|
Sport Sections |
|
|
| | |||||
| Wednesday, November 8 Wildcats, Buckeyes still looking at BCS bowls By Jeff Potrykus Special to ESPN.com | |||||
Six weeks down.
Two weeks to go.
And still there are four Big Ten teams in the running for the Big Ten title and Rose Bowl berth.
OK, so Purdue is the only one in the bunch that controls its own destiny. Yet with each week this season producing more ridiculous results, is it really safe to anoint the Boilermakers as the Big Ten champs?
Not just yet.
"I avoid that," Purdue coach Joe Tiller said, referring to calculating the bowl possibilities. "I am so strong and adamant with our team about avoiding looking ahead, that I guess I've convinced myself not to do it, too. Usually I get that information from my SID. I don't pay too much attention to it."
Coach Tiller, here is the 411:
Illinois Although Illini fans are excited about quarterback Kurt Kittner's revival in the victory over Indiana, Turner has other concerns with Ohio State visiting Champaign on Saturday. Most notably, Turner is worried about his defense, which surrendered 477 rushing yards to the Hoosiers. In that game, three defensive backs recorded career highs in tackles. "You don't want those guys making too many tackles," Turner said. "We've got to do a better job against the run this week."... Ohio State is only eighth in the Big Ten in rushing (156.6 yards per game). But the Illini are last in the Big Ten and 110th nationally against the run, allowing a bloated 224.4 yards per game and 4.9 yards per cary. ... Remember how critical Kittner was of his performance in a 14-10 loss to Michigan State two weeks ago? He responded by completing 21 of 29 attempts for 277 yards and three touchdowns and sneaking in from a yard out for the winning touchdown against Indiana. "It's a tribute to what he's all about -- his character and his confidence," Turner said. Indiana Now that the Hoosiers are officially out of the bowl picture, the focus is solely on quarterback Antwaan Randle El, who needs 33 total yards Saturday against Wisconsin to become the first player in Division I-A history to gain at least 2,500 yards in each of his freshman, sophomore and junior seasons. Randle El, who has passed for 1,465 yards and rushed for 1,002 yards this season, has 8,150 total yards (5,487 passing, 2,663 rushing) in 31 games. Thirteen players have gained at least 2,500 yards in three different seasons, including: John Elway (Stanford), Doug Flutie (Boston College), Randall Cunningham (Nevada-Las Vegas), Ty Detmer (BYU), Peyton Manning (Tennessee), Duante Culpepper (Central Florida) and Drew Brees (Purdue). No player has gained at least 2,500 yards in four seasons. ... Randle El rushed for 209 yards and passed for 130 in against Illinois, but the Hoosiers fell because their defense allowed a game-winning drive in the final minutes for the second consecutive week. "It's the same old story," Indiana coach Cam Cameron said. "I've never been around a group of guys who do so many good things and still come up short." ... Randle El attempted two punts against Illinois. He was roughed on the first attempt and on the second several Illinois players pushed and shoved Randle El all over the field. "I guess they were trying to get me off my game," Randle El told reporters after the loss. "It was a little extensive. It didn't concern me. I was just playing football." Iowa Suffice to say, it was the best week of what has been a dreary season for Iowa's program. On Thursday, second-year coach Kirk Ferentz, finally signed a contract. He had gone all of last season and nine games into this year without a signed agreement. The deal lasts until June 30, 2005 and will pay Ferentz about $585,000 per season, including outside income. Then on Saturday, the Hawkeyes traveled to Happy Valley and returned home giddy after toppling Penn State, 26-23, in two overtimes. The victory was Iowa's first on the road under Ferentz, who is 3-18 as the Hawkeyes' coach. "They never lost faith," Ferentz said of his players. "I'm proud of our guy, especially our seniors." ... Freshman Nate Kaeding tied an Iowa record with four field goals in the victory, including the winner from 26 yards. Michigan Look for Michigan's defense to rebound this week against Penn State, which runs an offense that is just a tad easier to defend than that of Northwestern. Carr acknowledged this week that neither his staff nor his players were ready for the Wildcats' offense. Considering Northwestern racked up 654 yards in the victory over Michigan, which had an extra week to prepare, that is an understatement. "Defensively we did not have the answers to the spread offense," Carr said. "I haven't seen anybody that has. I think more than anything else we did not have the answers in terms of our scheme. I think our players played extremely hard. I looked at the film and the first thing you think you may see and you certainly don't want to ever see is lack of effort, lack of intensity. I didn't see that in that game right up to the very end. But obviously we had people out of position." ... Senior tailback Anthony Thomas, whose fumble gave the Wildcats one last chance, needs 336 rushing yards to pass Jamie Morris' Michigan rushing record of 4,393 career yards. Michigan State The Spartans are thinking payback this week against league co-leader Purdue. The Boilermakers have beaten the Spartans three consecutive times. Each loss has been a killer. In 