Week 2 Big Ten Thread...

B.A.R.

B.A.R.

CTG Partner
Staff member
Interesting week for the new conference....

One comment on each game...


Rutgers came out flat, but that was a nice 2h. Good coaching pays off at halftime and this was the case...

Rainy game in Minneapolis, Gophers have to run the ball better...

Altmyer looked solid enough in the basically exhibition...

Michigan State rebuild will take time. That is an ugly team right now. Chiles is the anointed savior but he needs some work and does not have a lot of surrounding talent...

So, Wisconsin was losing early in the 4th to Western. Nice 4th, but I was expecting a bit more from this team...

Penn State played a mostly complete game, With the schedule, and how this team is shaping up, playoffs are on the horizon...

The Paper Champions, OSU, seemed to have some offensive issues early on before turning things up a notch. Watch out for inflated lines here at times.... very public team this year...

A bit of a misleading score in Eugene... a few SODs coupled with some FG misses and basically racking up yards between the 20's will lead to this sort of score....

We need to note that Iowa had a 6-0 halftime lead... all the memes were alive and well at halftime....

The Maryland score is ultra impressive to me. I have respect for the Uconn coach. I was not expecting a blowout at all. Billy Edwards with 390 yards and they had over 250 yards rushing as a team...

All deference goes to PaintCrew on his Boilermakers. I saw nothing here. Card and Mockabee stats check out for sure...

Indiana is still a mystery team for me. Game 1 was full of good defense and an excellent rushing attack....

Nebraska looked very good. The 500 yards of offense was very balanced and Raiola seemed to acquit himself very well...

Northwestern and Miami-O playing each other should be outlawed. This is bad for everyone's eyes...

Oh goodness, UCLA is not well-coached and could easily be 0-1. This is the bottom side of the conference team...

Slow start for the Huskies but they turned things on late 2q and in the 2nd half...

Classic Big Ten win for the Trojans in Vegas. Weird game overall and USC defense is still not good -- but Moss is good...

Slow start for the champs -- the QB and WR position is simply lacking right now -- defense is elite -- officials were not good -- that defense is elite again at least.,.



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Indiana with another warm-up, we'll have to wait to see what they are truly all about...

The Academic Bowl is slated for Friday night this year. I'd expect nothing more than a low-scoring ugly game here. The total is set accordingly...

Texas and Michigan is the first game this year that really showcases what the new CFB landscape will bring us with more great regular season games. No need to bet Texas -7 right now. You missed the boat all summer and even on the openers. Might as well wait at this point or start to ponder both sides...

Hefty number for Penn State versus BGSU but we know home game Franklin and spreads. Keep that in my mind for possible 2h plays...

I'm not giving any dignity to a Minnesota and Rhode Island game...

Let's see if Rutgers can sustain a full game. This is a chance to get that offense clicking a bit. The other worry is Howard moved the ball a few times pretty well last week...

Classic battle in Iowa and Iowa State. I'd expect the usual there...

Maryland looked fantastic last week. I'll be interested to see if they can keep that offense up. The MSU defense is still a question mark for me, simply do to opponent last week. I think they are mid though overall. Terps program needs a solid DD win here to show me they are in that next level of the conference....

Skipping a few...

Kansas and Illinois is a game I have a lot of excitement for. I am a closet Jayhawk fan this season and would love to see a win here. We need to see how improved this KU defense is and this game is a barometer with a middle level offense as the opponent. This is also a good test for the Jayhawk offense...

I'd expect a quicker start from OSU this week -- that being said the OL and QB have been issues in camp so we'll see how quickly those areas start to shore up. Western with the nice effort in Madison --- this one is simply how long do they last until the floodgates open...

I think Nebraska could demolish the Colorado Buffaloes. I have several ideas for this game already that I'll share later (hopefully no one has those ideas yet)...

Oregon and Boise renew their rivalry... that Boise game last week was wild (56-45). Boise with nearly 4000 yards rushing but the defense was quite porous... lets see if Oregon can complete drives this week...

Utah St invades The Coliseum Saturday night... Short week USC...USU took care of Bobby Morris in week #1. The aggie gave up some yards though...


