Big 10 Week 2 Review, Very Belatedly

So this is very late and should be a space actually used to preview the upcoming week, but I'm now finally emerging from my H1N1 nightmare and am able to write again. It was a big week for the conference, with one power rising, one falling, and one holding steady as we move one week closer to conference play.

1. Tressel Ball is Alive and Well: Sloppiness early? Kicking the field goal on 4th and 1 from the 1? Somehow relying on a botched punt snap for a safety to win? Punting the ball rather than kicking a 50 yard field goal to ice the game? This game was signature Tressel. He was conservative to a fault-- relied exclusively on running between the tight ends, playing field position, and avoiding blitzing as much as possible. The good news for the Buckeyes is that they did not embarrass the conference, losing 18-15 on a touchdown in the last minute to a Top 5 team is hardly a black eye on the Big 10, no matter what Pat Forde says.

This is not to say Ohio State wasn't disappointing. Everyone was ecstatic to see what Terrelle Pryor was capable of, especially after he showed flashes a brilliance in the USC game last year and apparently turned the corner as a leader in the Fiesta Bowl against Texas, but he failed to deliver. One terrific article said that this was not Pryor's fault, but rather the fault of Ohio State's playcalling, play design and scheming. The season and Pryor are both very young, however, so I still expect to see Pryor lay the groundwork for his 2010 Heisman Campaign before November ends.

And for those people who say Tressel should be fired, We Will Always Have Tempe delivers a smart, educated response in defense of one of the best coaches in college today. Obviously, this means it has been completely ignored by most of the mainstream media.

2. Penn State Is a Machine: I mean, my god. Darryl Clark again completed 67% of his passes, 7+ yards per completion and 3 TDs. They manhandled a "BCS Conference Opponent," ha, but seriously, they crushed another team without having to play their starters in the 4th quarter. I don't care if the score wasn't overwhelming, keeping your starters fresh for the end of the season will pay off against the big guns like Ohio State and . . . what was the other school that has traditionally dominated the conference and my soul . . . University of Something . . . Bo . . . . Lloyd . . . Brady . . .

3. MICHIGAN!!!: First, let's give credit where credit is due. Notre Dame is ridiculous on offense, has better talent than people give them credit for on defense, and really should end the season in the Top 15. Will they beat USC? No, but they may very well win the other 9 games left on their schedule and sneak into the BCS. New Year's Day at the very least.

BUT MICHIGAN! Simply put, this game put RichRod back on the map as a coaching genius. He looks brilliant for his freshmen recruiting class that included 4 starters on this team, for giving up on QB phenom Ryan Mallet and lettign him transfer to Arkansas in favor of recruiting his own guy in true freshman QB Tate Forcier, but also showed that he is not a one trick pony on offense. Everyone knows how he is the pioneer of the read-option run play out of the backfield, but he debuted some new wrinkles against a defense that thought they had the play figured out (hint, apparently they did not). More importantly, under the leadership of his super-accurate freshman, RichRod has shown a willingness to throw the ball as well. Michigan threw the ball 33 times for 240 yards, and only rushed the ball 38 times. RichRod has shown that Michigan is going to be a much more balanced spread offense at Michigan than he was at WVU, which means it is a team that will be even more dangerous on offense. Big 10 champs? No, not with a freshmen. But a January 1 bowl and going 2-1 against MSU, PSU and OSU are definitely possible.

Also, great article on the lives that players from Florida high school power-Pahokee High School leave behind when they go to college.