Big Ten wrap: Excitement overshadowed

A season of change in the Big Ten turned bad in November.


Joe Paterno's fall at Penn State amid a shocking scandal became the league's biggest story of 2011.
(US Presswire)
This season saw the Big Ten split into divisions for the first time because of the admittance of Nebraska, and that led to the first league championship game.

But it also saw Penn State icon Joe Paterno lose his coaching job in November in the aftermath of the Jerry Sandusky sexual abuse scandal. Paterno had been at the school as assistant or coach since 1950.

Ohio State coach Jim Tressel already had lost his job in the aftermath of an NCAA investigation into rules violations.

The off-field issues overshadowed some exciting football. Michigan rallied to beat Notre Dame in the final seconds in September. Wisconsin lost back-to-back games in October on last-second Hail Marys. Nebraska rallied to win a thriller with Ohio State. Wisconsin outlasted Michigan State to win an exciting league championship game.

And the conference had a relatively successful postseason, too, going 4-6, including a BCS victory and a win over an SEC team in a Jan. 1 bowl.

Here’s a closer look at the Big Ten.

Best postseason performance: Michigan State. The Spartans had been beaten 73-19 in their past two bowl meetings with SEC teams, and when Georgia jumped out to a 16-0 halftime lead in the Outback Bowl, it looked as if Michigan State was in line for another bowl beatdown. But Michigan State held Georgia to 133 yards in the second half and through three overtimes, and the Spartans came away with a 33-30 victory. Michigan State’s defensive line dominated in the second half, and the Spartans finished with four sacks and a staggering 17 tackles for loss against the SEC East champs.

Worst postseason performance: Nebraska. The Capital One Bowl matchup with South Carolina was supposed to be close (the Gamecocks were 2.5-point favorites). It was close – but for just a half. South Carolina dominated the third and fourth quarters and won 30-13. The Huskers had just 253 yards and finished the season 9-4. Instead of their third consecutive 10-win season, the Huskers instead finished with their eighth consecutive season of at least four losses.

Underclassmen turning pro early: Michigan State TB Edwin Baker, Minnesota TE Tiree Eure, Wisconsin C Peter Konz, Illinois DE Whitney Mercilus, Purdue G Ken Plue, Iowa OT Riley Reiff, Michigan State DT Jerel Worthy

Team most hurt by early departures: Michigan State. Worthy, Konz, Mercilus and Reiff were potential All-Americans next season, but Baker’s departure coupled with Worthy’s decision makes the Spartans the dubious winner in this category. Worthy was a first-team Yahoo! Sports/Rivals.com All-America this season, and Baker ran for 655 yards and five TDs. While Baker’s workload decreased as the season progressed, he still was a proven Big Ten back. He ran for 1,201 yards in 2010.

Coaching change: Tim Beckman in at Illinois, replacing Ron Zook; Beckman had been coach at Toledo. Urban Meyer in at Ohio State, replacing interim Luke Fickell; Meyer, the former coach at Florida, spent this season as an ESPN analyst. Bill O’Brien in at Penn State, replacing Joe Paterno; O’Brien had been offensive coordinator with the New England Patriots.

Key coordinator hire: Ohio State offensive coordinator Tom Herman. Herman’s hire probably elicited a yawn from most fans. After all, Herman came from Iowa State, which was far from an offensive juggernaut during his three years as the Cyclones’ coordinator. But Herman did excellent work at Rice, and that’s the key. When he had talent commensurate to the rest of the league – which was the case at Rice but not at Iowa State – his offenses put up huge numbers. He will have elite talent at Ohio State, and in Braxton Miller, he has a quarterback well-suited for a spread offense. The same goes for Wisconsin’s hiring of Todd Canada as offensive coordinator. He is a former coordinator at Indiana, and the Hoosiers’ offense was OK under his watch, considering the talent level. But this season at Northern Illinois, working with players who were among the best in their league (MAC) at their positions, he oversaw an offense that ranked 11th nationally. He will have big-time players with the Badgers.

Coach on the hottest seat in the fall: Purdue’s Danny Hope. While he received a contract extension in December after leading the Boilermakers to a bowl, he wouldn’t survive a three- or four-win season in 2012. No other coach in the league looks to be even remotely feeling the heat.

Recruiting storyline to watch: Despite facing NCAA sanctions, Ohio State is going to have the best class in the league. If folks don’t think Urban Meyer is going to recruit with a vengeance … well, let’s just say those folks aren’t paying attention. When Meyer is focused, he is one of the two or three best head coaches on the recruiting trail. Michigan is recruiting well, too, but the Wolverines’ class won’t be as good as Ohio State’s. Remember that Meyer has been on the job for about a month, and think how good he will be in the next recruiting cycle.

Read More: http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/news;_ylt=Ahq3N7nSWCohfJuDaimxuc8cvrYF?slug=mh-huguenin_big_ten_scandal_overshadows_excitement_012012