BIG 12 will start to lose ground.
- Thread starter paednoch23
- Start date
Hiding this post here for now so I don't lose my progress.
The real Separation Saturday for the 2024 season is upon us for the Best Damn (Super) Conference in the Land, but before we get there, we gotta see where every team stacks up entering a pivotal Week 10 slate of games. That's right it is back. THE most accurate super rankings for the Big Ten Conference in the known universe have arrived once again, and as always, because I know deep down many of you disagree and just feel compelled to keep it to yourselves (which is wise), if any of you disagree with any single one of the placements in these rankings...............you are wrong. How does it feel?
Also, we're gonna try something different this week. We're gonna flip the script and count-up to #1 as you read it, instead of spoiling #1 right off the bat.
We begin.
19. Iowa with Cade McNamara (Ass. Thank you..........................All kidding aside, a part of me does feel bad for the whole situation, because Cade is a guy who led Michigan to a B10 title and its first CFP appearance. so he wasn't some Deacon Hill-esque unserious QB option that Iowa got in the portal. The problem, unfortunately, was the injuries and some players just don't come back from certain injuries the same as others, and it was clear that McNamara just didn't have the same tools that he did pre-injury. It also didn't help that he picked one of the worst programs in major college football in terms of putting effort into developing QBs. With that said, it was clear that he needs to give way to Sullivan to at least potentially build for the future considering McNamara is done after 2024, and teams have shown a complete lack of respect for his ability to move in the pocket, and it was to the point where it was harming their run game against average teams, let alone decent defenses. A change needed to be made, regardless of whose feelings it would hurt.)
18. Wisconsin (because f*** Wisconsin, that's why
)
17. Northwestern (The Pillow Fight of the Year is here! The low energy Northwestern Mildcats travel to West Lafayette for an epic showdown between the stoppable force and the moveable object. I do think that Northwestern will have the best unit on the field this Saturday in their defense, but their offense is just so much worse than what Purdue can do with the football, and when you factor in home-field, I give the slight advantage to the Boilermakers in this slobberknocker.)
16. Purdue (Coming off a bye, the Boilers are rested and ready to go for their Battle for the Big Ten Basement. Purdue's defense is atrocious, but they also average 6.11 yards/play offensively, which is why I lean towards them in their upcoming matchup against the Mildcats.)
15. Rutgers (After starting out the year 4-0 and everyone singing the praises of the miracle worker Greg Schiano, the Scarlet Knights have since lost 4 in a row and have looked progressively more and more like your typical Rutgers team with each passing week. They're on the bye in Week 10, and then get Minn, at Mary, Illi, at MSU to try and come up with 2 wins to get back to a bowl game.)
14. UCLA (Speaking of byes, fresh off their final bye and first-ever conference win are the Bruins who will time zone travel to Lincoln this Saturday, and look to continue to defy science for the second game in a row when they take on a frustrated Huskers team that's lost 2 straight to ranked opponents.)
13. Maryland (The only thing propping up the Turtles in these rankings is their Vegas-coopted win over USC that they won for no other reason than to keep the idea going that teams travel across country need to struggle/lose because #gambling trends. Otherwise, Maryland has looked like dog poo roasting on an unseasonably warm Fall day in their 3 losses to Indiana, Northwestern and now Minnesota. The game against Rutgers in a couple weeks could be a potential bowl eligibility elimination game. Maryland has the bye and a blowout loss to Oregon upcoming to prep for that showdown.)
12. Washington (The Huskies are a hard team to rank. On the one hand, I can see flashes of potential on both sides of the ball with a first-year coaching staff. They have the home win over Michigan. They've also given teams plenty of fight even in their losses. But if you asked me who is the better team between them and USC, I still have to lean towards the Trojans right now, even with all their skid marks on the proverbial underpants. Fortunately, that debate will get settled this Saturday when USC travels north to take on Washington.)
