As long as there are comments and I don’t run out of steam, I will be publishing a weekly post reviewing highlights from that week of the season from 10, 20, 30 and 40 years ago that involved teams that are NOW members of the Big Ten.
As it turns out, three of the four years considered ended with a Natty for a current B1G member, even though only one was a member at the time. All four years featured some controversy in the race for the national title, with the most controversial year ending with an undefeated, tied B1G team being voted second in both the coaches’ and media polls.
But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. It’s only August and we can’t finish the stories until we start them. So let’s dive in!
2014: Week 0
There was no Week 0 in 2014. Most teams opened the season on August 29. In the B1G, Ohio State (preseason No. 5) was considered a slight favorite over defending champion Michigan State (No. 8). Wisconsin (No. 14) was considered the favorite to win the West (RIP Legends and Leaders who ended after 2013), with Nebraska (No. 22) expected to be the biggest rival.
Oregon was the Pac-12 favorite, starting the season ranked #3. UCLA (#7) was the favorite in the South, with USC (#15) also being considered a favorite. Washington (#25) was picked third in the North, well behind Oregon and Stanford. (The Huskies stayed in the poll for a short time, as a 17-16 opening win over @Hawaii (who went 4-9 on the season) wasn’t impressive enough to keep them in the poll.)
Purdue, which we may not mention again, opened with a 43-34 win over Western Michigan (and second-year coach PJ Fleck). That’s not particularly notable, except that Purdue went 1-11 in 2013 (only beating Indiana State, an FCS team that went winless against FCS opponents in 2013) and was arguably the worst B1G team this century, so any win over an FBS team is worth noting.
Two B1G teams began new eras with close wins. Rutgers’ tenure in the B1G began with a 41-38 victory in Seattle over Washington State. (Maryland beat James Madison 52-7.) The Scarlet Knights erased two different fourth-quarter deficits and survived a 532-yard passing day from Connor Halliday. Penn State began its season – and the James Franklin era – in Dublin, beating Central Florida on a final FG, 26-24.
The big game, however, ended with a 28-24 win over #13 LSU on neutral ground (Houston) and a 24-7 lead in the third quarter. Badger fans will quickly note that Gary Andersen’s infatuation with QB Tanner McEvoy’s running ability (he completed 8 of 24 passes for 50 yards) was unfounded (Joel Stave, a two-year starter, would return to the starting lineup a few weeks later) and that Melvins Gordon barely had a run in the second half was very odd. Gordon ran for 140 yards on 16 carries, but was reportedly suffering from an unspecified illness that seemed to change with each of Andersen’s postgame comments. As it turned out, Gordon was healthy enough to run 327 more runs that year, so Andersen didn’t have to hesitate any further.
2004: Week 0
Reigning AP national champion USC (LSU won the BCS title in the only shared national title in the last 30-plus years) began the season ranked No. 1. California (with Aaron Rodgers) was considered USC’s main rival, while Oregon (ranked No. 23) was the only other ranked Pac-10 team.
The B1G race looked familiar. Defending champion Michigan began the year ranked No. 8, closely followed by Ohio State at No. 9. Further down the poll are four other B1G schools: Iowa (No. 19), Wisconsin (No. 21), Purdue (No. 24) and Minnesota (No. 25).
Finally, Maryland, which had more than ten wins in each of Ralph Friedgen’s first three seasons (2001-2003), started the season in 22nd place.
There was a true Week 0 in 2004, the last for about twelve years, with USC/Virginia Tech taking center stage. Pete Carroll was never shy about packing up the non-conference schedule, and although the Hokies began the season unranked, they were a good team (going 10-1 the rest of the regular season), and the game was played in Landover, MD. The Trojans led for most of the evening but trailed 10-7 at halftime. A touchdown pass from Matt Leinart to Reggie Bush (their second touchdown pass of the evening) put the Trojans back in front in the third quarter, and after the Hokies cut the lead to 14-13 midway through the fourth quarter, USC answered with another touchdown pass from Leinart to Bush. A late field goal made the final score 24-13, and the Trojans had passed their first test of the season.
1994: Week 0
Nebraska started 1994 ranked No. 4, a few spots ahead of Colorado (No. 8) in a race for the Big Eight that was going to be close.
In the Big Ten, Michigan began the season ranked No. 5, four spots ahead of Penn State (No. 9) and five ahead of reigning co-champion Wisconsin (No. 10). Ohio State, which shared the 1993 title with the Badgers, was ranked No. 20, one spot ahead of Illinois (No. 21).
In the Pac-10, UCLA (#14), USC (#17) and Washington (#23) all had reasonable Rose Bowl expectations, even though they were all chasing preseason favorite Arizona (#7).
In Week 0, two of these teams started their seasons impressively. Ohio State beat Fresno State 34-10 and Nebraska defeated #24 West Virginia 31-0.
1984: Week 0
Nebraska finished the 1983 season ranked No. 2 after losing to Miami in a classic Orange Bowl, and the Huskers started 1984 ranked No. 2 despite big losses (QB Turner Gill, Heisman Trophy winner RB Mike Rozier, No. 1 draft pick WR Irving Fryar and No. 2 draft pick T Dean Steinkuhler). As was tradition, Nebraska was scheduled to face No. 16 Oklahoma for the Big Eight title.
In the West, UCLA, winner of the last two Rose Bowls, was ranked No. 5 as the clear favorite for the Pac 10. Washington, ranked No. 18, was also considered a possible contender. USC, coming off its first losing season in over 20 years, was not included.
In the Big Ten, a three-way battle was expected between Ohio State (#7), Iowa (#12), and Michigan (#14). Illinois, which was coming off a 9-0 season in the Big Ten and had regained most of its offensive power, was oddly absent from the rankings.
After all, Penn State, then independent, began the season ranked 11th.
Forty years ago, college football was much more regional. In the summer of 1984, Georgia and Oklahoma won their case against the NCAA. This was the beginning of the wave that led us to the 12-team playoff megaconference we have today. But in 1984, ESPN was still a novelty and many college games were carried by regional broadcasters like Raycom.
There could be a situation where Miami and Auburn opened the CFB season on August 27th and Auburn didn’t play again until September 15th. THAT game was against Texas and was Texas’ season opener. Can you imagine top 10 teams starting the season 19 days apart today? Or another top 10 team not playing for nearly three weeks?
The Auburn/Miami game was the Kickoff Classic. This was the second year of the Kickoff Classic, the original Week 0 (see @MNW’s classic memory from five years ago).
In any case, this was the only August game in 1984, so we’ll wait until next week to discuss Illinois’ season opener against Northwestern, which was essentially the B1G version of Week 0 in 1984.
