A moment of silence, please, for the Big Ten.
The league’s demise played out in prime time Saturday night. Each click of the remote brought more damning news.
Oregon scoring the final 28 points against Michigan State in a 46-27 victory. Notre Dame posting its biggest margin of victory ever (31-0) in a now-defunct historic rivalry against Michigan, which was shut out for the first time in 365 games, dating to Oct. 27, 1984. Ohio State losing at home to Virginia Tech.
The Hokies’ interception return for a touchdown in the final minute of a 35-21 victory was a whopper of a topper on the Big Ten’s burial.
Not only did Ohio State, Michigan and Michigan State all lose on the same day for the first time since Sept. 17, 1988, according to ESPN, but Nebraska escaped with its ego battered and bruised after a close call with lower-division McNeese State, and Iowa needed a minor miracle to rally past Ball State in the final minutes.
Further down the food chain, Purdue lost to Central Michigan, and Northwestern went south against Northern Illinois.
Not a good look for the league.
The decay of the blood-and-guts league isn’t breaking news. The conference’s decline has been evident.
The league didn’t have a team play in the BCS national title game after Ohio State lost to LSU at the end of the 2007 season. What’s worse, if the playoff had been in effect in that span, 2013 Michigan State would have been the only Big Ten team to make the final four. The Spartans were fourth last season in the final BCS standings.
The problem is partly a simple matter of talent in an area that has a dwindling population and recruiting bases. Exhibit A: The Big Ten hasn’t produced a top 10 pick in any of the past six NFL drafts. The SEC has had 23 such players in the past six drafts.
Moreover, college football is all about coaching, and the Big Ten isn’t getting it done.
We’ll grant you Ohio State’s Urban Meyer. He is elite with a championship pedigree, able to recruit everywhere. He and the Buckeyes will be fine. He was simply dealt a bad hand this season when quarterback Braxton Miller, the would-be face of the Big Ten, suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in camp.
Likewise, no problem with Michigan State’s Mark Dantonio. His reigning Rose Bowl champs lost in Eugene on Saturday. So what? Everybody else in college football would likewise have been buried under the Ducks’ second-half avalanche.
But Michigan’s Brady Hoke is 3-7 in his past 10 games. Michigan fans don’t want to hear it, but the school would have been better off throwing its support behind Rich Rodriguez, who left behind the pieces for Hoke to go 11-2 in his 2011 debut. Since then, Hoke’s teams are 16-12 with a bunch of “filler” victories.
Nebraska’ Bo Pelini has established his baseline; each of his previous six seasons with the Huskers has ended with four losses. That’s just fine … at a lot of places outside of Lincoln, Neb. Penn State might have the right guy with James Franklin, but it’s still a long climb back from NCAA sanctions. Iowa Kirk Ferentz is a long-time winner but has produced double-digit victories just once in the past nine seasons. Wisconsin already has lost to LSU and its returning starting quarterback, Joel Stave, has been shut down because of a case of the “yips.”
Yikes.
So, will the league soon reverse its fortunes? Its luck can be better, but the roster of coaches doesn’t match those in the SEC or Pac-12, and league newcomers Maryland and Rutgers don’t add much beyond TV markets.
Saturday was the league’s best chance to stake a claim of relevancy in the College Football Playoff discussion. Can the Big Ten champ come out of what will be perceived all season as a watered-down league and still make the final four?
Michigan State has the best team and the best shot. Losing at Oregon shouldn’t be a fatal blow. The rest of the Big Ten has schedule strength/talent/injury problems.
There is good news for the Spartans. In the BCS era (1998-2013), there were four cases of a team losing one of its first two games and coming back to finish in the final four of the standings — 2000 Miami, 2001 Colorado, 2005 Ohio State and 2007 Virginia Tech.
That faint pulse is all the Big Ten has after being battered and bloodied on Saturday.
Five players to watch
Alabama WR Amari Cooper. Offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin is going to use Cooper like he used USC’s Marqise Lee in 2012 — screens, screens, screens and more screens. Cooper has 25 receptions for 319 yards through two games, leading the nation in both categories.
Oregon CB Ifo Ekpre-Olomu. His lay-out for a key fourth-quarter interception against Michigan State helps show why he would have been the first cornerback taken in the 2014 NFL Draft if he had come out early. The Ducks’ defense can be salty, too.
Eastern Washington QB Vernon Adams. He threw for 475 yards and seven touchdowns — the most ever against Washington — and nearly led the Eagles to an upset of the Huskies in Seattle. EWU lost 59-52, but watch for the diminutive Adams to keep burning up the red turf at Roos Field all the way to the FCS title game.
Arizona State RB D.J. Foster. The junior rushed for a career-high 216 yards against New Mexico, becoming the first Sun Devil to reach 200 yards on the ground since 2001. Foster’s skill set gives him a chance for 1,000 yards rushing AND receiving this season.
Pitt RB James Conner. The 250-pound emerging star has rushed for 367 yards (7.3 per carry) with five touchdowns in two games. The sophomore will be looking for more Saturday at weakling FIU, unless the Panthers only need him for a half of work.