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Games I'll be stalking betting-wise


Penn State vs Bowling Green


USC vs Utah State


Oregon vs Boise State


Nebraska vs Colorado


Maryland vs Michigan State



Alright, more on Texas and Michigan as we proceed into the week.

Discuss!
 
HUNT said:
How do you feel about your terps this weekend doc?
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Hunt I was very happy with their performance against UConn. Locksley made Billy Edwards the starter over (Morris xfr from NCST) and Edwards did a really nice job 20/27 311 yds 2 TD and really looked comfortable while making a number of good throws. My biggest concern is the inexperience of the OL but they are deep and hopefully the reps will help them grow into a solid unit. Running game was very solid with 248 and they got contributions from Hemby, Ray and McDonald who all ran well. Tai Felton very good in slot had a nice day 7/178 2 TDs. I'm optimistic about the defense, though hard to tell with Connecticut. They have 7 DL return with good experience and the LB corps is the strength of the defense led by Hypolite. Secondary had some losses but they got Huskey (BG) out of portal who will really help at CB. Their PDR has been very good last couple years but they may slide a little this year. I haven't really digested Mich St. performance vs. FAU but it looks like Chiles didn't really do much in the passing game and they turned it over 3 times and had less than 300 yds offense. My notes from review of their team indicate that their OL is having a major rebuild and their DL lost 3 starters so that may bode well for Terp matchup on LOS. Did you see any of MSU/FAU?
 
Timh said:
Hunt I was very happy with their performance against UConn. Locksley made Billy Edwards the starter over (Morris xfr from NCST) and Edwards did a really nice job 20/27 311 yds 2 TD and really looked comfortable while making a number of good throws. My biggest concern is the inexperience of the OL but they are deep and hopefully the reps will help them grow into a solid unit. Running game was very solid with 248 and they got contributions from Hemby, Ray and McDonald who all ran well. Tai Felton very good in slot had a nice day 7/178 2 TDs. I'm optimistic about the defense, though hard to tell with Connecticut. They have 7 DL return with good experience and the LB corps is the strength of the defense led by Hypolite. Secondary had some losses but they got Huskey (BG) out of portal who will really help at CB. Their PDR has been very good last couple years but they may slide a little this year. I haven't really digested Mich St. performance vs. FAU but it looks like Chiles didn't really do much in the passing game and they turned it over 3 times and had less than 300 yds offense. My notes from review of their team indicate that their OL is having a major rebuild and their DL lost 3 starters so that may bode well for Terp matchup on LOS. Did you see any of MSU/FAU?
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DL looked pretty impressive for MSU (impressive for losing both projected DTs in the portal).. OL was good in pass blocking, struggled outside 1-2 long runs in run blocking.. MSU's #3 WR is out + their 2 backup safeties, so depth a concern.. Think they had a few chances inside the red zone and came away with a TO or penalty.. but offense looks to still be a work in progress
 
Believe Terps win by DD. Sparty needs lineman.

Quick, pounce on that NW/Duke Under! Too late! Man that total dropping like a rock. I missed it at 39.5. Still might hit it.

Rutgers now 10-0 ats in non-conf games. Think they make it 11 at -23.5 or less.

Huskers look like a righted ship. But -7.5 pts? Pass.

Illinois?? Nice opener. Maybe ML small play.

Penn St That's a lot to cover, was thinking -28 to -31. Yet last 4 yrs, not including 2020, Lions 4-0 ats game 2 at home and three were MAC teams. On deck a BYE then Kent St. Lean Franklin to cover, maybe very small play here. He will dial up some more explosive plays and keep that Mouse (really, you auto replace a primate for a rodent? Ok) off his back.

Michigan..............Not happy with what I saw, but expected it. Defense against the run, rock solid. Secondary, played to keep things in front of them. Offense needs to find a passing game cause Longhorns will fill the box to stop the run. Have to make them pay! Have an early season GOY of -3.5 here. Wouldn't mind losing but don't think so. Now at -7.5, no way. Get it up to +8.5 and I'll play for the middle.

Ohio St -38, hmmm. Need to watch tape of Wisc/WMU game. Right now leaning the pts. Buckeyes have such an easy non-conf they may be sleep walking.

Eastern Mich at Washington -25.5 EMU always a live road dog ats.
 
