Jim Delany, the commissioner of the Big Ten Conference, was adamant that last week’s poor performance as a collective group on the gridiron was nothing more than just a bad day at the office…albeit they occurred in many different offices across the country.
“Anyone who writes the story of the 2014 football season after two weeks, that’s premature,” Delany told ESPN.com last Sunday.
Well, here’s hoping Delany doesn’t read the following couple of graphs, because last week’s horror show by its members may have already cost the conference a seat at the College Football Playoff table.
Just in case you need a reminder, the two headline teams in the B1G coming into this season, Michigan State and Ohio State, lost primetime showdowns to Oregon and Virginia Tech, respectively, with the Buckeyes’ loss coming in Columbus. Both losses came by at least a two-touchdown margin, while another traditional powerhouse in the league, Michigan, wished it could have lost by only two touchdowns as it was vaporized, also in primetime, 31-0 by Notre Dame. Those three contests came after both Northwestern (to Northern Illinois) and Purdue (to Central Michigan) lost home games to teams from the Mid-American Conference and nationally-ranked Nebraska needed a “Heisman moment” play from running back Ameer Abdullah in the final minute to escape abject ignominy at the hands of FCS member McNeese State.
Despite all of that carnage, probably the biggest loss a Big Ten team has incurred in this early part of the season was Wisconsin’s loss to LSU in Houston on Aug. 30, when the Badgers let a 17-point second-half lead slip away. Victory would have given Wisconsin a neutral-site triumph over a top-rated SEC team – something the Playoff voters would definitely have taken notice of – and placed the Badgers in a position where if they ran the table (which looks likely, given their relatively easy schedule the rest of the way), they would almost certainly be in line for a Playoff spot. That same narrative would have held true for Michigan State if they hadn’t blown a nine-point second half lead in Eugene. Unless some other teams surprise and make deep undefeated runs (Iowa? Penn State?), the supposed marquee match-ups in conference play down the road, especially the Ohio State-Michigan State on Nov. 8, won’t have as much of an impact on the College Football Playoff chase as some in the conference would have hoped for when the season started. Last year’s Big Ten Championship game between an undefeated Ohio State and a one-loss Michigan State, if played this season, would have certainly produced a College Football Playoff participant. The chances of that happening for 2014, however, may have already vanished, unless a couple of teams go on a serious run.
No, this isn’t the whole story of the 2014 college football season in the Big Ten, but it’s hard to think right now that there’s a happy ending waiting for us in the final chapter.
Another story ready to be told right now is the results of the latest A Lot of Sports Talk‘s College Football Top 25. Once again, let’s welcome our weekly story weavers/pollsters: T.J. Basalla (super fan, marketing professional, WJPZ Alumni Association President), Pavan Sandhu Eckhart (Texas A&M graduate, Sales Rep at Ferring Pharmaceuticals in Dallas), Basil Mitchell (former TCU and Green Bay Packers RB), Sandy Weintraub (super fan, Director of Student Conduct and Community Standards at the University of Oregon), Adesina Koiki (Football Writers Association of America member/voter, A Lot Of Sports Talk editor-in-chief) and an anonymous assistant coach who once coached at a Division I-FBS school. If you have any comments and/or complaints, write them below on the Facebook window or email us at feedback@alotofsportstalk.com. We’d love to hear from you, as always.
1. 
Oregon (145, two first-place votes)
The Ducks showed their mettle when it mattered, in the second half with their backs against the wall against a very good team. Marcus Mariota was obviously the key, but keep the name Devon Allen in mind. The NCAA and United States’ national 110-meter hurdles champion was a huge difference maker, and should continue to be moving forward. (Sandy Weintraub)
2. 
Oklahoma (141, one first-place vote)
Oklahoma’s first true test comes in primetime against a Tennessee team looking to become nationally relevant once again. Yes, the Volunteers aren’t at the level of where they were about 15 years ago, but seeing traditional powers battling it out still will be fun…or at least it should be. (Adesina Koiki)
3.
Florida State (134, two first-place votes)
Suddenly that defensive line is getting a little thin. (T.J. Basalla)
4. 
Alabama (125)
Mother Nature is nothing to joke about, but should we thank her for providing the lightning that prematurely put an end to the Tide’s rout of Florida Atlantic? (Adesina)
5. 
Georgia (124, one first-place vote)
I will take Georgia completely seriously if it can take care of business in Columbia (South Carolina edition) this week. (T.J.)
6. 
Baylor (119)
The Bears saw a glimpse into their future last Saturday, and it was a pleasant sight. Sophomore quarterback Seth Russell, playing for injured starter Bryce Petty, threw five first-half touchdowns against Northwestern State, with three of those scores to Mt. Pleasant, Texas native KD Cannon, a true freshman. (Sandy)
7. 
Auburn (115)
The Tigers have this coming weekend off before a big showdown next Thursday at Kansas State. Bravo to an SEC team for playing a true away game in non-conference play with some serious teeth it it. Can’t say that about much of the rest of the league. (Adesina)
8.
