SB Nation - Eric Decker

Wrapping up the 2009 Season

BoilerTMill — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 15:04:41 -0000

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. I hope everyone out there has a safe and happy holiday. The posting will likely be scaled back slightly over the next few weeks before Christmas. The recent temp job I accepted is going to need me for some extra hours so that will cut into some of my writing time. I do have press access for the Wake Forest game next week, however, so that should be fun. If anyone finds any worthwhile news during the day feel free to post it via fanshot and I'll get it to the front page as soon as I can. Also, if you feel like doing a post of your own you can do it via Fanpost on the right. I haven't pushed these features too much in the past, but they are great ways to expand the community here. Now on with the football wrap up.

I am not quite sure what to think about this. When seeing some preseason predictions of 2-10, 1-11, 3-9 with maybe a pair of Big Ten wins, the 2009 Purdue football season looks pretty good. When you actually sat down and watched all 12 games, as I did (minus Northwestern) it is hard not to think that 10-2 was possible. That leaves me with mixed feelings. We were much better than advertised, but not as good as we could have been. Ultimately, 5-7 is probably about right based on the amount of inexperience we had on offense. Even then, those players overachieved.

That is what makes this season wrap up so hard. How do I put it in proper perspective? I guess we can look at each game individually.

Toledo W 52-31

This was the only game that one of the guys over at the Rivalry, Esq. Gave us coming into the season. It was with good reason too, as the Boilers were never seriously threatened and Ralph Bolden had a field day. The only major concern was poor tackling and poor coverage over the middle against Toledo's short drop passing attack. The tackling would be hit or miss all year long. Joey Elliott threw three interceptions, but two were tipped balls as we had the foreshadowing of turnovers. All told it was a good opener. We were in control throughout and never let Toledo get within two scores.

At Oregon L 36-38

And you thought the Ducks visit to Ross-Ade was letting one get away. Essentially, we handed Oregon 19 points in their home stadium. I called this as an upset Purdue win while everyone else predicted blowout and I was damn near right. We had a Duck team that would go on to steamroll USC beaten in their own house. An early interception deep in our own territory led to a field goal. Oregon later returned an interception and a bad snap for a score. We also had an extra point blocked, forcing us into a failed two point conversion attempt in the final minute. Still, this team didn't die when giving them those 19 points. We earned the respect of Oregon fans everyone, as they knew they were lucky to escape this one with a win. I know the guys over at Addicted to Quack have been big fans of Purdue all season because of this game. Unfortunately, "We had it," would become a theme for the season.

Northern Illinois L 21-28

Just an ugly game. If we played them 12 more times I would absolutely pick us 12 times. We had zero business losing this game and we know it, especially when Toledo would later beat Northern Illinois. Purdue got outclassed and outplayed in every phase, yet NIU still needed a late fake punt to hold us off. I am fully confident that we would have scored to tie if they had actually punted there. We should have never been in that position in the first place. Two fumbled punts and a penalty for roughing the kicker only allowed seven points, but they allowed NIU to dominate the time of possession. The offense never got on track until late in the third quarter. I said before the season that if we lost this game we had no business going to a bowl and I was right. It is the difference between a bowl and nothing right now. If we played this game today we win by three touchdowns, easy.

Notre Dame L 21-24

Another missed opportunity. After Jaycen Taylor gave us a late 21-17 lead we let Notre Dame drive down the field, converting a 3^rd and long and a 4^th and goal. The timeout called by Danny Hope before a late 3^rd and goal is unforgiveable. Even if they don't spike it they are running plays in the hurry-up. That means they are less likely to convert. I'll give Jimmy Montana credit though. His winning TD pass to Kyle Rudolph was a good one.

Northwestern L 21-27

This is the second worst game next to the Northern Illinois debacle. If we simply take a knee deep in our own territory late in the first half we save 13 points and three turnovers. Even with the mistakes we had a chance t win late but a pair of incompletions inside the 10 cost us the game. I am glad I was in Miami for this one. I thought ESPN's gametracker was stuck on repeat with all the fumbles. At least Northwestern had quite a season after this one.

At Minnesota L 20-35

This game was almost as bad as the Oregon game. Minnesota's offense was horrible all year, agaisnt us they barely tried to pass. One big pass completed to Eric Decker set up a game changing touchdown. From there the floodgates opened with more turnovers. This was capped by a backbreaking blocked field goal returned for a touchdown. It was almost identical to the figgie Chris Summers had blocked in 2007, only Minnesota actually held on to the ball for a score. This is yet another game I wih we could have back. If we could replay every loss I would predict wins in this order, from most likely to least likely:

Northern Illinois
Minnesota
Northwestern
Notre Dame
Michigan State
Oregon
Wisconsin

And of those, the only one I am sure we would lose is Wisconsin. I might pick Oregon, given how hot they can be. In the other five I would pick us right now.