More to come next week but I’ll throw a couple notes out there for Purdue as I’m sure I’m the only schmuck that watched all 4 quarters

How much can you glean from a glorified scrimmage against a team with a quarterback that maybe only DJU is worse than? Not much but there’s some obvious changes I’m willing to guess the market will be behind a bit when ND rolls into Purdue simply on eye test from last year roster to this year
  • The WR group almost entirely turned over with many portal losses but outside of Burke starting at OU I’m certain not a single one would see the field on this years roster. There is obvious size and athleticism in this group that frankly I’ve never seen Purdue roll out there. Jamal Edrine 6’3 215lbs is a true alpha WR1 (missed last year with a torn acl after transferring from FAU. Walters also held back a really talented portal transfer from GA (CJ Smith) to fully heal a nagging injury.
  • The OL is the other position group that’s made the biggest strides. Walters went out purposefully and got size and it shows. They are reasonably 9 deep with at least average big ten starter quality compared to 3 or 4 and I think it will show
  • Not as dramatic as the WRs but I think the quality of talent in the defensive backfield is noticeably improved. Walters also held back portal add (Green) from GA who was a 5* recruit a couple years also. He will start along 5* freshman when he comes back in 2 weeks. Safe to say that will be a first in a not so notable history for the program rolling out 2 5*s in one position group
  • Other than that RBs are ok or steady and card if healthy is pretty damn good but that line has to hold up
  • Very worried about ND offensive line and a running QB wearing the boys down on the other side of the ball but optimistic that Purdues O will move the ball on that very legitimate elite D of Notre Dame.
  • Early thoughts are likely playing toward an over and Purdue at anything double digits hoping somehow for 2 TDs. I’ll be grabbing some homer ML as well.

Other notes I’ve absolutely hammered Nebraska at 6.5 and 7. I’m guessing I’ll take CU TT under as well but we will see
 
PaintCrew said:
More to come next week but I’ll throw a couple notes out there for Purdue as I’m sure I’m the only schmuck that watched all 4 quarters

How much can you glean from a glorified scrimmage against a team with a quarterback that maybe only DJU is worse than? Not much but there’s some obvious changes I’m willing to guess the market will be behind a bit when ND rolls into Purdue simply on eye test from last year roster to this year
  • The WR group almost entirely turned over with many portal losses but outside of Burke starting at OU I’m certain not a single one would see the field on this years roster. There is obvious size and athleticism in this group that frankly I’ve never seen Purdue roll out there. Jamal Edrine 6’3 215lbs is a true alpha WR1 (missed last year with a torn acl after transferring from FAU. Walters also held back a really talented portal transfer from GA (CJ Smith) to fully heal a nagging injury.
  • The OL is the other position group that’s made the biggest strides. Walters went out purposefully and got size and it shows. They are reasonably 9 deep with at least average big ten starter quality compared to 3 or 4 and I think it will show
  • Not as dramatic as the WRs but I think the quality of talent in the defensive backfield is noticeably improved. Walters also held back portal add (Green) from GA who was a 5* recruit a couple years also. He will start along 5* freshman when he comes back in 2 weeks. Safe to say that will be a first in a not so notable history for the program rolling out 2 5*s in one position group
  • Other than that RBs are ok or steady and card if healthy is pretty damn good but that line has to hold up
  • Very worried about ND offensive line and a running QB wearing the boys down on the other side of the ball but optimistic that Purdues O will move the ball on that very legitimate elite D of Notre Dame.
  • Early thoughts are likely playing toward an over and Purdue at anything double digits hoping somehow for 2 TDs. I’ll be grabbing some homer ML as well.

Other notes I’ve absolutely hammered Nebraska at 6.5 and 7. I’m guessing I’ll take CU TT under as well but we will see
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Great notes Paint, much appreciated.

I'll be involved in that NU game as well, heavily.
 
V.K. said:
Believe Terps win by DD. Sparty needs lineman.

Quick, pounce on that NW/Duke Under! Too late! Man that total dropping like a rock. I missed it at 39.5. Still might hit it.

Rutgers now 10-0 ats in non-conf games. Think they make it 11 at -23.5 or less.

Huskers look like a righted ship. But -7.5 pts? Pass.

Illinois?? Nice opener. Maybe ML small play.

