The Mighty Big Ten

[The Ancient Enemy]

You're right, they didn't beat a top 15 team, they were 17th.

Oh and PS, Georgia still sucks. We can relive that argument whenever you are ready.

[Head Roadie]

I actually prefer to stick to my original contention that UT was in a "tailspin" which I think I've proven but if you must stick to a Georgia sucks argument then can I assume that everyone ranked below Georgia (including Penn State) sucks too??!!??

And since I'm guessing UGa will be ranked ahead of UT when the final polls come out, I suppose UT sucks too!

[The Ancient Enemy]

Now all of a sudden the final polls matter?

If Tennessee drops from 17th... its because Penn State beat them!!!!

[Head Roadie]

Why wouldn't final polls matter...arent' we talking about how good teams are at the end of the season? Heck, UT looked like a Top 6-8 early on...even with an impressive 1 pt. loss to Fla. Ga did suck at mid season but they improved nicely over the last 5 games of the season whereas Tenn. really didn't have any impressive wins since the first half of the season. Check last 5 games of each team below. I don't think either team "sucked" but if one did, I don't think it was Georgia.

UTenn (2-3)

Nov 4 LSU Lost 24-28
Nov 11 @Arkansas Lost 14-31
Nov 18 @Vanderbilt Won 39-10
Nov 25 Kentucky Won 17-12
Jan 1 @Penn St. Lost 10-20

UGa (3-2)

Oct 28 @Florida Lost 14-21
Nov 4 @Kentucky Lost 20-24
Nov 11 @Auburn Won 37-15
Nov 25 Georgia Tech Won 15-12
Dec 30 @Virginia Tech Won 31-24

[D-nice]

so an upate puts the mighty big-ten at 2wins and 4losss? am I right?

[The Ancient Enemy]

I just find it interesting how the polls are accepted whenever Penn State is not involved. Tennessee is ranked 17th, now all of a sudden they're a terrible team who is the 24th best team in their own conference. Funny how you never see Head Roadie complain about rankings unless it's used, poorly, to illustrate how Penn State sucks.

I'd bring up that everyone thought Wisconsin was overrated, then they beat the second place SEC team in a bowl game. But I guess Arkansas sucks, too, so that means Wisconsin is still overrated and terrible.

[El-Moldo]

I think a good barometer for a conference is how good the "middle of the pack" teams from each conference do in bowl games. After all, every conference has a couple of heavy weights. The Big Ten middle of the conference teams all lost. It's a top heavy conference, with even their #2 team losing their bowl game.

[D-nice]

rankings, arguments, blah,blah,blah.... Big Ten 2-4 so far

Big East 4-0 so far.

I'm not saying the big east is better than the big ten, just the big east is much imroved and deserves a bcs bid. and the big ten is down. but we already knew that. so stop posting long winded arguments with this # & that # it really makes little or no sense.

[The Ancient Enemy]

Moldy, thanks for acknowledging Penn State as a Big Ten heavyweight.

Michigan lost to who? The second best coaching staff in the nation, who has probably the best depth chart in the nation. Who's the number-one coaching staff? Wow, that's weird, it's a Big Ten team. Why do programs look to the OSU staff whenever they want a coach? The same reason all Bellichek's assistants get head coaching jobs. And then what happens? Ohio State and New England hire people just as good, and sometimes better, than the guy they just lost. That is big time football. USC does the same exact thing.

As far as middle of the pack teams, consider who they played. South Florida beat a garbage East Carolina team that is coached by a guy who was fired by his own father. Cincinnati played Western Michigan... in a bowl game. Minnesota has the worst coaching staff on earth and lost to a team that beat USC. Purdue, who I will admit is very bad, lost to a Maryland team who played in their conference title game. Point being, they didn't play whacko teams from Conference USA and the MAC.

West Virginia had to rally big against an unranked Georgia Tech team. Louisville beat a pretty good Wake Forest team. Rutgers beat KANSAS STATE. Pittsburgh may play IUP if they ask nicely. So consider the opposition, here. I guess you think Western Michigan and East Carolina can beat Purdue and Minnesota.

[Head Roadie]

AE states that " Purdue, who I will admit is very bad, lost to a Maryland team who played in their conference title game." Maryland was THIRD in their division of the ACC behind WF and BC and DID NOT play in a Conference Championship Game

AE goes on to say that "West Virginia had to rally big against an unranked Georgia Tech team." GT is 25th in the Coaches Poll and is largely unranked in the others because of the exact theory I'm trying to get through your skull AE....They lost their last two games....Geogia and Wake in the CONFERENCE CHAMP. GAME.

Seems you mixed up who was in the Conference Championship game to fit your Big 10 argument AE?

Wisconsin.....I believe I gave them their due in an earlier post (See p. 4 of this thread since you obviously only read what you want to read, AE). They may be the most underrated team out there, we'll never know because their schedule did not allow them to play Ohio State (another thing that drives me bonkers about the Big 11) and their loss to Michigan was in mid-September!

As for the contention that I only use polls when I am putting PSU down.....well, whatever AE.....I was actually just trying to defend your Georgia sucks theory which is ridiculous.