Ohio State W 26-18

Quite simply, this is the biggest win the program has had in nine years since beating the Buckeyes in 2000. This was a better Ohio State team, but that win essentially sent us to the Rose Bowl, so it is bigger. Considering that three of our four Big Ten losses easily could have been wins, This could have sent us to the Rose Bowl as well, giving us a rematch with Oregon. With the way Ohio State has finished the season I am still shocked by this win. Without it, they would still be on a record Big Ten road winning streak. They would also be hoping for a miracle in the last two weeks for an outside shot at the national title. It was one of the most memorable games in Ross-Ade Stadium because it was completely unexpected. It also proved another preseason prediction of mine true: that we would end the losing streak against ranked teams. Ohio State was the only team that was ranked at the time we played them. Compare that to last year, where Oregon, Notre Dame, Penn State, Ohio State, Minnesota, Michigan State, and Iowa were all ranked at game time. If we win a conference championship in the next three years it will be because of this game.

Again, one of the happiest moments ever at Ross-Ade

Illinois W 24-14

This was kind of a boring game in retrospect. Everyone was still buzzing about the OSU upset. Illinois was awful before looking like a real football team the following two weeks. I would call this game the most dull of the season. We built a big lead and sat on it. That's what good teams do. It was nice not to have to hang on until the final seconds in a Big Ten win too.

Wisconsin L 0-37

Wisconsin Jumped Around all over us...

Did we show up in Madison? This was the worst game only surpassed by the NIU debacle. Yes, we were physically dominated in both games. At least you can expect it with Wisconsin. The Badgers played essentially a perfect game and we did not. There were absolutely no positives from this game, which made the next one that much more surprising.

Michigan W 38-36

Boiled Sports called the Ohio State game a sharpie loss. They were wrong. I called this a sharpie loss. I was wrong. The game will mostly be remembered for the simmering Danny Hope-Rich Rodriguez fued at the end, but I will remember it as HOLY CRAP WE JUST WON IN ANN ARBOR!!!! I don't care that it was over the first Michigan team to finish last in the Big Ten in over 45 years. Knowing our history since 1966 I thought we had no chance. It was stunning because we kept making big play after big play. We overcame yet another 14 point deficit to the Wolverines, and now we have a two game winning streak in a series where we have just 14 wins total. An alert reader is sending me a DVD copy of this game. They are awesome for that.

Michigan State L 37-40

This is the game where our bowl hopes officially died. It is probably about four games later than most people expected them to die. The play they died on was Michigan State's long TD pass after we had gone up 11. If the defense can force even a long scoring drive there the game is pretty secure. Instead, we gave up a long TD, had a figgie blocked, gave up another TD, got a figgie to tie, then promptly gave it back with a long kickoff return. This doesn't even account for the fact that we gave them seven points on the game's first play. It's a tough loss, but we had plenty of chances to make sure this one didn't matter in terms of getting to a bowl.

Indiana W 38-21

An important win because we shared the same record with IU coming in for the second straight year, but dominated the game. We showed that despite similar records, there is still a gap between Indiana and Purdue. It is now up to us to make sure it gets larger and not smaller.

There are tons of positives coming out of this year. We finished at .500 in the league after two straight seasons below. We were 4-2 in the last six games after being 1-5 in the previous six. We won a road game for the first time since 2007, and now have a two game road winning streak. We beat a ranked team for the first time since 2003. the next step is combining the two and beating a ranked team on the road. That is something we haven't done since winning at Wisconsin in 2003, and something we didn't do much under Tiller.

Offensively, we lose our quarterback, but we gain an experienced one in Robert Marve. If you go strictly by recruiting rankings, we can line up four star talent next year at guard (Ken Plue), running back (Al-Terek McBurse), receiver (O.J. Ross), Tight End (Jeff Lindsay, though he was a 4-star linebacker), and quarterback (Marve). Defensively we have to replace the entire secondary, but Josh Johnson, Chris Quinn, and Charlton Williams all have some playing experience. I think there is a certain guard on the basketball team that might be interested in a one year gridiron curtain call. At the very least, Kramer could provide much needed depth. It is safe to say he would be a fan favorite as well.

Just to show I am completely delusional, I think a 6-0 start next year is entirely possible. It is possible, maybe even likely, that Charlie Weis will be gone and Jimmy Montana and Golden Tate will both go pro. That evens the playing field in the season opener quite a bit. We have no excuse whatsoever for losing to Ball State, Western Illinois, and Toledo in the non-conference season. In conference play I believe we can beat Minnesota, Northwestern (our first two Big Ten games), Michigan (ignore this if they field a defense next year), and Indiana. Three of those games are at home, so they need to be wins (a sidebar, it absolutely sucks we beat the league champ, but still went 3-4 at Ross-Ade. WTF?). That leaves Ohio State (tough at home), Wisconsin (They tend to dominate us physically), Michigan State (toss-up road game), and Illinois (a wild card with their sheer talent) as tricky games. Notice three of those four are on the road. Michigan State should be better, while no one know what to expect from Illinois anymore. The Illini could just as easily win the entire Big Ten as they could finish dead last.

So what should we expect? In a down Big Ten everyone is looking to improve. I think we showed the most improvement over anyone as the season went along. If we keep it going into next year, I expect at least an 8 win season. We will return to a bowl unless we crap the bed in one of those three easy non-conference games. With a few breaks we might even challenge for the Big Ten title.

