2006 NCAA Preview: The Big Ten Conference

The Big Ten conference has a personal place in my heart and is always an interesting conference to watch. As a Wisconsin native, I have always had an affinity for the Big Ten style of running and defensive football and grew up rooting for the Wisconsin Badgers in the 1990s. While the conference sometimes has difficulties in winning the big bowl games, football fans need to keep an eye out for teams like Ohio State and Michigan who will push for BCS bids in 2006. Below is a projection of how the Big Ten will turn out in 2006.

1. Ohio State- Ted Ginn Junior and Troy Smith are going to be a big play combination but coach Jim Tressel needs to hope that the Buckeyes defense can play as well as they have in the past with new NFL players like Bobby Carpenter. Tressel is an experienced coach and has a few big games behind him, including a national championship. Look out for the Buckeyes this season not only to win the Big Ten conference but also to win the national championship again.

2. Michigan- Lloyd Carr’s Wolverines will be able to get towards the top of the Big Ten conference but will be held back by the outstanding talent of the Ohio Buckeyes. Carr’s ability to deflect criticism and protect his players from a fickle fan base, combined with his big game experience, means that the Wolverines will be able to push the Buckeyes until the last weekend of the season and get into a top flight bowl.

3. Iowa- Kirk Ferentz has deflected not only rumors about a possible defection to an NFL job but also criticisms about how talented he is as a coach. The Hawkeyes have suffered from injury problems but they also suffer from having a lack of any star players on either side of the ball. The absence of A.J. Hawk means that the Hawkeyes will need to rely on a solid team game, rather than turning to a few strong players, to win games. However, Ferentz is an outstanding coach and will be able to coach his team into the top three of the Big Ten conference.