Penn St That's a lot to cover, was thinking -28 to -31. Yet last 4 yrs, not including 2020, Lions 4-0 ats game 2 at home and three were MAC teams. On deck a BYE then Kent St. Lean Franklin to cover, maybe very small play here. He will dial up some more explosive plays and keep that Mouse (really, you auto replace a primate for a rodent? Ok) off his back.

Michigan..............Not happy with what I saw, but expected it. Defense against the run, rock solid. Secondary, played to keep things in front of them. Offense needs to find a passing game cause Longhorns will fill the box to stop the run. Have to make them pay! Have an early season GOY of -3.5 here. Wouldn't mind losing but don't think so. Now at -7.5, no way. Get it up to +8.5 and I'll play for the middle.

Ohio St -38, hmmm. Need to watch tape of Wisc/WMU game. Right now leaning the pts. Buckeyes have such an easy non-conf they may be sleep walking.

Eastern Mich at Washington -25.5 EMU always a live road dog ats.
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Thanks VK for the thoughts -- excellent stuff!

Michigan State needs line help. The DL was a bit better than expected but I think that will start to wear off a bit with the quality of competition rising. I know Spartan faithful expected this Maryland game to be an even affair before the season started. The game next week is a win but now that stretch I mentioned in the last thread that starts on the 28th actually starts on the 21st @ Boston College. A loss this Saturday and we're staring a 2-5 start to the season. They really need to steal one at Mary or at BC...

Mr Peanut will play to cover at home vs scrubs more times than not. The alumni count on him to cash their bets.

*** The double-bye weeks this year will really help these teams out.

Ohio State could easily sleepwalk. They have a 3 game regular season this year, much like UM last year. Now, with that being said, they have some issues to work out on offense and likely could have a few of those explosive 2h's this year where they wear down an overmatched opponent.

Amazing stat on Rutgers. Although peeps late to the party that bet -38.5 and -39 would beg to digger. Line shopping counts!
 
FadeTheHype said:
PSU/BG over 48.5 and Iowa/ISU under 35.5 have my attention. Kansas -5.5 vs Illini could be worth a look
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Michigan-BGSU was 31-6 last year...

That was with a scoreless 4th and MANY turnovers by a sloppy UM early on.

That game generally would have hit 50 minimum.

Cap BG points and go backwards. Penn State should be good for 41-45 here. Bye week and no real opponent till October (maybe Illinois) does leave the vanilla factor in play -- but Frames supports the faithful in their betting action.
 
satnightfever05 said:
DL looked pretty impressive for MSU (impressive for losing both projected DTs in the portal).. OL was good in pass blocking, struggled outside 1-2 long runs in run blocking.. MSU's #3 WR is out + their 2 backup safeties, so depth a concern.. Think they had a few chances inside the red zone and came away with a TO or penalty.. but offense looks to still be a work in progress
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Yeah, I rewatched some earlier today and the DL was better than expected. We'll have better answers after the Terps game.

Injuries mounting already, Tatum I believe is out for the year?


Found some quotes via Detroit Free Press

Backup defensive back Khalil Majeed is “doubtful to come back” this season, while multipositional weapon Dillon Tatum is expected to miss “at least a couple of months, if not (out) for the year,” Smith said Monday during his press conference to preview this week’s Big Ten opener at Maryland.

Smith also said wide receiver/kick returner Alante Brown will be out until at least November if he can return with an upper-body injury he suffered in Friday’s season-opening 16-10 win over Florida Atlantic. The first-year head coach added both Tatum and Majeed suffered lower-body injuries.

“So those three guys (getting hurt) is a blow,” Smith said. “I mean, all three of them were contributing and playing awesome. I feel really bad for them, but they are longer-term injuries.”
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One other Spartans note:

They need to cut out the foolish penalties and whatnot. This has been a trend for a while and was noticed heavily last year. Too many 15-yarders that cost the team field position, and sometimes actual possession.

12-140 vs FAU is not good.

Hopefully Smith and his staff clean this up a bit. Admittedly, culture takes time with a new staff.
 
B.A.R. said:
Michigan-BGSU was 31-6 last year...

That was with a scoreless 4th and MANY turnovers by a sloppy UM early on.

That game generally would have hit 50 minimum.