Texas A&M (111)
Game one of the three-game “non-conference state of Texas beatdown tour” for the Aggies started with a 73-3 home win over Lamar (from Beaumont, TX) Next up is Rice (Houston) at home, followed by a road trip to SMU (Dallas). (Adesina)
9. 
Southern California (104*)
Amazing to see what can happen when a college team has a competent kicker. USC did. Stanford didn’t. USC won. (T.J.)
Winning at Stanford is a big deal. This team has talent and is now the clear favorite to win the Pac-12 South. (Sandy)
10. 
LSU (104)
Leonard Fournette, you may want to shelve that Heisman pose for sometime down the road…WAY down the road. (Adesina)
11. 
Notre Dame (86)
If I thought Michigan was any good, then the Irish’s blanking of the Wolverines would be a bigger deal. At the same time, Everett Golson’s return is huge. (Sandy)
12. 
Michigan State (77)
I come away extremely impressed seeing this team live. They are disciplined and well coached. They have a quarterback, receiver group and defensive line that can play with any team in the nation. I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see Sparty win out the rest of the way. (Sandy)
13. 
Arizona State (69)
Last week, I said in this space that the over/under I was setting for Arizona State’s total points in its next two games was 97…and I was taking the over. After scoring 58 at New Mexico, it would seem almost a lock that the Sun Devils will get to at least 40 points in their conference opener at Colorado. Make me look good, Sparky! (Adesina)
14. 
UCLA (63)
So…anyone want to repeat their “UCLA makes the College Football Playoff” predictions from the start of the season. UCLA may not even be the third best team in the Pac-12 South!! (T.J.)
15. 
Ole Miss (59)
Winning 41-3 on the road is the perfect way to start conference play. Oh, it was against Vanderbilt?? Well, it’s still a real good way to start conference play. (Adesina).
16. 
Stanford (57)
Wanted: Better red-zone play-calling. (T.J.)
17. 
Virginia Tech (48)
This pollster still doesn’t have the Hokies in his Top 25 (more of a reflection on Tech’s opponent last week, Ohio State, than the Hokies themselves), but the win in Columbus was still a huge one for a program trying to reestablish themselves as an elite one. This weekend’s game vs. East Carolina could possibly prove to be much tougher of a game than Ohio State. Really. (Adesina)
18. 
Wisconsin (43)
Wisconsin’s 2014 season could possibly be best reflected by last week’s game vs. Western Illinois: slow start (a halftime lead of 9-2), but a furious finish (outscored the Leathernecks 28-0 in the second half). Wisconsin should be favored in every game the rest of the season. (Adesina)
19. 
Kansas State (42)
After racing out to a 13-0 lead, the Wildcats were caught with their pants down and let Iowa State score 28 unanswered points and believe an upset was in the works in Ames. But Jake Waters saved the day to pull out the win, and in the process, saved the juiciness of the Wildcats’ upcoming game at home against Auburn. (Adesina)
20. 
Missouri (30)
The Tigers had the quietest “impressive” road win of last weekend. Toledo is a really good non-power conference team and Missouri took care of business in the Glass Bowl. (T.J.)
21. 
Louisville (29)
UCLA had a real tough time in its season-opening win in Charlottesville against Virginia. Will another ranked team have its hands full against the Cavaliers in the Old Dominion? Louisville sure hopes that’s not the case. (Adesina)
22. 
Brigham Young (20)
What’s stopping this team from going 12-0? Go on, look at their schedule. Road games at UCF and Boise State won’t be easy, but I definitely smell a special season brewing in Provo. (Adesina)
23. 
South Carolina (19)
For as bad as the Gamecocks have started the season, all will be OK in Columbia with a win over Georgia on Saturday. (T.J.)
24. 
Clemson (14*)
At least the Tigers have a week off before their showdown in Tallahassee against Florida State. But that also means they can think about the realistic possibility of starting the season 1-2 for a few extra days. (Adesina)
25. 
Ohio State (14*)
Last week’s comment (before Virginia Tech game): Still a very good team, but that offensive line is going to cost the Buckeyes at least 1-2 games this season. This week’s comment (after Virginia Tech loss): What did I tell you all about the Ohio State offensive line? (T.J.)
Others receiving votes:
Oklahoma State (14 points), Nebraska (11), Washington (9), Florida (6), North Carolina (5), Tennessee (4), West Virginia (3), Duke (3), Marshall (2), Texas Tech (1)
* – To break ties, we used a three-step criteria; 1) higher number of first-place votes, 2) higher number of ballots (out of six) the teams appeared in, 3) highest single ranking by an individual pollster (e.g. if Team A and Team B are tied cumulatively and appeared in all six polls, but Team A’s highest ranking by an individual pollster was No. 7 and Team B’s highest ranking by an individual pollster was No. 9, Team A wins tiebreaker)
[Cover photo (Connor Cook/Michigan State) courtesy of Joe Robbins/Getty Images]