1997, the Spartans lost by 22-21 after blowing a 21-10 lead in the fourth quarter. In 1998, the Spartans lost, 25-24, one week after upsetting previously unbeaten Ohio State. Last season, MSU took a 6-0 record to West Lafayette and was blown out, 52-28 as Brees passed for 509 yards and five touchdowns. "It's been a struggle with these guys," said Williams, who played running back and defensive back at Purdue from 1977-'81. "Two years in a row we had the game, then we lost it in the end." ... Williams will stick with freshman Jeff Smoker at quarterback. Smoker started against Ohio State and had two crucial turnovers that allowed the Buckeyes to overcome an early 10-point deficit for a 27-13 victory. "Jeff did some fine things," Williams said, "but he made some mistakes. Some of them he had no control over." Smoker was sacked six times before junior Ryan Van Dyke replaced him late in the game. Williams said he yanked Smoker partly because he feared Smoker might get hurt. ... Junior David Schaefer has missed four of his last five field-goal attempts and might be on the bench against Purdue. Minnesota Mason faces two tasks this week. First, find a ploy to restore his team's shattered psyche for a must-win situation against Iowa on Nov. 18. Two, explain his decision-making in the loss to Wisconsin. After consecutive losses to Indiana, Northwestern and Wisconsin, it is clear the Minnesota players are confused and lacking confidence. "We're going to have to be a little creative in how we approach the off-week," Mason said after the loss to Wisconsin. "I've got a football team that I'm not sure is physically spent, but emotionally, they're spent. And I got to get them back." And about those decisons against the Badgers? Mason consistently had his kickers pooch their kickoffs to keep the ball away from Wisconsin's Nick Davis. The ploy worked, except for the fact that the Badgers' average starting point after five Minnesota kickoffs was their own 36. Then at the end of the first half, with the Gophers leading by 12-3 and the Badgers looking flat, Mason had Dan Nystrom attempt a 57-yard field. Goal. Nystrom had already missed an extra-point attempt and a 27-yard field goal attempt. The 57-yarder never came close; Wisconsin got the ball at its 40 and needed three plays to score to cut the deficit to 12-10 with 45 seconds left in the half. "Bad decision," Mason said. "My fault. When I made the decision to go for it, I looked at the flag and the wind was with us. As he got out there, I could feel it change. I almost screamed time out. I wish I would have." Northwestern In addition to keep his players focused on Iowa this week, Walker is working feverishly to improve his defense. Lost amid all the excitement over the Wildcats' potent offense is the fact that the defense isn't exactly championship caliber. Northwestern is 92nd nationally in scoring defense (31.6 points per game) and 96th nationally in total defense (419.3 yards per game). That defense surrendered 535 yards against Michigan. "We need to play a lot better on defense, and I'm not going to make excuses for them," Walker said. "We can't continue to dodge bullets, which I think we have." ... Ever the perfectionist, Walker thinks the offense can improve. "It's hard to get mad at an offense that scores 54 points and has 654 yards of offense. Against Michigan," he said. "But, and I say this somewhat tongue-in-cheek, we didn't score every time. Feel free to do that. That would work for me." For the record, the Wildcats scored 10 times in 14 possessions, six touchdowns and four field goals. ... With two rushing touchdowns against Michigan, Damien Anderson has a school-record 18 this season. Darnell Autry rushed for 17 touchdowns in 1995 and again in '96. The Wildcats have rushed for a school-record 27 touchdowns, breaking the mark of 23, set in 1996. Ohio State The last time the Buckeyes had revenge on their minds was Oct. 7, when they traveled to Wisconsin and whipped Wisconsin, 23-7. A year earlier, the Badgers had embarrassed the Buckeyes, 42-17, in Columbus. Saturday's date at Illinois has been circled on the Buckeyes' team calendar since last year, when the Illini rolled to a ridiculously easy 46-20 victory in Columbus. Illinois scored the most points in 53 years against an Ohio State team in Ohio Stadium. "Nothing went our way that day," linebacker Joe Cooper said. "It was very embarrassing. It's one of the games I've been looking at and pointing my finger on since the beginning of the season. We have to go in there with a chip on our shoulders." ... If the Buckeyes are going to gain the revenge they seek against the Illini, they will need to get the ball to receivers Ken-Yon Rambo and Reggie Germany. Rambo had one catch for 40 yards and Germany was shut out in the victory over Michigan State. The Buckeyes are 74th in the nation in passing offense (198.9 yards per game) and quarterback Steve Bellisari (1,660 yards, 10 interceptions and six interceptions) continues to get grilled. In the second half against Michigan State, the coaches called only two pass plays for Bellisari. "We've got to do a better job across the front of protecting our quarterback," John Cooper said. "Everybody's critical of our quarterback and how we're throwing the ball and that kind of a situation, but you can't get hit play after play after play when you're either throwing the ball or just after you release it." Penn State It is