Yes, I have lost my mind.

All-Big Ten Awards Announced, Swept Once Again By Toto

Oops Pow Surprise — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 13:00:45 -0000

by Charlie Neibergall - AP

about 1 month ago: Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz looks on during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Northwestern, Saturday, Nov. 7, 2009, in Iowa City, Iowa. Northwestern won 17-10. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

View full size photo »

Good news, everyone!* The Big Ten announced its picks for the all-conference teams. Naturally, the offensive and defensive player of the year are both Terrelle Pryor. Okay, not true; he's not even honorable mention.

But there's plenty of actual good news. First, the devil media named Kirk Ferentz coach of the year, and here he is reminding them that they can go suck it and he hasn't forgiven them for the slights of the regular season.

Such language, Kirk!

As for the players, here's the link to the voting results. The media named Bryan Bulaga to the first team on offense, while the second team featured four of his friends from the line: Rafael Eubanks, Dace Richardson, Kyle Calloway, and Tony Moeaki.

On defense, the first team had a little more Iowa representation; Adrian Clayborn, Pat Angerer, and Tyler Sash all received their no-brainer merits. On the second team, Brett Greenwood and Amari Spievey. Iowa put eight players on the media's honorable mention team: Ryan Donahue, Broderick Binns, A.J. Edds, Derrell Johnson-Koulianos, Karl Klug, Daniel Murray, Adam Robinson, and Ricky Stanzi.

Not surprisingly, the coaches had a slightly higher opinion of the Hawkeyes; here's the link to their voting results. Bryan Bulaga was named their offensive lineman of the year(!!!), an award the media doesn't give out. Bulaga is joined on the first team by Moeaki and Richardson, both of which are worthy selections. Calloway and Eubanks didn't make the second team--not sure why on Calloway--but Derrell Johnson-Koulianos snuck in on a three-player tie for second-team WR.

On defense, the coaches agreed with the media in putting Sash, Clayborn, and Angerer on the first team roster. They also added Amari Spievey; as coaches, they're more likely to know that the reason Spievey didn't have a ton of picks wasn't that he's not good at football, but that there's just no hope in throwing at him; Spievey was a machine this season, and we're starting to lose hope that he's got more than one game left in an Iowa uniform. A.J. Edds is the lone Hawkeye on the defensive second team.

For honorable mention, it's as follows:Christian Ballard, Kyle Calloway, Ryan Donahue, Brent Greenwood, Karl Klug, and Adam Robinson.

Full All-BXI teams and a few thoughts are after the break.

MEDIA

POS.	FIRST TEAM	SECOND TEAM
QB	Daryll Clark, Penn State	Mike Kafka, Northwestern
RB	Evan Royster, Penn State	Brandon Saine, Ohio State
RB	JOHN CLAY, Wisconsin	Ralph Bolden, Purdue
WR	Tandon Doss, Indiana	Blair White, Michigan State
WR	Keith Smith, Purdue	Zeke Markshausen, Northwestern
C	Stefen Wisniewski, Penn State	Rafael Eubanks, Iowa
G	Justin Boren, Ohio State	Jon Asamoah, Illinois
G	John Moffitt, Wisconsin	Dace Richardson, Iowa
T	Bryan Bulaga, Iowa	Kyle Calloway, Iowa
T	Gabe Carimi, Wisconsin	Dennis Landolt, Penn State
TE	Garrett Graham, Wisconsin	Tony Moeaki, Iowa
PK	Brett Swenson, Michigan State	Stefan Demos, Northwestern

POS.	FIRST TEAM	SECOND TEAM
DL	Adrian Clayborn, Iowa	Jammie Kirlew, Indiana
DL	Brandon Graham, Michigan	Thaddeus Gibson, Ohio State
DL	Ryan Kerrigan, Purdue	Cameron Heyward, Ohio State
DL	O'Brien Schofield, Wisconsin	Jared Odrick, Penn State
LB	Pat Angerer, Iowa	Ross Homan, Ohio State
LB	GREG JONES, Michigan State	Josh Hull, Penn State
LB	Navorro Bowman, Penn State	Sean Lee, Penn State
DB	Tyler Sash, Iowa	Brent Greenwood, Iowa
DB	Donovan Warren, Michigan	Amari Spievey, Iowa
DB	Sherrick McManis, Northwestern	Brad Phillips, Northwestern
DB	Kurt Coleman, Ohio State	David Pender, Purdue
P	Zoltan Mesko, Michigan	Jeremy Boone, Penn State