11. USC (The Trojans bounced back at the right time with a solid win over Rutgers. This USC has talent, no doubt. But questions remain about translating and finishing in conference play, particularly on defense, as the admittedly improved unit has still given up at least 20 pts in all 6 of their conference games, and at least 24 pts in all 4 losses. It's also worth noting that USC is 0-3 on the road as they head to Seattle for a program pride game between the Huskies and Trojans. But again I do want to reiterate, the only reason I have them ahead of Washington right now is because on a neutral field I would lean USC as the favorite.)
10. Michigan State (Down from #1 last week, surprisingly the Almighty Spartan offense couldn't quite sustain their Greatest Show on Turf performance, from the week prior, against their arch nemesis Michigan. I am personally as shocked as the rest of you at this development. I guess the Aidan Chiles for Heisman hype will have to wait for now. Of course, he could wind up right back on the hype train if Aidan 'Lamar Jackson' Chiles leads Sparty to an upset win over the Cinderella Hoosiers in the Battle for the Old Brass Spittoon trophy game)
9. Michigan (Back from the dead are your reigning, defending, highly-disputed national champions, the Michigan Wolverines. They fended off their little brother in their annual clash for the Paul Bunyan Trophy, while putting up a whopping 146 yds passing. We'll see if that passing game can muster enough to keep the #1 ranked Ducks' defense honest when they visit Ann Arbor on Saturday)
8. Nebraska (Credit to the Shucksters for picking themselves up off the concrete floor after getting punched clean outside the ring against Indiana last week. They put the fear of God into the big bad Buckeyes this past Saturday, forcing OSU to actually have to try against a middle of the road B10 team. Little Red gets a guaranteed, surefire, no-way-they-lose reprieve this week against the fresh off a bye Bruins, before they get back to their usual death march of a schedule starting with a road trip to USC next week.)
7. Minnesota ()
6. Illinois ()
5. Penn State ()
4. Ohio State ()
3. Indiana ()
2. Oregon ()
1. Iowa with Brendan Sullivan ()
The real Separation Saturday for the 2024 season is upon us for the Best Damn (Super) Conference in the Land, but before we get there, we gotta see where every team stacks up entering a pivotal Week 10 slate of games. That's right it is back. THE most accurate super rankings for the Big Ten Conference in the known universe have arrived once again, and as always, because I know deep down many of you disagree and just feel compelled to keep it to yourselves (which is wise), if any of you disagree with any single one of the placements in these rankings...............you are wrong. How does it feel?
Also, we're gonna try something different this week. We're gonna flip the script and count-up to #1 as you read it, instead of spoiling #1 right off the bat.
We begin.
19. Iowa with Cade McNamara (Ass. Thank you..........................All kidding aside, a part of me does feel bad for the whole situation, because Cade is a guy who led Michigan to a B10 title and its first CFP appearance. so he wasn't some Deacon Hill-esque unserious QB option that Iowa got in the portal. The problem, unfortunately, was the injuries and some players just don't come back from certain injuries the same as others, and it was clear that McNamara just didn't have the same tools that he did pre-injury. It also didn't help that he picked one of the worst programs in major college football in terms of putting effort into developing QBs. With that said, it was clear that he needs to give way to Sullivan to at least potentially build for the future considering McNamara is done after 2024, and teams have shown a complete lack of respect for his ability to move in the pocket, and it was to the point where it was harming their run game against average teams, let alone decent defenses. A change needed to be made, regardless of whose feelings it would hurt.)
18. Wisconsin (because f*** Wisconsin, that's why
17. Northwestern (The Pillow Fight of the Year is here! The low energy Northwestern Mildcats travel to West Lafayette for an epic showdown between the stoppable force and the moveable object. I do think that Northwestern will have the best unit on the field this Saturday in their defense, but their offense is just so much worse than what Purdue can do with the football, and when you factor in home-field, I give the slight advantage to the Boilermakers in this slobberknocker.)