Cap BG points and go backwards. Penn State should be good for 41-45 here. Bye week and no real opponent till October (maybe Illinois) does leave the vanilla factor in play -- but Frames supports the faithful in their betting action.
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Yeah, I think I've already stated PSU is undervalued to win the Big10 in another thread. You are absolutely right, PSU should hang 40+ this game so all we need is 10 for BG and even though it'll be 24-0 at half I think BG gets garbage points when reserves are in. 41-14 is about right
 
FadeTheHype said:
Yeah, I think I've already stated PSU is undervalued to win the Big10 in another thread. You are absolutely right, PSU should hang 40+ this game so all we need is 10 for BG and even though it'll be 24-0 at half I think BG gets garbage points when reserves are in. 41-14 is about right
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For sure.

Many will remember how high I was on Allar even in his frosh year of simply garbage time.

Last year he had his moments but struggled against the Big Two of the conference.

He has a lot of talent though and can be a leader of a playoff team, no doubt.

No Michigan and no Oregon.

Ohio State has to travel to Happy this year.

Some 'mid' road games, but overall this sets up nicely for a playoff run.

The biggest obstacle? James Franklin.
 
I'm not a fan of PSU but they are a team and not a bunch of all-stars getting paid. I know Coach Franklin gets grilled but he's got elite coordinators this year. Wouldn't be surprised for them to win it all. Offense would be the bigger question mark, but I think as long as no major injuries occur they have enough to be dangerous.
 
FadeTheHype said:
I'm not a fan of PSU but they are a team and not a bunch of all-stars getting paid. I know Coach Franklin gets grilled but he's got elite coordinators this year. Wouldn't be surprised for them to win it all. Offense would be the bigger question mark, but I think as long as no major injuries occur they have enough to be dangerous.
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Solid points...

You have to love teams that are not comprised of FA signings.

Continuity helps -- look at last year

I saw something the other day about these HC's now are merely managers who rely on high-profile coordinators to run the team.

Now, can they convince Franklin to do the right thing with time management + kicking and not kicking when appropriate
 
Speaking of small things that irk me... hehe...

One thing that I hated with Jim in A2 was his clock management at the end of halves. That did improve the last year or two, but still wasn't the best.

So, a new coach and now a new bugaboo for me...

Kicking an XP up 12.

Michigan answered the Fresno TD the other night with a great drive -- touchdown.

The score is now 22-10 with just over 5 mins left.

He kicked the XP.

This makes zero sense (and I'll fight this tooth n nail till the day I die)

3rd quarter? Sure.

The thing is, 12,13 and 14 all require two TD's

Why not put your team up 14?

What he did there was leave open the possibility of a 24-23 loss.

We see dumb decisions all over the country each week -- this is the one that hits closest to home so far this year.
 
B.A.R. said:
Solid points...

You have to love teams that are not comprised of FA signings.

Continuity helps -- look at last year

I saw something the other day about these HC's now are merely managers who rely on high-profile coordinators to run the team.

Now, can they convince Franklin to do the right thing with time management + kicking and not kicking when appropriate
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The biggest under the radar move this offseason was getting former Indiana head coach Tom Allen as defensive coordinator. He never should have been a head coach at IU, but he's actually pretty damn good as any job title on defense. Guy should never have been hired as a head coach at IU, but the powers-that-be went quick and cheap when Kevin Wilson got pushed out over "accusations" and not processes. The woke administration doesn't care about winning (at IU) only dollar signs.
 
FadeTheHype said:
The biggest under the radar move this offseason was getting former Indiana head coach Tom Allen as defensive coordinator. He never should have been a head coach at IU, but he's actually pretty damn good as any job title on defense. Guy should never have been hired as a head coach at IU, but the powers-that-be went quick and cheap when Kevin Wilson got pushed out over "accusations" and not processes. The woke administration doesn't care about winning (at IU) only dollar signs.
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Spot on, all around.

So many of these guys' ceilings are at coordinator.

That being said, they have to at least crash and burn a bit as an HC to get back to their roots.
 
B.A.R. said:
Great start to the thread everyone!