COACHES

POS.	FIRST TEAM	SECOND TEAM
QB	Daryll Clark, Penn State	Mike Kafka, Northwestern
RB	Evan Royster, Penn State	Brandon Saine, Ohio State
RB	John Clay, Wisconsin	Ralph Bolden, Purdue
WR	Eric Decker, Minnesota	Tandon Doss, Indiana*
WR	Blair White, Michigan State	Derrell Johnson-Koulianos, Iowa* Keith Smith, Purdue*
C	Stefen Wisniewski, Penn State	Rafael Eubanks, Iowa* Joel Nitchman, Michigan State*
G	Dace Richardson, Iowa	Jon Asamoah, Illinois
G	John Moffitt, Wisconsin	Justin Boren, Ohio State
T	Bryan Bulaga, Iowa	Rodger Saffold, Indiana
T	Dennis Landolt, Penn State	Gabe Carimi, Wisconsin
TE	Tony Moeaki, Iowa	Garrett Graham, Wisconsin
PK	Brett Swenson, Michigan	Stefan Demos, Northwestern

POS.	FIRST TEAM	SECOND TEAM
DL	Adrian Clayborn, Iowa	Jammie Kirlew, Indiana
DL	Brandon Graham, Michigan	Thaddeus Gibson, Ohio State
DL	Jared Odrick, Penn State	Cameron Heyward, Ohio State
DL	O'Brien Schofield, Wisconsin	Ryan Kerrigan, Purdue
LB	Pat Angerer, Iowa Linebacker	A.J. Edds, Iowa
LB	Greg Jones, Michigan State	Ross Homan, Ohio State
LB	Navorro Bowman, Penn State	Sean Lee, Penn State
DB	Tyler Sash, Iowa	Donovan Warren, Michigan*
DB	Amari Spievey, Iowa	Sherrick McManis, Northwestern*
DB	Brad Phillips, Northwestern	Brandon King, Purdue*
DB	Kurt Coleman, Ohio State	David Pender, Purdue* Jay Valai, Wisconsin*
P	Zoltan Mesko, Michigan	Jeremy Boone, Penn State

Okay. While we're quite happy that Bulaga got such high accolades for the season, we can't be alone in thinking that he was hardly the best lineman in Iowa City, much less the Big Ten. He was either on the sidelines or out of sorts for the majority of the season, and we still haven't seen the elephant-tusk-covered road grader from last season on display. He totally would have deserved a preseason OL of the year, but his performance over 2009 didn't merit such superlatives.

This is hardly a new development from these postseason lists, however; generally, the lists are crafted off of the preseason lists, and anybody whose knee blew out with more than four games left was excised and replaced by someone else. After all, Bulaga was only a second-team All-BXI player last season, even though he was by far the best lineman on the team in 2008. Seth Olsen, meanwhile, had the good fortune to be a first-teamer to start the year, so he was on the first team after 2008, despite a relatively blah senior campaign; we'd have put him about fourth on the list of Iowa linemen for 2009, behind the two bookends at tackle and Rob Bruggeman at center.

Essentially, Bulaga won the award in 2009 for his play in 2008.

At the end of the day, this comes down to stats; there aren't any for linemen, despite the ill-fated attempt to get the "pancake" introduced about a decade ago (for this, we blame Orlando Pace). It's assumed that linemen are sure things, and that as long as they stay healthy, the narrative has stayed true. After all, without stats, most scribes have no time (or no idea) how to watch linemen individually.

Frankly, though it's a subjective stat, we'd love to see how linemen grade out per play (remember that Blake Larsen famously graded at 100% during his senior season at Atlantic; lord, had those knees survived...) Without having the means to undertake such an activity ourselves, we'd imagine that if you graded each Iowa offensive lineman, Kyle Calloway or Dace Richardson would probably be at the top.

If they're not, which is possible, then it would probably be the guy who didn't even get an honorable mention: Riley Reiff. He was stout in relief of Bulaga--hell, we're pretty sure O'Brien Schofield would not have batted Reiff around like a catnip mouse, unlike some Iowa linemen--and he basically forced his way into the starting lineup even before Big Dace went down. But since he wasn't even a projected starter, to say nothing of a preseason honoree, Reiff didn't have much of a chance for postseason mention. Shame, really; dude is legit, and he hasn't even filled out his frame yet.

As for the skill players, it's a little disappointing that Stanzi only made one honorable mention team. But we get how that can happen. Spievey only making second team in the media is flatly ridiculous. If he'd put together that same season in an Ohio State uniform, he'd be getting All-American talk.

Other than that, we don't have a ton of beef; Stanzi killed himself by leading the conference in interceptions when he went down to injury, and the rest of the offensive skill players were far too inconsistent or hurt to merit much consideration. Jeremiha Hunter not getting any honorable mention love is a little disconcerting, but the BXI was lo-ho-hoaded at linebacker this season; we're not quite sure whom we'd place him above. He'll get some love in 2010 if he stays healthy. Also--given the play of Jeff Tarpinian in relief--if Hunter stays healthy between now and next September, there's no position battle at weakside backer next season, right?

So, all in all, a fair list, even if the voting on offensive linemen is basically a year behind schedule. It's a year behind for everyone else, after all. Anybody else that you folks think got shafted? Did Marvin McNutt deserve a nod, or is he still a year away from recognition?

*/Farnsworth'd

Top Five All-Big Ten Football Team Errors

Pete Rossman — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 04:04:01 -0000

The picks are here.

