2013 B1G title wide Open?

[WhiteMamba]

I know that everyone has Ohio State winning the B1G by a landslide and ending up in the NATTY. For good reason... Urban Meyer, potential Heisman candidate in Brax, and a 12-0 2012 team.

But the more I look at it I see this thing very competitive. Michigan now has a QB that fits Hoke's offense for an entire season, Nebraska is loaded at skill positions and a SR QB. Wisky, MSU, and Northwetern all seem to have an argument as well.

And it seems to me that there isnt a team minus MSU who has a def that is heads and tails better than anyone else. But Sparty has offense issues.

Educate me B1G fnas. Make a case why your team will win the B1G. I for one think the 2013 champ isnt set in stone by any means...

 

[Shanemansj13]

CUM! CUM! CUM!...nuff said

 

[tabascojet]

 

[WhiteMamba]

HA! ANd then take the Texas job in a few years? Sounds about right on par for ol Urban...

 

[Smart]

Wisconsin will be the best team in the B1G this year. We haven't lost a game by more than a TD since 2010, and we haven't been blown out since 2008. All of those close games featured either a special teams meltdown or a horrid Bret Bielema coaching mistake (or in most cases, both). Bielema is gone. We have a new special teams coach. If we can play with the same level on offense or defense, we will essentially be the same as a team riding a 50 game winning streak.

As for the talent, we return a very good quarterback (Joel Stave) who put up above average as a Freshman. We return a sixth year senior QB who is an outstanding leader and can spread the field. We return the nation's #2 returning RB in career yards (James White)....and he probably won't even start. Instead, Melvin Gordon (620 Rushing yards on 10.0 YPC) will likely be the starter and could be the most explosive RB in America. Throw in the best receiver in the B1G (Abbredaris), and a solid (if unspectacular) Wisconsin line, and we will have the best offense in the league.

On defense, we return 5 of our excellent front seven, including Chris Borland (the best ball hawk in America). Secondary is the only huge concern, but we have two guy at CB who looked god in limited time and a true Freshman who has supposedly been the best guy in camp this Spring (former FSU recruit Sojourn Shelton). We have a likely NFL draft pick back at safety (Dezmen Southward) who was finally starting to find his game at the end of last year.

In other words, this team is stacked. If we can avoid giving up punt blocks or punt return TDs, this team will go at least 11-1. We have an easy schedule outside of OSU, and we proved last year we can shut down Braxton.

The new kings of the B1G Conference will rule again.

 

[Smoke]

^^^

 

[iruletheskool]

T. Magic.

 

[Coyote57]

I'm inclined to agree, the BIG is pretty open this yr. ISTM, that you gotta give osu the nod as the favorite, but the failure of pre-season Fav's is practically a proverb. Still gotta line 'em up and play the game, thing is, that football ain't round - tends to bounce funny.

In the 2nd tier behind osu:

I think sparty has the D to upset some higher seeds. While the O is suspect, in someways, it could be argued that it wouldn't take all that much for it to be more productive.

UM is likely to both upset higher ranked teams and fall to lower ranked teams. Still in the transition stage. One more yr at least before UM can be said to be back to its prior yr in / yr out contender status.

Neb and Wiscy are both capable of pulling off the upset. Coaching/ Coaching staff changes may be the biggest factor.

NU and PSU are dark horses in my opinion, but a couple lucky bounces here and there, catch someone on a off-day.... thin, but possible.

 

[Smart]

^^^

Go ahead and tell me one thing I said that was wrong. Just one.

 

[tabascojet]

Wisconsin will be the best team in the B1G this year. We haven't lost a game by more than a TD since 2010, and we haven't been blown out since 2008. All of those close games featured either a special teams meltdown or a horrid Bret Bielema coaching mistake (or in most cases, both). Bielema is gone. We have a new special teams coach. If we can play with the same level on offense or defense, we will essentially be the same as a team riding a 50 game winning streak.