Appreciate the time and effort @V.K. @PaintCrew @FadeTheHype @Timh and @satnightfever05

I'd like to hear some husker thoughts @Colin Wynner @cubsker @huss ...
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Big10 going to really be solid, upper half. Should get at least 3, maybe 4 in playoff. Can't believe I'm going to say this and could be way off, but usual bottom feeder Indiana is going to win 8 games or more with that schedule. Might get drilled in whatever bowl game they qualify for if for example they play like a Kansas St or Kentucky
 
V.K. said:
Believe Terps win by DD. Sparty needs lineman.

Quick, pounce on that NW/Duke Under! Too late! Man that total dropping like a rock. I missed it at 39.5. Still might hit it.

Rutgers now 10-0 ats in non-conf games. Think they make it 11 at -23.5 or less.

Huskers look like a righted ship. But -7.5 pts? Pass.

Illinois?? Nice opener. Maybe ML small play.

Penn St That's a lot to cover, was thinking -28 to -31. Yet last 4 yrs, not including 2020, Lions 4-0 ats game 2 at home and three were MAC teams. On deck a BYE then Kent St. Lean Franklin to cover, maybe very small play here. He will dial up some more explosive plays and keep that Mouse (really, you auto replace a primate for a rodent? Ok) off his back.

Michigan..............Not happy with what I saw, but expected it. Defense against the run, rock solid. Secondary, played to keep things in front of them. Offense needs to find a passing game cause Longhorns will fill the box to stop the run. Have to make them pay! Have an early season GOY of -3.5 here. Wouldn't mind losing but don't think so. Now at -7.5, no way. Get it up to +8.5 and I'll play for the middle.

Ohio St -38, hmmm. Need to watch tape of Wisc/WMU game. Right now leaning the pts. Buckeyes have such an easy non-conf they may be sleep walking.

Eastern Mich at Washington -25.5 EMU always a live road dog ats.
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Thought you retired ?

Where is that Rutgers stat from cause they crapped the bed against a bad bad temple in 2022 as a sizeable fav. 23 they did great in this role for sure.

Unless Illinois has made strong improvement don't see how they close that gap with kansas ? Last year's score ended 11 but felt more like 28. Illinois was on par with Minnesota northwestern and Kansas was like a tier with Kansas State Oklahoma state.

Colorado Nebraska is a pickem for me and a crazy line. Colorado has much larger talent improvement then huskers. People fall for huskers every year.

Gut feels would take sparty at doubles. Kind of outplayed Maryland last year.
 
V.K. said:
Believe Terps win by DD. Sparty needs lineman.

Quick, pounce on that NW/Duke Under! Too late! Man that total dropping like a rock. I missed it at 39.5. Still might hit it.

Rutgers now 10-0 ats in non-conf games. Think they make it 11 at -23.5 or less.

Huskers look like a righted ship. But -7.5 pts? Pass.

Illinois?? Nice opener. Maybe ML small play.

Penn St That's a lot to cover, was thinking -28 to -31. Yet last 4 yrs, not including 2020, Lions 4-0 ats game 2 at home and three were MAC teams. On deck a BYE then Kent St. Lean Franklin to cover, maybe very small play here. He will dial up some more explosive plays and keep that Mouse (really, you auto replace a primate for a rodent? Ok) off his back.

Michigan..............Not happy with what I saw, but expected it. Defense against the run, rock solid. Secondary, played to keep things in front of them. Offense needs to find a passing game cause Longhorns will fill the box to stop the run. Have to make them pay! Have an early season GOY of -3.5 here. Wouldn't mind losing but don't think so. Now at -7.5, no way. Get it up to +8.5 and I'll play for the middle.

Ohio St -38, hmmm. Need to watch tape of Wisc/WMU game. Right now leaning the pts. Buckeyes have such an easy non-conf they may be sleep walking.

Eastern Mich at Washington -25.5 EMU always a live road dog ats.
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How bad is that utep team in the trenches ? Looks like it's all new players. Nebraska added a QB and Colorado added way better lines is how I look at it. Massive advantage huskers had with front 4 pressure will be much less this year I think . Amazing Nebraska couldn't win last year absolutely out physicaling Colorado for an entire half. That was the year to bully Colorado. Sheduer just kept moving back it was so bad.
 
EL CAPO said:
Thought you retired ?

Where is that Rutgers stat from cause they crapped the bed against a bad bad temple in 2022 as a sizeable fav. 23 they did great in this role for sure.