And here are the travesties:

5. Jared Odrick, Coaches' Defensive Player of the Year. There's no doubt that Odrick was one of the top five or six defensive linemen in the conference. However, here were the other All-Big ten first team defensive linemen named by the coaches: Adrian Clayborn, Brandon Graham, and O'Brien Schofield. If I gave you those names, where would you rank Odrick? Third? Fourth? And he's the one the coaches named defensive player of the year?

4. Eric Decker, Coaches' First team Wide Receiver. If Decker had stayed healthy all year, I'd have no problem with this placement. However, he only played two-thirds of the season, and I'm certain that there are least two wide receivers out there - Keith Smith of Purdue and Darrell Johnson-Koulianos of Iowa - who deserved the honor more than Decker.

3. Seriously, Jared Odrick? I mean, Pat Angerer can't get some love? Tyler Sash? If you were asking me, "Name two players on the same team who deserved the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year award", those would've been the first two names out of my mouth.

2. Brett Swenson, non-unanimous selection. I promise this is the only section where I'll be a homer. Apparently making 90% of your field goals and being far and away the most consistent kicker in the Big Ten wasn't clear cut enough. Was it that extra point he missed in September? Is it because his kickoffs only made it to the ten? I don't get it.

1. JARED ODRICK? I don't want to bash Odrick, he's been a great player for Penn State all season. I'm happy that Greg Jones got the honor from the media, but I would've understood if he didn't receive the award. After all, I'm pretty sure Graham Zug scored again on a wheel route, and the failures of the MSU secondary drags the whole defense down, fair or unfair. However, I would've named Schofield, Graham, Angerer, Sash, Amari Speivey, Navarro Bowman, or Sean Lee DPOY before Odrick. Once again, Odrick deserved the honors he received as All-Big Ten, but there were several more deserving players this year in the Big Ten to be defensive player of the year.

Changing the route on Rams receiver needs

VanRam — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:24:41 -0000

More photos » by Keith Srakocic - AP

Notre Dame wide receiver Golden Tate...could he be what the Rams are looking for at WR?

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Over at his NFC West blog, Mike Sando takes a quick look at the St. Louis Rams wide receivers, reviewing some of the surprises and struggles.

We started the season with some glaring question marks at that position, but hasn't been all bad for the Rams at WR this year. Laurent Robinson established a rythm with Marc Bulger right out of the gate. Donnie Avery struggled through the first half, dropping passes and looking unfit for a #1 WR type of role. You notice this week, his best of the season, the Rams used him down the field and played to his strengths. Keenan Burton started to come on recently too, playing hard and catching some balls over the middle. This week also featured the impressive debut of Brandon Gibson, and while it's hard to base an analysis off of one week, he looks to have been a real find.

Now, the rest of the receivers, uh, they leave a little to be desired. But what about next season? Through the first half of this year, finding a true blue #1 WR has been a need fans have agreed upon. For many, that position is in the conversation for a first round pick in the upcoming draft. And then we played the Saints.

In the game thread, someone mentioned that the Rams WR situation got a lot more interesting with Robinson, Avery and Gibson in mix next year. For Avery and Robinson, experience will no longer be lacking. Looking a group that starts with those three makes the debate about a first round WR much more interesting.

One thing to remember about that group. Avery and Robinson have had trouble staying healthy, and adding Burton into the mix as a 4th WR, you get a group that's sat out as many NFL games as they've played, or so it seems. In other words, don't get too comfortable with the idea that the Rams can sacrifice the chance to take a WR in the first round, especially if they end up winning a few more games and getting out of Suh territory.

The Rams still need a receiver next season. I can't concede that point. Gibson looks like a nice complement to Avery, but we still need some time to really get a sense of what we've got in him. The Rams have lots of needs to fill, but we've seen what happened through the first 8 games with the offense because of the WR issue (of course, some of that's on the QB too).

We do have a little more room to see what kind of player becomes available in the second or third rounds. Maybe someone like an Eric Decker or Golden Tate. Thoughts? Do we still need a solid #1 WR?

IOWA HATE WEEK - Great Things About The Herkeyes

JG2112 — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 13:15:10 -0000

More photos » by Mark Duncan - AP

All that's needed when you Denny Green it, and then go -30 in overtime.

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When you think about Iowa, what crosses your mind? 8,000 calorie dinners? Kum N Go gas stations? The Pizza Ranch?

It's Iowa Week, which means IOWA HATE WEEK. Here's a few reasons to look scornfully (or humorously, you figure it out) towards the Hawkeye State in anticipation of taking the Pig back to the new trophy room at TCF this Saturday:

(1) Let's first look back to last Saturday. Kirk Ferentz took a knee at the end of regulation instead of trying to actually win a game in Columbus. The irony was that Iowa moved the ball further in reverse in overtime than it did at the end of regulation. Well done, Herkeyes.

(2) Iowa likes to find its best football players in furniture marts (Shonn Greene) and grocery stores (Kurt Warner - who played for the Herkeye's arena football league team). This obviously shows Iowa is pro-unions and is negatively contributing to out-of-control health care costs in this nation.

