B1G Bowl Season Report Card
The B1G went 4/10 this year.
Defeated: ACC, SEC, PAC, & MAC.
Lost to: PAC, C-USA, SEC (2), Big 12 (2)
Aggregate point differential for all 10 games was -58
B1G was the lower team in all ranked matchups, by a total factor of 34 ranking slots for those 6 games averaging 5.67 places below opponents (Placing Iowa at 26 just to make it simple). In non-ranked matchups, only Illinois had a win advantage in their record.
5 Games were played within the home state of the opponent (Purdue/W.M, NW/A&M, Ill/UCLA, PSU/Houston, O/UF). 2 Played in neighboring states (Wisc/Ore, MSU/UGA).
WINS:
13 Michigan over 11 Va Tech
17 MSU over 16 Georgia
Illinois over UCLA
Purdue over W. Michigan
LOSSES:
10 Wisconsin to 5 Oregon
22 Penn St. to 19 Houston
120 Ohio to Florida
20 Nebraska to 9 South Carolina
Northwestern to Texas A&M
Iowa to 14 Oklahoma
January 5th, 2012 at 3:39 AM ^
If Nebraska had won the Capital One Bowl, and Wisconsin had a coach with any game management skills, this would have been a good season for the Big Ten. I'd put the conference ceiling at about six games, given the two BCS bids plus the other contracts, so five with a 2-0 BCS record plus the Capital One would quiet down some of the bashing.
As is, look forward to a lot of chest thumping from the SEC and BXII about how weak Michigan's schedule is, because our conference showed pretty poorly.
January 5th, 2012 at 4:08 AM ^
I stopped putting any stock into conference records during bowl season. Iowa vs. Oklahoma? Games like that really emphasize why I could really care less about how we do in non BCS games.
I'm more focused and concerned about conference play and winning that...bowl season is mostly just for fun.
January 5th, 2012 at 7:12 AM ^
Seriously? You play to win the game!
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<br>Iowa vs Oklahoma... That's exciting! Even though it's a mismatch.
January 5th, 2012 at 7:58 AM ^
Iowa vs Oklahoma is only exciting in the off-chance that Iowa keeps it close. That was the biggest mismatch of the year. B1G#7 vs B12#3? Come on.
The talking heads at ESPN were already bashing the B1G at halftime on the NYD bowls. They can't do anything but bash the big ten and praise the SEC. Every other conference would perform as poorly as the Big Ten if they had comparable bowl scheduling.
January 5th, 2012 at 9:26 AM ^
And what had the Big Ten done to deserve any praise up to haltime on NYD? Purdue beat a WMU team that shot itself in the foot repeatedly and Illinois beat a team with a losing record going into the bowl game.
January 5th, 2012 at 2:22 PM ^
Well for one most of the games weren't over, and were still pretty close. And they were still waiting on Wisconsin and Michigan to play bowls. They jumped all over the story before it was even a story.
January 5th, 2012 at 6:35 AM ^
you will read this anywhere else. Nice Job!!
4-6 isn't the greatest but it's quite an improvement from last year.
psu should have said thanks to the bowl game
o$u should have done the same
January 5th, 2012 at 7:42 AM ^
The fact that the B1G is almost always on the road, often in the opponent's home state, sometimes even home stadium, during the bowl season goes unacknowledged or underappreciated by far too many people who should know better.
January 5th, 2012 at 8:18 AM ^
At some point you have got to take responsibility and stop making excuses. The B1G was just inconsistant for most of the year from Wisconsin to Minnesota. One week Iowa beats Michigan and another losses to Minnesota, Michigan pounds Nebraska and loses to Iowa, Ohio state loses to Purdue and beats Wisconsin and Nebraska Beats MSU and then loses to Northwestern.
The B1G had a lot of winnable bowls they chose not to show up in most of them and quit in another ( Nebraska just quit)
January 5th, 2012 at 10:23 AM ^
It's because no one could win on the road.
January 5th, 2012 at 10:36 AM ^
You're right. Not sure if you meant to add an /s or not, but you're right. Road = tough.