Unless Illinois has made strong improvement don't see how they close that gap with kansas ? Last year's score ended 11 but felt more like 28. Illinois was on par with Minnesota northwestern and Kansas was like a tier with Kansas State Oklahoma state.

Colorado Nebraska is a pickem for me and a crazy line. Colorado has much larger talent improvement then huskers. People fall for huskers every year.

Gut feels would take sparty at doubles. Kind of outplayed Maryland last year.
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Different VK.
 
Yeah, I didn't research this site well enough to see there was a VK already. Sorry guys, stuck with it now.

On that previous Michigan-Bowling Green score 31-6, remember Scott Loeffler has big ties to Michigan. I took the points in that game using that angle believing Wolvs would go easy on them.

And I forgot that Rutgers line rose to -39. Might go in the record book as an ats lose for Scarlet Knights.
 
I still think our secondary can be beaten, so CU has an advantage there if our DL can't get home. DL is a really good unit for us, but pass rushing is still the question mark.

Our run game looked significantly better than last year. RBs are running harder, bigger holes created especially up the middle on power plays.

Raiola and the WRs looked very good. NDSU had guys running free on CU, no reason to think we won't as well.

Night game, this will be the most raucous crowd in Lincoln in at least 10 years and maybe even longer. The question that creates is how do our guys handle the pressure of it as we all know the issues our side has had in closing big wins.
 
Agree with cubsker all points.

I am little concerned about the OLine as well - though the stats do not back-up those concerns - to the naked eye, watching the game, I felt like the UTEP D-Line had some unexpected success. That may have been the vanilla game plan as well. I expect the Huskers have focused on the CU game as a “red letter” game. Part of that is what coach Prime incites against opponents naturally with his non-stop chatter, but Shedeur has quite a bit to say post-game last year, I suspect the Huskers have not forgotten about that.

Raiola looked every bit the part of a big-time quarterback.

That was the big problem last year against CU, the absolute crap show at quarterback. The Huskers defense dominated the early part of the game and had Sanders clearly frustrated. Two trips inside the CU 40 resulted in zero points and then the Huskers did 21st century Huskers things - fumble inside the NU 20 (led to a FG) and an interception inside the NU 30 (touchdown on the next play) - Colorado had decent drive to end the half to make it 13-0, when it could have easily been 10-3 Huskers.

There used to be a time when I trusted Nebraska to be ready to play a game like this and exact revenge to satisfy the blood-thirsty masses; those days are long gone but this could be the start of winning back that trust. Until they do, I will pay to see it - feels like a tight game with the back door wide open.
 
Yeah, OT pass blocking is still an issue. Raiola is good, and maybe even elite at using his feet to evade and give himself a lane to throw while keeping his eyes downfield. So maybe he can cover up this deficiency to some degree.
 
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EL CAPO said:
Thought you retired ?

Where is that Rutgers stat from cause they crapped the bed against a bad bad temple in 2022 as a sizeable fav. 23 they did great in this role for sure.

Unless Illinois has made strong improvement don't see how they close that gap with kansas ? Last year's score ended 11 but felt more like 28. Illinois was on par with Minnesota northwestern and Kansas was like a tier with Kansas State Oklahoma state.

Colorado Nebraska is a pickem for me and a crazy line. Colorado has much larger talent improvement then huskers. People fall for huskers every year.

Gut feels would take sparty at doubles. Kind of outplayed Maryland last year.
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Yep, your right. Mixing it up with Penn St's Away fav stat. Rutgers was 6-0 ATS as non-conf HOME fav since 2021 (Steele mag)
If you had Knights last wk before it climbed over 36.5 it was a winner. Temple was away game.
My bad!
 
EL CAPO said:
Edit - different vk

Retro was my favorite in case anyone was wondering. I would tail him
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Retro was one of a kind and we all are smarter for having read his threads for many years.

This VK is one helluva contributor as well.
 
Well thank you B.A.R.

Really I am just another college football fan who enjoys wagering with my recreational cash. Concentrate on the BIG10. Do not profess to be an expert yet I try to dig deep when I can. Guys like BA are the real experts!
 
V.K. said:
Well thank you B.A.R.