(3) Seriously, the Field of Dreams is your biggest tourist attraction? My wife's grandmother grew up in Dyersville and when we drove her to the FoD, she wouldn't leave the car to look at the diamond. She complained that the site was a waste of a cornfield. Take that Costner.

(4) Iowa sucks so bad that it's forced to play a redshirt freshman QB, who also sucks. On the other hand, the Gophers are so awesome that Tim Brewster and Jedd Fisch CHOOSE not to play redshirt freshman QB MarQueis Gray. Obviously, the Gophers are just letting other teams enjoy competitive matchups this year.

How else are the Gophers being generous? Eric Decker's not really hurt. You saw how he was "injured" - you really think that forward step required surgery? We're resting him for the Pizza Pizza Bowl.

(5) Paki? Jewel? Who names your running backs - Vince McMahon?

(6) I've been to Kinnick. Seriously - I don't think your adulterous drunkard fans can fit in the stalls in order to attempt to procreate and ruin their marriages. In that sense, the Metrodome was cutting edge. You'll also find that TCF has adequate floor space for a drunken liaison with that cougar from Quasqueton.

(7) Ashton Kutcher? Thanks a lot.

(8) You can take Tom Arnold back too. Thanks for that.

(9) I went to a Minnesota Timberwolves game in 2007 - it was their last game of the year. Ricky Davis (one glorious year at Iowa) was on the Wolves. I was close enough to the floor to see him listen to the coach approximately zero minutes, and watch him hit on the T-cheerbabes all game long. I believe his stat line was 1-25, all from behind the 3-point line. Heck of a ball player I say.

(10) And while I'm thinking of Iowa basketball, LOL-LITER.

Turnover and the Staffing Plan - Part 1

Buck Bravo — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:00:48 -0000

Saturday's epic struggle to remain competitive with South Dakota State University was the final game for several seniors. While compensating for the loss of Eric Decker will be challenging for the offense, the defense will lose 9 of 11 starters. Turnover is to be expected in any type of organization, and football teams are no exception. In part 1 of this review we'll take a look at which offensive starters are leaving and who may replace them:

Eric Decker - Perhaps the greatest wide receiver in Gopher football history, it would be unrealistic to expect a single player to replace Decker. Brandon Green has been a solid second option this season, and should continue to improve for next year. Da'Jon McKnight, who was primarily a basketball player in high school, appears to have a steep learning curve and the tools to become a top tier wide receiver. As of late, he's been a primary target. After last season's Insight Bowl I listed McKnight as one of the four bright spots in the game:

Da'Jon McKnight - He was only in the game for the final drive but he has the size, speed, and agility to justify predicting a bright future for the freshman wide receiver.

Nick Tow-Arnett - A fundamentally solid wide receiver, Nick Tow-Arnett will be difficult to replace as both a pass blocker and as a receiver. Curtis Hughes, Eric Lair, and possibly Ra'Shede Hageman will compete to fill his shoes as the primary tight end. Hughes has demonstrated solid pass blocking skills, Lair projects to be more of a receiver, and Hageman may end up at defensive end.

Jeff Tow-Arnett - There are three Tow-Arnett brothers on the Gophers, and Jeff had a solid year as the starting center prior to a season ending injury. While he will be missed, D.J. Burris and Trey Davis should be able to step in and replace him at a similar level of play.

Blake Haudan - Haudan has been a fundamentally sound punter, but the Gophers have Dan Orseske waiting for his turn to play. Orseske appears to be taking a redshirt year, and will have four years of eligibility ahead of him. In high school, scouts noted that his kicks had excellent hang time and that he averaged nearly 40 yards per punt.

Overall, the losses of Eric Decker and Nick Tow-Arnett will be the greatest challenges for the Gopher offense. Two or three young receivers will need to emerge as threats to adequately replace Decker, while a combination of players could replace Nick Tow-Arnett. Not bad for a sport in which the entire team is anew within each four year period.

Stay tuned for part 2 later this week, which will take a look at the nine starting seniors who will be leaving the defense and who is in line to replace them.

Mizzou Links, 11-16-09

Bill C. — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 11:48:51 -0000

Thanks to yesterday's epic set of links, we don't have a ton to share today...

K-State Wrap-up Links

The Trib (Dave Matter): Emptying the Notebook

With another brilliant game, Danario Alexander is making a case for the most outstanding season by a Missouri wide receiver. Yes, better than Jeremy Maclin’s All-American campaigns in 2007-08, when, don’t forget, Maclin was honored as an all-purpose player for his return game contributions, too.
Somehow, though, Alexander was not included among the 10 finalists for the Biletnikoff Award, a list that was compiled almost a month ago. (Which, in itself, makes no sense.) The 10 finalists includes these three players: Minnesota’s Eric Decker, a fantastic receiver but one whose season ended with a foot injury after eight games; San Diego State’s Vincent Brown, who’s missed the last three games with a thumb injury; and Syracuse’s Mike Williams, another gifted and prolific receiver, but one whose rocky career at Syracuse probably ended earlier this month when he inexplicably quit the team, after seven games.

