Three Yards and a Cloud of Dust...

An always intriguing, challenging piece by Alpha Male, Daniel Sleezer

…The Crushing Mediocrity of Big Ten football on the National Stage.

After a 1-6 record in bowl games this season, ‘mediocrity’ may be far too generous a term. But since Ohio State wasn’t already out of the Fiesta Bowl by the second quarter, I decided to throw them a bone.

The Iowa Hawkeyes were the lone bright spot for the Big Ten in a bowl season that saw everything from an equally big late choke job by Northwestern, to a second straight Rose Bowl that wasn’t even a game. So the question becomes, How is the Big Ten underperforming to the point of irrelevancy?

Is it the recruiting? Storied programs such as Ohio State and Michigan continue to nab top-15 classes, Penn State has experienced a renaissance in the department lately, and Illinois’ own Ron Zook keeps over-achieving as well. (I’m waiting for the violations to come to light, but that’s a story for another day.) So at the very least it would seem that the Big Ten is getting enough sheer talent to be competitive at the very least.

Is it the coaching? From proven Big Ten track records (OSU’s Tressel, PSU’s Paterno, Iowa’s Ferentz) to others getting it done in different conferences, (Michigan’s Rodriguez at WVU, Zook at Illinois) there’s a wealth of leadership and winning experience at the helm. Is it the caliber of conference competition? Each of the other power conferences has their share of bottom feeders, as well as cupcake teams to start the season off right. But for some reason, the top and middle thirds of the other conferences seem to outclass those of the Big Ten.

Unfortunately, I don’t have any answers, so anybody, clue me in if you do. Every year, I watch the regular season thinking that the conference has enough good teams to go at least .500 in bowl games, and every year I end up scratching my head in frustration.

At least now I know how it feels to be a Cubs fan…

More thoughts on the topic to come. Thanks Dan.