Really I am just another college football fan who enjoys wagering with my recreational cash. Concentrate on the BIG10. Do not profess to be an expert yet I try to dig deep when I can. Guys like BA are the real experts!
Click to expand...
We appreciate the contributions!

Strength in numbers with Michiganders as well...
 
As a heads up...

85 and beautiful today in SE Michigan.

Saturday at kickoff will be about 56° with a 13-15 mph breeze from the north.

(Then back to the 80s next week).

Very random cold front.

Football weather!
 
I remember going to a nebraska vs Texas game about 20 years ago. Was cold as fuck, snowed late in the 4th. I thought good, these Texas boys won't know what hit em. I'm not kidding, these guys acted like they fucking loved it. Thought it was a great job by Mack Brown to have them prepared and looking forward to playing in the cold. Was a great game. We picked up a 3rd and 2 with a couple minutes left to seal it, but as our WR fell to the ground, a Texas player put his helmet on the ball, causing a fumble and Texas won on a late FG.
 
Adding 2 cents on UW/EMU game.......

Washington has the Apple Cup next week at Lumin Field, so maybe a bit of a lookahead......I think EMU will have some success moving the ball and limiting UW possessions, which is a key to covering the big number of course.....UW not super sharp on offense last week and weber state certainly a couple of notches below EMU....I see the game going quite a bit like last week, with the UW offense starting slow and EWU moving the ball a bit and killing clock.......I think the best play here is EMU +14 1/2 (1st half) if you can get it....probably no play at +14 or lower......lean to the over as well, as it is going to be a hot(ish) day and will be a fast track......I do think EMU can get to 17-20 here and that should be plenty for the Over 49.......

Added side note.....Chris Creighton, EMU's coach, went to high school and played QB at Roosevelt HS, about 3 miles from Husky Stadium....big game for him I would think

Edit to correct....see below....fukking attention to details not my thing...LOL
 
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jimmymo said:
Adding 2 cents on UW/EWU game.......

Washington has the Apple Cup next week at Lumin Field, so maybe a bit of a lookahead......I think EWU will have some success moving the ball and limiting UW possessions, which is a key to covering the big number of course.....UW not super sharp on offense last week and weber state certainly a couple of notches below EWU....I see the game going quite a bit like last week, with the UW offense starting slow and EWU moving the ball a bit and killing clock.......I think the best play here is EWU +14 1/2 (1st half) if you can get it....probably no play at +14 or lower......lean to the over as well, as it is going to be a hot(ish) day and will be a fast track......I do think EWU can get to 17-20 here and that should be plenty for the Over 49.......

Added side note.....Chris Creighton, EWU's coach, went to high school and played QB at Roosevelt HS, about 3 miles from Husky Stadium....big game for him I would think
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You mean EMU, right?

Have Eastern Mi in a small fun parlay.
 
Alright, my apologies for the lateness of this and now half awake but here goes....

First of off, this is the first regular season meeting ever for Mich and Texas. There was also that 2004 season Rose Bowl which was an absolute classic. .
.
Here's what I know and think on the Michigan side....

The Wolverines have been working on this game for months.

Part of the demure look on offense last week was to not show much in anticipation of this week.

The other part of the offense was that they wanted to let Warren ease his way into that first starting assignment.

At RB, the guy who needs to bulk of the carries is Kalel Mullings. This isn't some new revelation, simply one that was solidified last week. There are so many ways to utilize Edwards, so let the creativity flow!

The Michigan OL took forever to get last year. This was despite '10" starters. Once again, a few key battles in camp have left the regular season as the gelling time. Unfortunate.

The WR core is not big (tall) and lacks depth. Between an inexperienced QB and the lack of depth here -- this is the potential downfall of this squad.

Too bad too, because this defense looks to be superb. We're looking at a top 5 defense again. How long will they hold up today if the offense isn't breaking the noon hour?

I expect that we see some creativity on offense. Campbell and Moore draw up some nice stuff. I also expect some struggles at times. On the other side, Michigan needs to rattle Quinn early and often to have a chance.

I think in the end, having a superior QB gets the job done and Texas wins a game they start to control late ...

Horns 24-20.
 
I'm not betting it, but that total has gotten a bit low in A2...

Just my 2 cents...
 
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