Surely, then, there must be room for Alexander on the list. Right? I’ve left messages with a spokesman for the Biletnikoff, as has Missouri’s media relations department, to see if the finalists list will be updated. No response, yet.

I mentioned this on Varsity Numbers a couple of weeks ago, but ... why in the hell do we still have "semifinalist" lists and "finalist" lists? Wasn't the whole concept of those lists because it was too hard to keep up with all players, so they limited the number as the season progressed? Isn't this the internet age, where you can track just about every good player in the country with ESPN 360 and ChannelSurfing.net? Never mind why Danario's not on the Biletnikoff list ... why the hell does the list still exist?

The Missourian: MIssouri football win against Kansas State about more than one game

KOMU.com: Second Half Spark
KOMU.com: Smooch Into the Stands

Manhattan Mercury: Red zone turns into dead zone for cats
Manhattan Mercury: Wildcats too conservative in loss
Manhattan Mercury: Danario Alexander too much for KSU defense

Big 12 Links

Corn Nation: Husker Report Card: Nebraska 31, Kansas 17

Waco Tribune: Baylor still sighting bowl appearance

BASKETBALL!!

MUtigers.com: It Gets Started Tuesday

Mizzou played improved defense in the second half of their two exhibition games, as the Tigers outscored both Truman State and Northwest Missouri State by a combined 84-to-36 in the final 20 minutes of play ... MU limited Truman State to just one second-half field goal and 5.9 percent shooting in its 96-33 victory and held Northwest Missouri to just 37 percent shooting in the 83-60 win.

Missouri has typically been a strong second-half club under the watch of Mike Anderson ... In 2008-09 MU outscored its opposition 44.4-to-35.8 in the final period and out-ran opponents 45.8-to-33.9 in the second half of homes games.

The Lazy Blogger's Illini basketball and football preview

Joe Kutsunis — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 18:05:33 -0000

More photos » by Paul Battaglia - AP

Everything points to Juice sitting out the Northwestern game on Saturday with the high ankle sprain. Look for RS Freshman Jacob Charest to start in his place. (Minneapolis. AP Photo/Paul Battaglia)

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Folks, I am a busy man, I've got alot going on in my life right now. I wont bother you with specifics, but suffice to say, looking at my computer today with the prospect of writing two game previews is much less appealing than it sounds. So I am going to take the lazy man's shortcut here and just combine the two into an unrepentant shortcut of a post.

First the football team. Lucky for me the Big Ten Network (please send me money) replays all of the football games over the course of the week, so I was able to reacquaint myself with the supreme victory over Minnesota from Saturday. Upon a second viewing, with the knowledge of how the game ultimately ended, I have had to reassess the Illini play overall. Adam Weber basically handed the Illini the game in the first half. He stayed in the pocket waaaay too long and took some very dumb sacks as well as throw passes so inaccurate that somewhere Eric Decker is weeping. He wasw much more on his game in the second half, and as a result the Illini defense looked no where near as good as earlier in the game. Basically what I am saying is, the defense is going to have to play better this week if we want to beat Northwestern. Other than Terry Hawthorne that is. That guy is all right.

On the other hand I really like the way Jacob Charest is throwing the ball lately he is hitting his receivers right in the numbers, and provided those receivers don't drop the passes again this week, the offense will move the ball. The real kudos must go to the offensive line who are opening holes for the backs and giving both Juice and Charest a lot more time to work with. You don't have a successful offense without a successful offensive line.

So as long as all that good stuff I just said keeps happening, the Illini should roll. 11am Saturday kickoff.

Now for the basketball team.

Its the big opening game of the real season, and Bruce has suggested he will go with the same starting lineup for last week's exhibition finale. Mike Tisdale, Mike Davis, Brandon Paul, D.J. Richardson and Demetri McCamey. No Jeff Jordan for his suspension, so the primary guard sub is going to be Legion, and like the exhibition, Dominique will get alot of action at the 3. Given their loss in OT to D3 Illinois College, SIUE should not pose a legitimate threat to the Illini, but I do want to see some all around better play. The games do count now, so I hope we will see some real dominance on the floor by Mike Davis. Everyone is hoping he will make another big jump this year, and there is no time like the present

Tip Off is tonight at 7.
Once again I will be running an open thread for both games. Please come keep me company.

Illini at Minnesota preview: part of the plan all along.

Joe Kutsunis — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 16:39:03 -0000

More photos » by Seth Perlman - AP

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I suppose it is finally time to stop riding the happy train of victory that has kept me going all week and to start actually focusing at the game at hand.

In Minnesota, the Illini find themselves once again up against a team that sits at 5 wins, on the verge of going to a bowl, after Illinois, the Gophers play South Dakota state and Iowa which alternatively look like a lock for a win and a lock for a loss. You could say then that their season and hopes for a bowl bid are dependent upon this game. As I mentioned earlier this week at 6 losses and national coverage for being a disappointment the Illini have found themselves potentially playing spoiler to all the opponents left on their schedule. A loss to the Illini is a bad loss, and could be detrimental to a 6-6 team hoping to get into a last tier bowl. With SD State, Minnesota is assured 6 wins, with Iowa they are guaranteed a 5th loss. A win over Illinois then would make Minny almost sure to get 7 wins and a decent bowl a loss, no more than 6 wins and a bad loss hanging around your neck like an anchor.