As for the talent, we return a very good quarterback (Joel Stave) who put up above average as a Freshman. We return a sixth year senior QB who is an outstanding leader and can spread the field. We return the nation's #2 returning RB in career yards (James White)....and he probably won't even start. Instead, Melvin Gordon (620 Rushing yards on 10.0 YPC) will likely be the starter and could be the most explosive RB in America. Throw in the best receiver in the B1G (Abbredaris), and a solid (if unspectacular) Wisconsin line, and we will have the best offense in the league.

On defense, we return 5 of our excellent front seven, including Chris Borland (the best ball hawk in America). Secondary is the only huge concern, but we have two guy at CB who looked god in limited time and a true Freshman who has supposedly been the best guy in camp this Spring (former FSU recruit Sojourn Shelton). We have a likely NFL draft pick back at safety (Dezmen Southward) who was finally starting to find his game at the end of last year.

In other words, this team is stacked. If we can avoid giving up punt blocks or punt return TDs, this team will go at least 11-1. We have an easy schedule outside of OSU, and we proved last year we can shut down Braxton.

The new kings of the B1G Conference will rule again.

Stave better not bump anyone walking home....

 

[iruletheskool]

Stave as a "very good" QB for one

Ill give you serviceable

 

[WhiteMamba]

Thanks for the insight Smart. That Wisky team in 2011 the Ducks played in the Rose was so close to a NATTY bid. That was a hell of a game vs Oregon. Great football team in Wisky that year. So its Stave that is going to be the man at QB huh? He seems to be solid for sure. Look forward to the B1G having a huge bounce back year this season...

 

[ForkEmBucky]

Setting aside my usual need to talk shit and expose the butthurt homer retards of our beloved site....

Wisconsin has a lot to prove. The offensive line is our bread and butter, and they're about to go through another season of new starters and new coaching. The last remnant of their dominant players from 2010 and 2011 has finally entered the draft.

On defense, the DL should be stout on the run but they won't get to the quarterback. The defensive backfield starts over at safety, and our best cornerback graduated. Our linebackers will continue to play at an elite level, but they're going to be busy.

Stave looks like he's leading the QB competition. He has a great arm, but he's skinny and injury prone. The runningbacks will be flashy, but they won't have that great line. Abbredaris will be open, but he'll have to work for it because the rest of the receivers aren't very good.

So what I'm saying is, I can't guarantee that we'll take the division. tOSU looks like the shoe in winner right now. But you never know when a class will show up and make huge strides, and you never know which team will suddenly rise up.

 

[WhiteMamba]

T. Magic.

Taylor had some jaw dropping plays last season... Guys throwing motion is suspect but man is he a play maker...

If they could make even slight improvements on def I think they would be close to a favorite.

Like I say I think it is the most wide open conference in CFB followed by the Big12...

 

[iruletheskool]

I rly think Huskers have the best offense or at least tied for best.. and probably worst defense

New and healthy faces on the DL and LB corps, along with probably the deepest pool of CBs in the conference, and different starting safeties leave room for some hope

 

[Shanemansj13]

He is from Ohio, he was an Ohio boy...this is the best for him he will stay for a lifetime!

 

[ForkEmBucky]

Actually, I guess one of our safeties wasn't a senior. I'm not changing my mind, though. The 3-4 may utilize our depth at linebacker, but none our backers are incredibly big, so even that bothers me a little when facing the B1G offensive lines.

 

[Shanemansj13]

LOL@ Wisky. And you know if you still lose close it is still counted as a loss.

 

[ForkEmBucky]

I can read a scoreboard. We're not the ones who lose and then claim to be the better team.

 

[Smart]

Thanks for the insight Smart. That Wisky team in 2011 the Ducks played in the Rose was so close to a NATTY bid. That was a hell of a game vs Oregon. Great football team in Wisky that year. So its Stave that is going to be the man at QB huh? He seems to be solid for sure. Look forward to the B1G having a huge bounce back year this season...

A lot of insiders say Curt Phillips is likely to be the starter. I think it will be an awful decision if they start him.

(The only reason we lost the Rose Bowl was that we started Phillips. Our offense was much better with Stave. In the five games he was the QB for, we never scored less than 27. In seven of the nine games where he was not the QB, we scored less than 27.

It didn't get much press, but the decision to start Curt was one of the truly boneheaded decisions in coaching history.)