16. Purdue (Coming off a bye, the Boilers are rested and ready to go for their Battle for the Big Ten Basement. Purdue's defense is atrocious, but they also average 6.11 yards/play offensively, which is why I lean towards them in their upcoming matchup against the Mildcats.)
15. Rutgers (After starting out the year 4-0 and everyone singing the praises of the miracle worker Greg Schiano, the Scarlet Knights have since lost 4 in a row and have looked progressively more and more like your typical Rutgers team with each passing week. They're on the bye in Week 10, and then get Minn, at Mary, Illi, at MSU to try and come up with 2 wins to get back to a bowl game.)
14. UCLA (Speaking of byes, fresh off their final bye and first-ever conference win are the Bruins who will time zone travel to Lincoln this Saturday, and look to continue to defy science for the second game in a row when they take on a frustrated Huskers team that's lost 2 straight to ranked opponents.)
13. Maryland (The only thing propping up the Turtles in these rankings is their Vegas-coopted win over USC that they won for no other reason than to keep the idea going that teams travel across country need to struggle/lose because #gambling trends. Otherwise, Maryland has looked like dog poo roasting on an unseasonably warm Fall day in their 3 losses to Indiana, Northwestern and now Minnesota. The game against Rutgers in a couple weeks could be a potential bowl eligibility elimination game. Maryland has the bye and a blowout loss to Oregon upcoming to prep for that showdown.)
12. Washington (The Huskies are a hard team to rank. On the one hand, I can see flashes of potential on both sides of the ball with a first-year coaching staff. They have the home win over Michigan. They've also given teams plenty of fight even in their losses. But if you asked me who is the better team between them and USC, I still have to lean towards the Trojans right now, even with all their skid marks on the proverbial underpants. Fortunately, that debate will get settled this Saturday when USC travels north to take on Washington.)
11. USC (The Trojans bounced back at the right time with a solid win over Rutgers. This USC has talent, no doubt. But questions remain about translating and finishing in conference play, particularly on defense, as the admittedly improved unit has still given up at least 20 pts in all 6 of their conference games, and at least 24 pts in all 4 losses. It's also worth noting that USC is 0-3 on the road as they head to Seattle for a program pride game between the Huskies and Trojans. But again I do want to reiterate, the only reason I have them ahead of Washington right now is because on a neutral field I would lean USC as the favorite.)
10. Michigan State (Down from #1 last week, surprisingly the Almighty Spartan offense couldn't quite sustain their Greatest Show on Turf performance, from the week prior, against their arch nemesis Michigan. I am personally as shocked as the rest of you at this development. I guess the Aidan Chiles for Heisman hype will have to wait for now. Of course, he could wind up right back on the hype train if Aidan 'Lamar Jackson' Chiles leads Sparty to an upset win over the Cinderella Hoosiers in the Battle for the Old Brass Spittoon trophy game)
9. Michigan (Back from the dead are your reigning, defending, highly-disputed national champions, the Michigan Wolverines. They fended off their little brother in their annual clash for the Paul Bunyan Trophy, while putting up a whopping 146 yds passing. We'll see if that passing game can muster enough to keep the #1 ranked Ducks' defense honest when they visit Ann Arbor on Saturday)
8. Nebraska (Credit to the Shucksters for picking themselves up off the concrete floor after getting punched clean outside the ring against Indiana last week. They put the fear of God into the big bad Buckeyes this past Saturday, forcing OSU to actually have to try against a middle of the road B10 team. Little Red gets a guaranteed, surefire, no-way-they-lose reprieve this week against the fresh off a bye Bruins, before they get back to their usual death march of a schedule starting with a road trip to USC next week.)
7. Minnesota ()
6. Illinois ()
5. Penn State ()
4. Ohio State ()
3. Indiana ()
2. Oregon ()
1. Iowa with Brendan Sullivan ()
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