The Illini nation, as Ron Zook often refers to it, has already begun to cling to the idea of "hey, if we win out, we are in a bowl." Despite Loren Tate's advice of being a bit more realistic in our dreams, many of us fans have already convinced ourselves that the fabled 2009 Illini from the preview magazines have finally arrived, and that they shall roll convincingly over the remaining competition to the most unlikely 6-6 bowl season ever. Yes that means we would be beating #5 Cincinnati. But hey doesn't that just tell you how badly we want this team to be better?

By this time on Sunday however we could wake up to a cold dose of reality, a 7th loss, a season without any remaining purpose and alot of questions in need of answering.

Until then however, we are perfectly happy delaying any of the not fun questions until this team is no longer celebrating a win.

Minnesota provides the opportunity for the team to prove whether or not they truly have gotten over what ever mental hurtles were preventing them from being successful throughout the first half of the season. We now know that a the very least it is possible for this team to go on the sort of explosive offensive runs and tough defensive stands we once had assumed.

Against a Minnesota team that also rolled out 500 yards of total offense the week before, they are not going to have the benefit of a full half of mediocre football. Last week Minnesota QB Adam Weber threw for over 400 yards and 5 touchdowns, all without sure thing first round WR Eric Decker, the guy that rocked us last year.

The defensive game plan this week is going to be much different than Michigan. Minny is going to throw the ball all over the field and the secondary is going to have to step up like they did last week. All of the sudden, Illini fans are ecstatic that Terry Hawthorne was moved to defense. Maybe even more important is the play of Clay Nurse, Corey Liuget, Josh Brent and Doug Pilcher. The defensive line played better than at any point all year against Michigan. Getting into the backfield and pressuring, sacking, and hurrying Weber will go a long way in taking pressure off of the secondary.

For the first time, I feel pretty good about our offense. I believe that they can do what they did last week, and that is run, run run with Leshoure and Juice in every imaginable way. Options, end reads, keepers and plain old I formation hand offs. Just as key however will be Juice's passing in key situations. Against Michigan Juice was 8-11 with no INTs, the model of efficient QB play. If he can get a line like that this week, I think this Illinois team wins.

See what a difference a win makes? I'm already back to my overly optimistic ways.

Halloween Crow Less an Omen More a Dish

Buck Bravo — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:00:40 -0000

The boo-birds were perched like crows to squawk as a flock on Saturday night. After abysmal offensive outings against Penn State and Ohio State, many Gopher fans were frustrated and calling for change. Criticism was abound for both the coaches and players. After all it was Halloween, and one must ask: Trick or Treat? The squawking crow has long been considered an omen of misfortune:

The Celts believed that Crow was an omen of death and conflict. She was associated with death transitions.

Instead of a trick, the perching boo-birds were subjected to a treat. Minnesota had their best offensive performance of the year. It turns out that the crow is subject to another form of symbolism, and it was served as a dish to the critics (myself included):

Eating crow (archaically, eating boiled crow) is an English-language idiom meaning humiliation by admitting wrongness or having been proven wrong after taking a strong position.

Recently I had been critical of Adam Weber's performance, and had written that he should be replaced with freshman MarQuies Gray for the majority of the snaps. Weber threw for over 400 yards and 5 touchdowns without his favorite receiver. Perhaps losing Eric Decker was the catalyst for Weber to step up and realize his potential. It was no trick that the offense spread the ball around, had improved blocking, had excellent play calling, and finally threw the ball downfield.

Even Patrick Reusse, a frequent critic of the Gopher program, wrote an article that was complimentary of Minnesota's surprise performance at this link. Reusse has a gift with words and described the sentiment of the boo-birds eloquently:

And there was one more potential distraction: The absolute conviction with which the small but deluded Gophers' fan base was stating that Brewster had to bench junior Adam Weber, a three-year starter at quarterback, and replace him with freshman MarQueis Gray.

While I doubt that Reusse read anything I wrote, I was amongst that "small but deluded Gophers' fan base." I still maintain that MarQuies Gray is the future of the program, and that it remains to be seen if Adam Weber can retain his newfound form, but I am not ashamed to eat crow for now.

I began writing this article on Sunday, but Golden Gopher Football Blog beat me to the punch by publishing an article today that contains a similar reference to the crow with eerily similar context:

Weber picked a really, really good time to have the game of his life with 414 yards and 5 TD's. My favorite part (well besides only the one pick)? His 61.3 completion percentage, completing 19 of his 31 attempts on the night. We can not only live with that Adam Weber, but we can win with him too.

It remains to be seen if the offensive dynamo is real, or if it was an apparition that will fade like a phantasm into the Halloween night. Perhaps the pumpkin-orange school color of Illinois will somehow inspire the treat to continue. For now, to eat crow is much better than to be one.