Big Ten with a nightmarish bowl season

[Eric15]

Iowa and Ohio State had their doors blown off. Nebraska was defeated comfortably. Michigan and Penn State lost close games. Out of the league's six best teams, only Wisconsin won against Western Michigan.

 

[Scotch]

Iowa and Ohio State had their doors blown off. Nebraska was defeated comfortably. Michigan and Penn State lost close games. Out of the league's six best teams, only Wisconsin won against Western Michigan.

Agreed. The idea that they were head and shoulders above other conferences this year was just totally false, and the bowl season proved that.

The early out of conference wins by Wisconsin over LSU and Ohio St. over Oklahoma artificially propped up the entire league and then they just beat each other for two months. Ohio St. and Michigan didn't pass the "eye test" down the stretch with those awful offenses. Glad Clemson exposed OSU.

 

[upperdeck]

comes back to the same age old question.. are we picking the teams who had the best year or the team who is playing the best now.

 

[Eric15]

comes back to the same age old question.. are we picking the teams who had the best year or the team who is playing the best now.

Definitely who had the best year. Ohio State belonged in the playoff.

 

[orangepassion]

But they blew out Rutgers, along with Penn State and Michigan State.

Ohio St. and Michigan didn't pass the "eye test" down the stretch with those awful offenses.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

Eh, they still made a bunch of bowl money.

 

[Chip]

Eh, they still made a bunch of bowl money.

Yeah, I tend to think this stuff is overrated. I mean, it's fun to say to my Ohio State friends that they should stick to playing the Big 12.

At the end of the day, I want to hate the teams in our conference. But there's been a shift in the college sports world where conference pride is more important than rivalry. Hell, there are probably Michigan fans that are depressed about Ohio State's ACC loss and vice versa.

Woody and Bo are rolling over. (and punching each other).

 

[Eric15]

Woody and Bo are rolling over.

They sound like a pair of golden retrievers when you put them in the same sentence.

 

[longtimefan]

They sound like a pair of golden retrievers when you put them in the same sentence.

You've just solved a problem for "mixed marriages" (one a UM grad, the other from OSU)--get them a set of golden retrievers!

 

[atom58]

And don't forget our former playmate Maryland losing to BC ...
Popcorn and soda

 

[NineOneSeven]

If Michigan and PSU pull out those close games, the Big Ten overall goes 5-5. People love looking at conference bowl records and try to draw conclusions. It's silly. And yes, I hate OSU and loved that damn game. My ex gf (big buckeyes fan) who I still stay in touch with hasn't really got over my texts to her from NYE during the game (she initiated the conversation, fyi). She'll get over it eventually. F them

 

[RF2044]

If Michigan and PSU pull out those close games, the Big Ten overall goes 5-5. People love looking at conference bowl records and try to draw conclusions. It's silly. And yes, I hate OSU and loved that damn game. My ex gf (big buckeyes fan) who I still stay in touch with hasn't really got over my texts to her from NYE during the game (she initiated the conversation, fyi). She'll get over it eventually. F them

And if the queen had balls, she'd be the king.

 

[Toga]

And if the queen had balls, she'd be the king.

At which the king laughed because he had two.

 

[NineOneSeven]

And if the queen had balls, she'd be the king.

Point stands

 

[nzm136]

Wait! The Big Ten is dramatically overrated? When has that happened before?

/sarcasm

 

[TheCusian]

If Michigan and PSU pull out those close games, the Big Ten overall goes 5-5. People love looking at conference bowl records and try to draw conclusions. It's silly. And yes, I hate OSU and loved that damn game. My ex gf (big buckeyes fan) who I still stay in touch with hasn't really got over my texts to her from NYE during the game (she initiated the conversation, fyi). She'll get over it eventually. F them

Going into the post-season, they were #3 (behind the ACC/SEC). Pooping the bed in the bowl games just added more clarity.

 

[PhatOrange]

If Michigan and PSU pull out those close games, the Big Ten overall goes 5-5. People love looking at conference bowl records and try to draw conclusions. It's silly. And yes, I hate OSU and loved that damn game. My ex gf (big buckeyes fan) who I still stay in touch with hasn't really got over my texts to her from NYE during the game (she initiated the conversation, fyi). She'll get over it eventually. F them

If UNC pulled out their close games the ACC is 9-2

People look at conference bowl records because its one of the only ways TO draw a conclusion. The ACC was 3-1 against both the B1G and the SEC in the bowl games and only had 1 game against a non-Power 5; and that was a win against a ranked Temple team. I'd say the head to head is a pretty good measure, so 7-3 against the P5.

When I have more time I'll go through the composite conference season schedules. But basically, the 10 plays no one OOC and what did they have like 5 teams ranked in the top 10 at one point ? It was a joke.

edit - per ESPN article The ACC is 9-4 against the SEC and 6-2 against the Big Ten -- including a perfect 5-0 against the Big Ten East (you know, the division considered the best in college football; and no one even played rutgers lololol).

 

[Eric15]

People love looking at conference bowl records and try to draw conclusions. It's silly.

Are bowls the end all be all of a conference's strength? No, it's just one set of games. But they're not meaningless. You have teams of relatively comparable strength in opposing conferences meeting on a neutral field with lots of time to get healthy and prepare. You can draw reasonable conclusions from the results.

 

[sutomcat]

Are bowls the end all be all of a conference's strength? No, it's just one set of games. But they're not meaningless. You have teams of relatively comparable strength in opposing conferences meeting on a neutral field with lots of time to get healthy and prepare. You can draw reasonable conclusions from the results.

Good article on the topic written before the dominating performance by ACC schools in bowl games.

Why the Big Ten isn’t 2016’s best overall conference

 

[dasher]

If Michigan and PSU pull out those close games, the Big Ten overall goes 5-5. People love looking at conference bowl records and try to draw conclusions. It's silly. And yes, I hate OSU and loved that damn game. My ex gf (big buckeyes fan) who I still stay in touch with hasn't really got over my texts to her from NYE during the game (she initiated the conversation, fyi). She'll get over it eventually. F them

Close doesn't count. We don't say that about jb and he came seconds from a second national championship. How would he be regarded if he had two NC.'s? The fact is that both OSU and Michigan lost. And the Big Ten wasn't 5-5 , they were 3-7. Without looking, they probably won a couple of close games in those 3 wins.

 

[Eric15]

How would he be regarded if he had two NC.'s?

Honestly, probably the same. An all-time great coach, but on the 2nd tier of legends behind Wooden, Knight, K, Rupp, etc.

 

[Ottoble]

If Michigan and PSU pull out those close games, the Big Ten overall goes 5-5.

Close doesn't count. We don't say that about jb and he came seconds from a second national championship. How would he be regarded if he had two NC.'s? The fact is that both OSU and Michigan lost. And the Big Ten wasn't 5-5 , they were 3-7. Without looking, they probably won a couple of close games in those 3 wins.

Agreed So if they pulled out their close games they would have been .500? That is not a picture of dominance that they claimed to have this year when talking to any Big 10 fan even if they had won those games.

And close doesn't count, they are actually 3-7, (.300) overall winning those three by 20 total points and 2-9 (.222) against the P5 in which they claim to be the dominant conference, winning those two by a total of 12 points.

Eeesh good thing close doesn't count against them either or they could be 0-10.