BIG West is 2-0

[kaTNap]

... in bowl games, and none of our teams with winning records have even teed up the ball yet.

Weakest division in college football? Don't think so!

 

[GlideCat]

... in bowl games, and none of our teams with winning records have even teed up the ball yet.

Weakest division in college football? Don't think so!

Both B1G teams with losing records won their bowls.

 

[RockyTopRowdy58]

Big win over Central Michigan.

I am surprised and impressed with Nebraska beating UCLA though.

 

[Hungry Jack]

Big win over Central Michigan.

I am surprised and impressed with Nebraska beating UCLA though.

MAC schools are basically the mid major younger sisters of the B1G. They are mostly schools in Ohio and Michigan, and typically recruit players ignored/overlooked by B1G schools in the area. Some programs have been able to compete by developing high powered offenses, though they usually are neutered by better power school defenses.

Who are the mid-major "peers" of the SEC?

 

[RockyTopRowdy58]

MAC schools are basically the mid major younger sisters of the B1G. They are mostly schools in Ohio and Michigan, and typically recruit players ignored/overlooked by B1G schools in the area. Some programs have been able to compete by developing high powered offenses, though they usually are neutered by better power school defenses.

Who are the mid-major "peers" of the SEC?

An entire conference doesn't come to mind...

Memphis, currently
WV, under Rich Rod
Louisville, Petrino 1.0
Duke, currently
USF
UCF
ECU
Marshall
Georgia Southern
Appalachian State
Chattanooga

Guys not recruited by SEC/ACC powers have ended up at schools like those listed above. Have produced good teams and some really good individual players.

 

[ScoobyVols]

Probably Conference USA and to some extent American Athletic Conference (Memphis Tigers). Memphis has done very well with an overlooked prospect out of High School as their QB for the last few years (Lynch). I think, every so often, this type player can really make a difference in a mid major program. It seems like the best ones get them more often, not sure if scouting, coaching, pipelines from certain High Schools, etc., could also be luck I guess, right?

 

[kaTNap]

Big win over Central Michigan.

We have a healthy respect for MAC teams, having lost a few to them over the years -- and having hired coaches from them, in a few cases. In fact, we lost to a MAC team in the bowl game Minnesota won tonight 12 years ago, although I think that was back when they matched the MAC champion or runner-up against a middle-of-the-pack Big Ten team, a matchup which was often not to the Big Ten's advantage.

 

[Fanaticat98]

We have a healthy respect for MAC teams, having lost a few to them over the years -- and having hired coaches from them, in a few cases. In fact, we lost to a MAC team in the bowl game Minnesota won tonight 12 years ago, although I think that was back when they matched the MAC champion or runner-up against a middle-of-the-pack Big Ten team, a matchup which was often not to the Big Ten's advantage.

That was much different. BGSU finished 11-3 and ranked in all the final polls. CMU, this year's matchup, was like the 5th place MAC team and finished 7-6. It took a come from behind TD in the last few minutes for Minny to eke that one out.

 

[Cat In The Cradle]

NU is 3-0 against this year's bowl winners so far.

 

[pawildcat_rivals209725]

Ask Arkansas how they liked playing a MAC team this year.

 

[NUCat320]

An entire conference doesn't come to mind...

Memphis, currently
WV, under Rich Rod
Louisville, Petrino 1.0
Duke, currently
USF
UCF
ECU
Marshall
Georgia Southern
Appalachian State
Chattanooga

Guys not recruited by SEC/ACC powers have ended up at schools like those listed above. Have produced good teams and some really good individual players.

SEC teams in general have fewer open slots for nonconference opponents. While a MAC team might get two Big Ten teams each year, Sunbelt teams rarely play the SEC.

The Sunbelt has a similar geographic overlap, but there are just fewer opportunities. This is because the SEC plays a nine game conference schedule, and because most SEC schools have an ACC rival, and it seems to me that most SEC schools typically play an FCS opponent each year as well. There are simply few were nonconference slots available for the SEC and Sunbelt to form a consistent relationship.

I might be wrong about this, but, beyond Purdue against Notre Dame, I don't think there are any Big Ten schools that have a consistent nonconference rival. I believe that the series between Pittsburgh and Penn State and Illinois and Missouri no longer exist. So, most Big Ten teams have had four slots completely open every season, a number that drops to three next year.

 

[RockyTopRowdy58]

Ask Arkansas how they liked playing a MAC team this year.

Arkansas is hard team to figure out. Beat Ole Miss, smoked LSU, beat Tennessee... But lost to Toledo and Texas Tech...

 

[nycat33]

SEC teams in general have fewer open slots for nonconference opponents. While a MAC team might get two Big Ten teams each year, Sunbelt teams rarely play the SEC.

The Sunbelt has a similar geographic overlap, but there are just fewer opportunities. This is because the SEC plays a nine game conference schedule, and because most SEC schools have an ACC rival, and it seems to me that most SEC schools typically play an FCS opponent each year as well. There are simply few were nonconference slots available for the SEC and Sunbelt to form a consistent relationship.

