What Big Ten team impressed you the most?

Submitted by MichiganForever on

Big Ten had an oustanding weekend going 9-2 against non-conference opponents

Even Rutgers played a top 10 Washington team extremely tough.

 

 

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Farnn

September 3rd, 2017 at 6:49 PM ^

Maryland, Rutgers, and Purdue impressed me even though only Maryland won.  The B1G certainly seems to be on the upswing and maybe they will finally shut up about SEC speed.

Joined: 07/07/2008

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consultant22

September 3rd, 2017 at 6:52 PM ^

Good:

Michigan - Duh

Purdue - looked much improved on defense which was a surprise.

Maryland - team looked good, still on the small side but going to a mobile QB gives them the best chance to win. Texas is awful on D though so we will see how impressive the win was. 

Iowa - really shocked they didn't crap the bed vs. Wyoming. Same type of Iowa team but they actually executed in game 1. 

Ohio State - was really hoping they wouldn't find a player like Dobbins. Barrett still can't throw, but it doesn't matter because they have so much line and backfield talent. 

Bad: 

Nebraska - defense was atrocious 

Minnesota - seems to be trying to force a system on players that are not meant to play in that system. Similar to when Rich Rod came to Michigan. 

 

Joined: 01/18/2016

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NotADuck

September 3rd, 2017 at 6:55 PM ^

Maryland, Rutgers, and Purdue were all surprises with Rutgers being less impressive considering they still got blown out at home.  Washington is no slouch but a blowout is a blowout.

I personally hoped the Maryland game would be competitive and thought the chances of it being that way were ok, but that Purdue game came out of nowhere.  As I was watching it I kept waiting for Louisville to pull away but it never happened.  Louisville probably isn't as good as they were last year but you have to give a ton of credit to Purdue and their coaching staff for such a huge turnaround.  I'm impressed and now I'm slightly worried about that first conference game @Purdue.  Only slightly.

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NotADuck

September 3rd, 2017 at 11:12 PM ^

Maybe I was a little overzealous in calling it a blowout, but it definitely wasn't close and it was a home game.  It was competitive... for a time, then Washington collected themselves and made it less so.  I mean the score was 27-7 mid way through the 4th quarter...

Nice to see Rutgers being competitive, even though it was only for a half.

Joined: 12/20/2013

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Big Boutros

September 3rd, 2017 at 6:55 PM ^

1. Maryland

2. Michigan

3. Rutgers

4. Purdue

5. Penn State

6. Ohio State

7. Iowa

8. Wisconsin

9. Michigan State

10. Indiana

11. Northwestern

12. Nebraska

13. Minnesota

14. Illinois

Joined: 07/08/2008

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enlightenedbum

September 3rd, 2017 at 6:59 PM ^

Purdue was clearly the most improved.  People are overstating Rutgers I think.

Iowa is very good on defense and a mess on offense, but the QB looks talented once he figures things out.

State has serious problems at OL and in the secondary.  DL overwhelmed BGSU like it should.  My hot take from week one is that Western should be favored in Spartan Stadium on Saturday.

If Indiana had a good QB they'd be good, as it is they're probably destined for 7/8 wins.

I have no idea what to think of Maryland.  That game was very, very stupid and Texas was probably super overrated again.

PSU/OSU/Wisconsin did what they were supposed to.

We played well but sloppy.  Since we're super young should be able to iron a lot of that out.

Nebraska's defense is a travesty, Northwestern looked shaky, and Minnesota is dull.

Joined: 06/06/2009

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charblue.

September 3rd, 2017 at 9:01 PM ^

The Hoosiers have probably the most accurate passer in the conference, all back-shoulder throws on the sideline, and able to read coverage and matchups to decide where best to attack the defense. After Lagow's first half performance throwing for nearly 300 yards with no run game whatsoever or even the real threat of one, I was totally impressed. When Ohio State adjusted in the second half and dropped eight into coverage while rushing three, things changed. But Lagow can play.

The Spartans look like they are going to struggle on both sides of the ball this year. If Bowling Green could have executed better, they would have demoralized the Spartan secondary which was continually beat deep throughout that game.

As a passer, Lewerke remains a creative running threat. This is a guy who bails on pass plays as soon as he feels the rush. Sparty is going to have to be awfully creative on offense because they have limited weapons and their run game is very pedestrian. Aside from Brian Allen, their Oline seems poor.

Penn State's offense seemed scintillating, perhaps the best in the conference based on the opener. Barrett was Barrett, an elusive runner and average passer, who only throws if he has a big window to throw into. Of course, he had a lot of drops by his own guys and some luck thowing crossing passes against a slow Indiana secondary.

 

Joined: 05/25/2010

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FlintLivesMatter

September 3rd, 2017 at 7:02 PM ^

Purdue...idk about maryland cause texas reminds me of what michigan was during the rr/hoke years. Everybody beating them right now

Joined: 09/03/2017

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charblue.

September 3rd, 2017 at 9:11 PM ^

What impressed me most about Maryland was the Terps reslilience. They were on the verge of blowing out the Longhorns and going up 30 to 34-7, and had a second turnover returned against them cutting their lead to 27-14. Then in the second half, they lost their starting qb and put in a very talented freshman who made some huge plays to widen their slim 3 point lead and force Texas to keep scoring to stay in the game. Great win for Maryland and DJ Durkin.

Joined: 05/25/2010

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Couzen Rick's

September 3rd, 2017 at 7:12 PM ^

Purdue, Maryland. Those were the two who really stuck out by outperforming expectations. Honestly it's such a small sample size, though. Need one more game to truly know what we're dealing with.