The fizzling five
1. USC AD Pat Haden. He needs to stay in the press box and not run down to argue with the officials during the game. But for those calling for Haden’s removal from the College Football Playoff selection committee, what does one have to do with the other?
2. LSU RB Leonard Fournette’s Heisman pose. Don’t believe your own hype, kid. Scoring your first career touchdown, on a 4-yard run vs. Sam Houston State, is not the moment you want to put on a poster. “I think it is a little premature to launch a Heisman candidacy,” LSU coach Les Miles said about his touted true freshman after the game. “I think that he needs to realize, too, that this is his team and it has nothing to do with personal liberty. There were a lot of guys blocking for that run and a lot of effort and energy to help that man score that touchdown.”
3. Stanford’s power game. The Cardinal is still searching for a Toby Gerhart/Stepfan Taylor-like running back, and that helps explain its multiple red-zone failures Saturday. It’s simply stunning that the Cardinal advanced to no worse than the USC 32 on each of its drives, and still ended up with a 13-10 loss.
4. The Washington schools. Washington State thought it would be 2-0 against Rutgers and Nevada, not 0-2. Washington, which began the season in the AP rankings, barely escaped Hawaii and Eastern Washington — “consecutive head-scratchers,” as one Seattle columnist put it.
5. Coaching debuts at Texas and Vanderbilt. BYU beat Charlie Strong’s Longhorns 41-7, the worst home loss for UT since the infamous Rout 66 game against UCLA in 1997 when John Mackovic was in his last season on the Texas sideline. The Commodores’ Derek Mason, hailed as a savvy hire off the Stanford staff, has opened with a pair of ugly home losses — 37-7 to Temple, 41-3 to Ole Miss.
Five best Week 3 games
1. Georgia at South Carolina, Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET, CBS — The Gamecocks have a conference loss to Texas A&M but can still claim pole position in the SEC East. A Georgia victory, combined with a favorable schedule, will stamp the Dawgs as legitimate playoff material.
2. UCLA at Texas, Saturday, 8 p.m. ET, FOX — This has train-wreck value. UCLA has struggled to beat Virginia and Memphis. Texas fans thought things would get better in the first season under Charlie Strong before things got great. Oops. The one word Longhorns fans don’t want to hear: Patience.
3. East Carolina at Virginia Tech, Saturday, noon ET, ESPN — There is renewed interest in the Hokies, who try to follow up their win over Ohio State against a dangerous East Carolina team. The Pirates’ pass-catch combo of Shane Carden and Justin Hardy (11 catches, 133 yards vs. South Carolina on Saturday) will be a great matchup against Tech’s super secondary, including sophomore corners Kendall Fuller and Brandon Facyson.
4. Tennessee at Oklahoma, Saturday, 8 p.m. ET,. ABC — The Sooners get a prime-time showcase, while the young Vols will try to hang on against Oklahoma, Georgia and Florida in their next three games.
5. Penn State at Rutgers, Saturday, 8 p.m., ET, Big Ten Network — The Scarlet Knights play their first Big Ten game. That counts for something in a largely uninspiring week 3 schedule.
NFLDraftScout.com: Film Room Review
Senior Analyst Rob Rang’s five takeaways on how prospects performed in Week 2. Players listed including position, school, year (Height, weight and current NFLDraftScout.com overall rating and by position).
1. QB Marcus Mariota, Oregon, rJr. (6-4, 215, #1/#1)
Mariota showed off the intoxicating blend of athleticism and arm talent that has earned him the top spot on NFLDraftScout.com’s board in the Ducks’ 46-27 victory over Michigan State. He showed composure and resiliency in leading Oregon to 28 unanswered points, and played his best as the game tightened, completion passes requiring velocity, touch and accuracy while frequently buying time with his legs.
2. QB Connor Cook, Michigan State, rJr. (6-4, 220, #32/#5)
He looked like the more polished NFL prospect at times, but it was a mixed bag that included two interceptions. He did show good timing on slants and quick outs, excellent touch to drop passes over the shoulder of receivers down the sideline and, perhaps most impressive, composure to step up when the pocket collapsed while keeping his eyes downfield.
3. DL Leonard Williams, Southern Cal, Jr. (6-5, 290, #2/#1)
Williams saw most of his action at left end or sliding inside as a three-tech tackle. Despite an ankle injury, he showed impressive agility and acceleration, and had one of the game’s biggest plays with a sack of Stanford quarterback Kevin Hogan in the closing seconds of the 13-10 victory.
4. TE Jake McGee, Florida, Sr. (6-5, 265, #187/#9): The graduate student transfer from Virginia broke the tibia and fibula in his left leg. It is hoped he will be recovered in time to participate in the Scouting Combine in February. McGee possesses a long, athletic frame and enough speed to challenge down the seam.
5. LT Andrus Peat, Stanford, Jr. (6-7, 312, #8/#3)
Peat was moved to strong-side tight end early in the game and sealed Williams effectively. Later, Williams was lined up opposite Peat on 4th-and-goal from the 1 and knifed between Peat and the left guard to stuff the gap the Cardinals were attempting to run through.
–Every Sunday, college football insider Anthony Gimino reacts to page one topics from Saturday first, and then hits on 20 items over four subtopics of note looking ahead at next week.