I might be wrong about this, but, beyond Purdue against Notre Dame, I don't think there are any Big Ten schools that have a consistent nonconference rifle. I believe that the series between Pittsburgh and Penn State and Illinois and Missouri no longer exist. So, most Big Ten teams have had four slots completely open every season, a number that drops to three next year.

The SEC only plays a 8 game conference schedule, and planning to remain that way even though other conferences are upping to 9.

 

[Turk_rivals223269]

indy lost a heartbreaker for the BigEast.

i still think msu and osu will have strong victories but ped state will get beat.

 

[NUCat320]

The SEC only plays a 8 game conference schedule, and planning to remain that way even though other conferences are upping to 9.

I stand corrected. Until next season, most of the SEC (though not UT) still had three 'open' slots as compared to the B1G's four. Next year, all will be at 3. I remain surprised that Sunbelt teams don't play more SEC opponents.

 

[RockyTopRowdy58]

Well, the SEC is 1-0.

I don't mind LSU winning though. Tennessee recruits against Auburn and Bama more than LSU. A strong LSU is good for Tennessee.

Speaking of Auburn... If Memphis beats them, do they fire Malzahn and go after Kelly. Would be a very Auburn thing to do.

 

[kaTNap]

Well, the SEC is 1-0.

I don't mind LSU winning though. Tennessee recruits against Auburn and Bama more than LSU. A strong LSU is good for Tennessee.

Speaking of Auburn... If Memphis beats them, do they fire Malzahn and go after Kelly. Would be a very Auburn thing to do.

I don't see much upside in that for Kelly as long as Saban is riding high.

 

[RockyTopRowdy58]

I don't see much upside in that for Kelly as long as Saban is riding high.

Mobile QBs and spread offenses have given Saban trouble... Ohio St, Ole Miss, Auburn, Texas AM

 

[kaTNap]

Mobile QBs and spread offenses have given Saban trouble... Ohio St, Ole Miss, Auburn, Texas AM

Playing second fiddle in your own state doesn't seem like a Chip Kelly thing to do.

 

[hdhntr1]

SEC teams in general have fewer open slots for nonconference opponents. While a MAC team might get two Big Ten teams each year, Sunbelt teams rarely play the SEC.

The Sunbelt has a similar geographic overlap, but there are just fewer opportunities. This is because the SEC plays a nine game conference schedule, and because most SEC schools have an ACC rival, and it seems to me that most SEC schools typically play an FCS opponent each year as well. There are simply few were nonconference slots available for the SEC and Sunbelt to form a consistent relationship.

I might be wrong about this, but, beyond Purdue against Notre Dame, I don't think there are any Big Ten schools that have a consistent nonconference rival. I believe that the series between Pittsburgh and Penn State and Illinois and Missouri no longer exist. So, most Big Ten teams have had four slots completely open every season, a number that drops to three next year.

Not sure how you can say that. Tenn played 8 conference games and 4 games OOC and I believe that would be true throughout the conference.

 

[JoeWildcat]

I stand corrected. Until next season, most of the SEC (though not UT) still had three 'open' slots as compared to the B1G's four. Next year, all will be at 3. I remain surprised that Sunbelt teams don't play more SEC opponents.

No, no, and no. The SEC has an eight game conference schedule, just like the Big, so they have 4 OOC games every year. The Big will go to nine conference games next year, but the SEC will stay at eight.

 

[GlideCat]

SEC teams in general have fewer open slots for nonconference opponents. While a MAC team might get two Big Ten teams each year, Sunbelt teams rarely play the SEC.

The Sunbelt has a similar geographic overlap, but there are just fewer opportunities. This is because the SEC plays a nine game conference schedule, and because most SEC schools have an ACC rival, and it seems to me that most SEC schools typically play an FCS opponent each year as well. There are simply few were nonconference slots available for the SEC and Sunbelt to form a consistent relationship.

I might be wrong about this, but, beyond Purdue against Notre Dame, I don't think there are any Big Ten schools that have a consistent nonconference rival. I believe that the series between Pittsburgh and Penn State and Illinois and Missouri no longer exist. So, most Big Ten teams have had four slots completely open every season, a number that drops to three next year.

Iowa versus Iowa State

 

[GlideCat]

Speaking of Auburn... If Memphis beats them, do they fire Malzahn and go after Kelly. Would be a very Auburn thing to do.

Fulmer-Kiffin-Dooley-Jones

We would consider it a very SEC thing to do.

 

[RockyTopRowdy58]

Fulmer-Kiffin-Dooley-Jones

We would consider it a very SEC thing to do.

Kiffin left us and Dooley deserved to be fired. Prior to that Fulmer was our guy for 17 seasons.

 

[GlideCat]

Kiffin left us and Dooley deserved to be fired. Prior to that Fulmer was our guy for 17 seasons.

Until you fired him to bring in Kiffin.

In Auburn's defense, they had Shug Jordan for 20+ years, Pat Dye for an extended period. And even kept Tommy Tuberville for several years (he kept beating Alabama so they could not get rid of him). Other than Bowden who went a little crazy and Chizik, they have a pretty good record. And Chizik had some pretty severe drug problems on the team according to a documentary that I saw.