official: the 26-23 loss to Iowa means the Nittany Lions (4-6, 3-3) will miss out on a bowl for the first time since 1988 and for just the fifth time in 35 seasons under coach Joe Paterno. Paterno is the all-time leader in bowl games (30) and victories (20). "It's demoralizing," Penn State senior defensive end Justin Kurpeikis said. "Throughout the season, we've had to re-evaluate our goals. Now we have to do it again." ... Quarterback Rashard Casey generated 369 total yards, the second-higest mark in school history. Quarterback Mike McQueary had 370 yards against Pittsburgh in 1997. ... The Nittany Lions' final two games are at Michigan Saturday and at home against Michigan State on Nov. 18. If the Nittany Lions win both, Paterno will tie Bear Bryant's mark for most victories by a major-college coach. Paterno made it clear he will attempt to win those two games, not for the record, but to close out the season on a strong note, rather than take a look at younger players with an eye toward the 2001 season. "I certainly won't use up a year of eligibility for a kid at this stage," he said. "I'm not going to abandon the season because I want to rebuild for next year." Purdue The bye week was kind to the Boilermakers. They were able to rest and refocus for their final two regular-season games and they moved up to No. 9 in both the coaches' and writers' polls. That is their highest ranking since the 1980 preseason poll, when the Boilermakers opened at No. 9. The last time the Boilermakers were in the top 10 at this point in the season was Nov. 4, 1968 when they were ranked No. 6. That team, by the way, lost its next game, 27-13, at Minnesota and did not go to the Rose Bowl. ... The matchup between Purdue quarterback Drew Brees and Michigan State's pass defense will be a classic battle of strength vs. strength. Brees is averaging a league-best 322.0 passing yards per game, with 22 touchdowns and eight interceptions. The Spartans are No. 2 nationally in pass defense, allowing only 145.3 yards per game, with nine interceptions and only seven touchdown passes allowed. "Michigan State is a big concern because of the way they play pass defense," Tiller said. "And it's no secret that if we have a choice of how we're going to move the football, we would prefer to move it throwing the ball. Our football team will be challenged to the max by Michigan State's defense, particularly their secondary." ... Brees needs 105 total yards to pass Flutie (11,317) and move into fourth place on the NCAA's all-time list. Brees already has set five Big Ten career marks this season -- passing yards (11,022), total offense (11,840, passing touchdowns (86), completions (957) and attempts (1,571). Wisconsin After rallying to beat Minnesota, the Badgers turn their attention to the elusive Randle El, a player they have succeeded in stopping in the past. In their last two victories over the Hoosiers, the Badgers have limited Randle El to a combined 41 carries for 62 yards (1.5 yards per carry) and no touchdowns. In addition, Randle El has completed only 20 of 44 attempts (45.5%) for 299 yards (149.5 yards per game), with no touchdowns. Randle El has 67 touchdowns (35 rushing, 32 passing) in 31 games. In eight quarters against Wisconsin's defense, Randle hasn't crossed the goal line once. "When you play option teams it is assignment football," Wisconsin defensive coordinator Kevin Cosgrove said. "Guys have got to take care of their responsibilities and you've got to keep him in a box. You can't let him get out in the open." ... Sophomore quarterback Brooks Bollinger, the subject of the fans' ire in recent weeks, played his best game of the season in the Badgers' 41-20 victory over Minnesota. Bollinger completed 12 of 21 passes for 204 yards and a touchdown and rushed 13 times for 127 yards and a touchdown. In two games against the Gophers, Bollinger has 605 total yards. Wisconsin coach Barry Alvarez reiterated that Bollinger is entrenched as his starter and redshirt freshman Jim Sorgi remains No. 2. "There never was (a controversy) as far as I was concerned," Alvarez said. "You want to go to war with Brooks as your quarterback." Jeff Potrykus covers the Big Ten for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. | ALSO SEE ACC notebook Big East notebook Big 12 notebook Big West notebook Mountain West notebook Pac-10 notebook WAC notebook AUDIO/VIDEO   Northwestern's Zak Kustok goes 12 yards for the TD against Michigan.(courtesy: ABCSports)avi: 1271 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1 Michigan's Drew Henson throws 11 yards pass to David Terrell for the TD.(courtesy:ABCSports)avi: 988 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1 Northwestern's Damien Anderson crashes through Michigan's defense on this 7-yard TD run.(courtesy:ABCSports)avi: 794 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1 Jeff Smoker takes it up the middle for a TD on the quarterback keeper.avi: 609 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1 Little John Flowers spins out of a tackle on his way to a TD.avi: 1319 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1 Derek Combs races in for a nine-yard TD.avi: 819 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1 | ||||
|
Copyright ©2000 ESPN Internet Ventures. Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and Safety Information are applicable to this site. Click here for a list of employment opportunities at ESPN.com. |
