Big 10’s heart, helping the Longhorns jump to a 10-0 lead. But after the initial shock, OSU’s defense, led by the nation’s best linebacker A.J. Hawk, bounced back and gave the Buckeyes a 16-10 lead.
However, Jim Tressel’s quarterback controversy reared its ugly head even as OSU rallied to take the lead. Twice in the opening half, Hawk set the offense up inside Texas territory. And twice Ohio State settled for field goals.
Sure enough, those points loomed large by game’s end. When Texas completed its thrilling 25-22 victory, not only did it mark a loss for Ohio State, it marked a loss for the Big 10.
Not just for the weekend, but very likely, for the entire season. A season that began with so much promise quickly dissipated into extreme disappointment.
The Year of the Big 10? Not so fast my friend.
5 replies on “Bright hopes turn to ashes for Big 10”
osu is still ranked in the top ten so if were lucky and the bcs screws everything up like it uasully does, they may have a chance to make a big bowl game.
Hmmmm I won’t tell you how, but I have a feeling that your prediction that the Big 10 will be out of the BCS series is incorrect. (Automatic Bid)?
Big Ten Is Not Alone. I know the Big Ten had some losses this week, but two of those games were against great football teams. If Ohio State would have won the game then everyone would be saying how bad the Big 12’s top teams are. As we all know, Oklahoma is not looking to stellar these days. On the other hand, you are right about the Big Ten not having a good showing in big match ups. It was definitely a bad week for the Big Ten.
BCS Title game Yes, the Big 10 will have a representative in the BCS via the automatic bid.
I was referring to the BCS Championship game, which this year will be the Rose Bowl. A Big 10 team will have to run the table from here on out, plus got a lot of help, in order to reach the BCS title game.
hey genius Most teams will have to run the table to get to the title game from here, if not every team, in the entire country.