Around the B1G thread

NCHawker

NCHawker

Well-Known Member
I'm curious about both Wisconsin and Michigan State this season. I keep thinking one of these teams will get to 7 or 8 wins. I have no Idea about Nebraska. Seems they always have an all-world QB and it doesn't tranlate to wins. Gophers are a poor man's Iowa. If you ask me to pick an upset, i'm wondering if the Badgers could shock the Fighting Irish in Lambeau.
 
The winner of the Michigan State/Nebraska game goes to a bowl and the loser does not.

Wisky sneaks into a bowl, but gets destroyed by an angry Domer squad. If Wisky doesn't get into a bowl they will be coach shopping.

Minny should book tickets for the Pin Stripe Bowl now.
 
I'm curious about Washington (should be pretty good), USC (I hate them but they should be better), MSU with a new coach, PSU with a new coach, IU (can they return to greatness), Michigan (new coach and talented but unproven QB). And Iowa... I'm really optimistic but I make that mistake in August every year. Blind Hawktimism.

I also sincerely hope Nebraska goes 6-6.
 
Fat Pitzgerald gets a lot of shit, but that dude can coach.

Of course he's not gonna finish top half when 99.84032% of the top 200 recruits couldn't even pass their freshman classes let alone get admitted.

He now has a school that wants to be a semi-blue blood again, a lot more money, a lot of donors who want to be back at the D'Antonio level, hired LeVar Woods who knows the B1G inside and out and knows what it takes to win.

Fat's been hamstrung by his former employer because he was more loyal than he probably should have been. It was not a football-forward environment, if you will. That is not true anymore.

I'd take Pitz over Fleck, rhule, Fickell, cowbell, or Riley any day of the week.
 
NorthKCHawk said:
Wisky sneaks into a bowl, but gets destroyed by an angry Domer squad. If Wisky doesn't get into a bowl they will be coach shopping.
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I think they're shopping anyway. I have never seen a fan base hate their own coach more than Wisconsin fans hate Fickell. Surprised he hasn't been sni9ped getting gas yet.

Wisconsin would still be Wisconsin had they hired Leonhard like they should have.
 
Look out for Mich St.. Maybe not this year, but in 2-3 yrs. I think they could get to where Iowa is and where Wisconsin was several yrs ago. I think they have the pieces in place as far as coaching and the recruiting should ramp up over the years.
 
Fryowa said:
I think they're shopping anyway. I have never seen a fan base hate their own coach more than Wisconsin fans hate Fickell. Surprised he hasn't been sni9ped getting gas yet.

Wisconsin would still be Wisconsin had they hired Leonhard like they should have.
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Lol. Wisky now seems to have that mid 1980's feel to them. They were chit in the 1980's.

Yea, when they brought Fickell in and he first tried to change their whole offense to air raid, they lost their identify. That set them back for years, kind of like trying to make Brian Ferentz an offensive coordinator.
 
Fryowa said:
I think they're shopping anyway. I have never seen a fan base hate their own coach more than Wisconsin fans hate Fickell. Surprised he hasn't been sni9ped getting gas yet.

Wisconsin would still be Wisconsin had they hired Leonhard like they should have.
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Eh, fans hate losing. The reality is that Wisky Admin has been way too slow to adjust to the NIL era and did not give Fickel anywhere near the money it would take to keep up in the arms race. And, Wisky had the second toughest schedule in the country last year. That said, with the exception of the baffling win over Illinois that probably saved his job, Wisky was not a competitive team last year. Wisky is cheap and didn't want to eat the buy out. They are still cheap and he still has a buyout. If he makes a bowl, he gets another season. I am not saying he deserves it. He doesn't.

As for Leonard, hindsight is 20/20. Fickel was pretty damn successful at Cinci and had Big10 experience. Seemed like a good hire at the time, but it certainly has not worked out. That said, no one else has hired Leonard as a HC. So....
 
NorthKCHawk said:
Eh, fans hate losing. The reality is that Wisky Admin has been way too slow to adjust to the NIL era and did not give Fickel anywhere near the money it would take to keep up in the arms race. And, Wisky had the second toughest schedule in the country last year. That said, with the exception of the baffling win over Illinois that probably saved his job, Wisky was not a competitive team last year. Wisky is cheap and didn't want to eat the buy out. They are still cheap and he still has a buyout. If he makes a bowl, he gets another season. I am not saying he deserves it. He doesn't.

As for Leonard, hindsight is 20/20. Fickel was pretty damn successful at Cinci and had Big10 experience. Seemed like a good hire at the time, but it certainly has not worked out. That said, no one else has hired Leonard as a HC. So....
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Fans hate Fickell because they hate losing.