Joined: 12/22/2014

MGoPoints: 16041

LSAClassOf2000

September 3rd, 2017 at 7:37 PM ^

I think one of the most valuable things that we have on this blog is a somewhat watchful eye on the conference as a whole, so we should ask ourselves this question on occasion because the answer will affect our estimate of our own success. In that respect, it is a Michigan-centric thing, but getting an education on how our conference compatriots are doing is a blog tradition. 

Joined: 01/07/2011

MGoPoints: 130793

Mr. Yost

September 3rd, 2017 at 7:32 PM ^

Maryland was always going to be decent this year and I think Texas is overrated so I'd pump the breaks on the Terps. Durkin's recruited well and he's starting to get his guys in there for his system.

I said this yesterday, they remind me of Michigan in early Rich Rod years when he had Forcier and Denard.

We'd beat ND (overrated just like Texas) and then go 7-5 on the year. I see the same for Maryland, which is an improvement, but it's not really surprising.

I thought Purdue and Rutgers both looked improved, not that it'll matter...but at least they're not low-level MAC teams.

Michigan's defense really impressed me. I knew they'd be great, I didn't think they'd be elite this early. They look elite.

I see Maryland going 3-3 in their next 6 games and then losing to Michigan and PSU...that would put them right at 7-5 as I mentioned above.

Joined: 07/25/2011

MGoPoints: -9898225

WolverineHistorian

September 3rd, 2017 at 7:28 PM ^

Purdue was a shocking surprise. But I had to pick my mouth up off the floor over Maryland's performance against Texas. The game really wasn't as close as the score because Texas scored off a tipped pick six, a blocked field goal returned to the house and a kickoff return. Meanwhile, the Terps were getting off big play after big play with shocking ease. Road trips to Maryland and Purdue are not going to be as easy as originally expected. Throw in Indiana as well but every game we've played against Indiana the last several years has been a stressful nail biter. On a side note, it was nice to see Ohio State and Wisconsin really struggle for an entire half. I figured they would get their shit together eventually. Biggest loser who won: Nebraska. They beat Arkansas State 43-36 but ASU was just an incompletion in the endzone on the final play away of sending it to overtime. Nebraska's defense gave up 500 yards. That game was so RichRod like it was scary.

Joined: 08/10/2009

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Hott Karl

September 3rd, 2017 at 7:37 PM ^

Maryland and Purdue.

I know Texas still has some work to do (Looking at you Mr. Herman) and I fully believe that this win will look better for Maryland at the end of the season than it does now.

Purdue on the other hand- they have been bad for soooo long, I really did not see that performance coming. Still a loss, but a hell of a lot closer than I would have thought it would be.

Joined: 01/11/2012

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Steves_Wolverines

September 3rd, 2017 at 7:56 PM ^

It's important to remember not to over react to week 1 in college football. With that said, the most impressive teams were Maryland, Purdue, Rutgers, and Michigan. The most disappointing were northwestern, Iowa, Minnesota, and Nebraska. IU held their own and looked decent, while osu finally broke out with superior talent and coaching. Nothing to learn from psu, Wisconsin, and Illinois. And msu is tbd pending how they do vs wmu.

Joined: 01/17/2013

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BoFlex

September 3rd, 2017 at 8:31 PM ^

I honestly would not be surprised if Indiana goes to their 3rd straight bowl game this season, and prove to be a halfway decent team.

Their former DC, now HC Tom Allen was able to massively improve Indiana from the 125th ranked in 2015 to the 47th in 2016 in his sole season as DC for them. Not only did they return their best playermakers on defense (LB Tegray Scales and CB Rashard Fant), but they also have some offensive holdovers from the Kevin Wilson-era (QB Richard Lagow, WR Simmie Cobbs, WR Nick Westbrook).

At 6'5", WR Simmie Cobbs is going to be a tough matchup for pretty much most CBs. Ohio State was definitely struggling to find an answer for Cobbs. They first had 6'0" Damon Arnette would was just plain getting burnt, so then they tried their best overall CB in 5'10" Denzel Ward who did better at covering, but the height difference made it easy for Cobbs to just high-point the ball. Ohio State seemed to find the answer in the 2nd half with CB Kendall Sheffield (6'0") to at least slow down Cobbs.

Joined: 05/30/2011

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YoOoBoMoLloRoHo

September 3rd, 2017 at 8:21 PM ^

Maryland has been trending upward and Texas is mediocre. OSU has the same QB as last year - no surprise the O wasnt't dynamic. PSU played no one. Surprised a little by Minnesota's struggle - thought Fleck would deliver a solid win. Purdue stayed on pace with a very explosive Louisville. Brohm has them playing solid offense already and the D was decent. I didn't think he had the talent to effectively run his offense (beyond Blough).

Joined: 11/01/2012

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Perkis-Size Me

September 3rd, 2017 at 8:20 PM ^

Maryland easily.

OSU did what it was supposed to do. Michigan won a game it was supposed to win. So did Penn State and Wisconsin. Rutgers fought but still fell apart.

Maryland beat what was admittedly a vastly overhyped team, but one that many people pegged to be a dark horse playoff contender. And on the road no less. Durkin just raised his profile big time if he decides he wants to coach somewhere else this year or next. If he beats one of the Big Three in the East, his name will come up whenever A&M, UCLA, or possibly even ND decide to fire their coach.

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