January 5th, 2012 at 11:59 AM ^
Not meant to be an /s comment. Wolverman was talking about inconsistencies in the B1G and refers to Iowa losing to Minnesota and then beating UM or Nebraska losing to UM then beating Iowa or ohio beating the Badgers then losing to Purdue. These wins happened at home and the losses happened on the road. So he was trying to point out the inconsistency but inadvertently showed that the B1G was very consistent. They only win at home.
January 5th, 2012 at 1:26 PM ^
January 5th, 2012 at 9:28 AM ^
Why did Purdue have to play Western Michigan in Michigan? Big Ten gets screwed again.
January 5th, 2012 at 10:47 AM ^
I assume you are being sarcastic.
I grant you that WL and Kalamazoo don't differ much in their distance and climate from Detroit.
But seriously. If you don't think playing the Rose Bowl in Detroit instead of Pasadena, the Sugar in Green Bay instead of New Orleans, the Orange in Chicago vs. Fla., Fiesta in New York vs. Arizona - if you don't think those changes would have a significant impact on league wins and losses, then I don't understand your reasoning.
And why wouldn't anyone want to point this out? If you've got a disadvantage, you don't ignore it. You acknowledge it, look at it from every angle, and see if you can change it or turn it around to your benefit. You use it as motivation to play even better. You deal with it; you don't hide from it.
January 5th, 2012 at 8:51 AM ^
to make such simple comparisons year in and year out. We're rarely the higher ranked teams in bowl matchups, then everyone crows about how much we suck.
But B1G greed and the desire to be IN the bowls plays its obvious part.
January 5th, 2012 at 9:12 AM ^
The bowl selection process just sucks. They need to eliminate conference affiliations and start selecting bowl matchups based on record and rankings. A 10-2 team should not be playing a 7-5 team. As previously posted in this thread, the Big Ten normally is the team that has the lower ranking and worst record.
January 5th, 2012 at 10:00 AM ^
The bowl process does work. Put it this way, let's say you ran a bowl game. Would you rather have a 7-5 Western Kentucky team or a 6-6 Texas A&M team? Keep in mind, Texas A&M draws a ton better, and will draw better TV ratings.
It really comes down to money, that's my the BCS conferences, especially the SEC and Big Ten, have more bowl tie ins rather than the MAC.
Even if it were all about records, Clemson was 10-3 and WVU 9-4 heading into the Orange Bowl last night. Records indicate Clemson was better, were they?
January 5th, 2012 at 10:36 AM ^
No doubt it comes down to money. With the way B1G schools travel they're always attractive additions to the bowl commitee. The problem comes in when the talking heads don't weigh that B1G teams almost always play higher ranked opponents and often times in their backyard. For some reason B1G schools are held to a double standard.
As far as Clemson being ranked higher, upsets are going to happen. But for the most part the higher ranked team at this point in the season usually wins. What is ridiculous is that the B1G is judged on whether they can pull the upset. If they can't they suck. Makes no sense. Whereas the SEC is praised for doing what they should, beating an inferior opponent. We all know the SEC is the conference to beat. Their academic standards are different, their recruiting tactics are different and in many cases their ethics are different. Until the NCAA does something to standardize these issues it will likely continue.
January 5th, 2012 at 9:13 AM ^
Well the bigten needs to straighten itself out..........The bigten will not start winning all the bigger bowls till the 4 premier teams step up to where they should be, leading and winning this conference. Michigan, pennst, ohio and Nebraska.........these programs have to represent and the only way things change is to win these bowl games.
Michigan under hoke will be just fine....
Ohio I think we all know will be fine in 2yrs under um
Nebraska, pelini really needs to pickup the offense, that thing is archaic and where is the blackshirts.
Pennst, tbd, they could get a bigtime coach but I doubt it! imo they would be better off sticking with bradley...but they also need to clean house....
January 5th, 2012 at 9:29 AM ^
It's no longer Penn State. I think Wiscy must be put in that top four category, head coaching woes or not. They have been one of the big boys in the conference of late, and I think that they have staying power.
January 5th, 2012 at 10:02 AM ^
I think the only reason PSU was in the top tier was because of Paterno. Sure, PSU has a big stadium, but the fan bases for Wisconsin, Michigan, Nebraska, and Ohio have always been there.
PSU is in a downward cycle.
January 5th, 2012 at 11:29 AM ^
So what grade would you give us?