Fickell was the wrong guy from the get go. He came into a school in Big Ten land known for one of the best ground games ever over the previous 30 years (probably the best if you take it as a whole) and publicly said, F-that, we’re going air raid. Red flag before he even started but it was too late. I’ve watched every Wisconsin post game since then and it’s clear to a kindergartner the guy is in over his head. He literally admits on camera he’s in over his head. Says right to reporters he doesn’t know exactly what’s wrong and has no idea how to fix it. You don’t do that as a coach unless you’re having a nervous breakdown. You lie like all the rest of them and tell them you have a plan. You don’t sit in a room with your players and say, “I dunno…”

I know lots of WI fans and that’s honestly why they hate him. The losing is real, real bad, but his de facto admitting he’s out of ideas but continuing to coach is why they hate him. I mean I’d make them fire me too if I was getting paid that much, but it isn’t going to endear you to fans.
 
Fryowa said:
Fans hate Fickell because they hate losing.

Fickell was the wrong guy from the get go. He came into a school in Big Ten land known for one of the best ground games ever over the previous 30 years (probably the best if you take it as a whole) and publicly said, F-that, we’re going air raid. Red flag before he even started but it was too late. I’ve watched every Wisconsin post game since then and it’s clear to a kindergartner the guy is in over his head. He literally admits on camera he’s in over his head. Says right to reporters he doesn’t know exactly what’s wrong and has no idea how to fix it. You don’t do that as a coach unless you’re having a nervous breakdown. You lie like all the rest of them and tell them you have a plan. You don’t sit in a room with your players and say, “I dunno…”

I know lots of WI fans and that’s honestly why they hate him. The losing is real, real bad, but his de facto admitting he’s out of ideas but continuing to coach is why they hate him. I mean I’d make them fire me too if I was getting paid that much, but it isn’t going to endear you to fans.
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He's got the NIL money, a much more manageable schedule and is going into his 4th year. He all out of excuses. So, its put up or shut up. He has to at least claw his way to a bowl game, and maybe 1 more game than that.

His buyout is 19 million. That is not nothing. I think 6 wins and a bowl keeps him in play, but maybe not. I don't disagree he was a bad hire for the fit and culture. Reminded me of when Nebraska fired ground and pound Solich and decided to go pro style pass happy with Callahan. Just an awful fit from the get go. And, we have enjoyed the shit show ever since!
 
Folks forget that WI beat 2 Top 25-ranked teams in their last 4 games last season....at the end of a season I thought for sure he was going to be fired mid-season, cuz as previous posters wrote, he was lost and out of answers.
His fake confidence at this year's BTen Media Days belies trouble ahead, however. Any coach who forces himself to cuss repeatedly to sound macho when it's really not their personality always raises a red flag for me.
 
NorthKCHawk said:
Why? Given their schedule and returning players, that would be an okay season. I want Nebbie to backtrack to no bowl. Let their insufferable fans suffer.
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Okay that's totally fair. I should've said "I want their ceiling to be 6-6. O-12 would be just fine." :)
 
Westernhawk said:
Okay that's totally fair. I should've said "I want their ceiling to be 6-6. O-12 would be just fine." :)
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As I posted in the other thread, 6-7 with embarasing losses to Iowa and in a bowl game would put the AD in a terrible position with the fans and boosters. Do you can Rhule, eat his buy out and start all over again, or swallow pride and bring back a below .500 coach for a 5th season? That is fine with me. But, I would take 0-12 too.
 
NorthKCHawk said:
As I posted in the other thread, 6-7 with embarasing losses to Iowa and in a bowl game would put the AD in a terrible position with the fans and boosters. Do you can Rhule, eat his buy out and start all over again, or swallow pride and bring back a below .500 coach for a 5th season? That is fine with me. But, I would take 0-12 too.
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Wow I just looked at the back half of their schedule. They could lose 6 of their last 7 games.
 
Westernhawk said:
Wow I just looked at the back half of their schedule. They could lose 6 of their last 7 games.
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Yep. Their most winnable game in the last 7 is AT Rutgers. I live amongst the Sandpeople and the commonly held belief is that if they do not go 5-0, they have very little shot at making a bowl.
 
NorthKCHawk said:
The winner of the Michigan State/Nebraska game goes to a bowl and the loser does not.

Wisky sneaks into a bowl, but gets destroyed by an angry Domer squad. If Wisky doesn't get into a bowl they will be coach shopping.

Minny should book tickets for the Pin Stripe Bowl now.
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I would love the idea of both evil red teams (wisky and sand people) going coaching shopping again at the conclusion of the season.
 
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