We’ve reached a point in the evolution of college sports where two major conferences are in charge: the Big Ten and the SEC. Rutgers coach Greg Schiano may be a little biased, but he believes the Big Ten sets the pace in college sports.
Schiano coached in two different leagues during his two stints at Rutgers – the (now defunct) Big East and the Big Ten. Although playing in the Big Ten is difficult, Schiano loves the challenge.
“We play in the Big Ten Conference, which I think is the ultimate conference in college sports,” Schiano said in an interview with NBC. “In football, it’s the sweet spot between elite football and elite academics. No matter how much — there’s NIL, transfer portal, all those things — it’s still college football.”
“Having the academic facilities that we have in this league and still playing at our level is what it’s all about for me.”
Starting this year, life in the Big Ten will be even more difficult. The league has added Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington, four institutions that fit the conference’s mold of high academic standards and athletic success.
The conference now includes 18 teams and stretches coast to coast. Some may hate the new look, but Schiano welcomes it with open arms.
“The biggest challenge is having four really good programs. So we’ve raised the level again – which I think is great,” Schiano said. “Then there’s the travel, we’re talking about a full program, from New York to (Los Angeles). So we’re talking about covering the whole country.”
“But I think it’s great. Watching Big Ten football all day and all night is great.”
McNamara (current) Iowa’s QB1
It looks like Cade McNamara will be Iowa’s starting quarterback for the Week 1 game against Illinois State. A week before the opening game, coach Kirk Ferentz provided an update on the current situation.
“If we had a game tomorrow, Cade would be first, Brendan (Sullivan) second and Marco (Lainez) third,” Ferentz said Thursday.
McNamara suffered a season-ending injury after playing in just five games for the Hawkeyes last season. He threw for 505 yards with four touchdowns and three interceptions and completed 51.1% of his passes.
There’s still a week until the Hawkeyes face Illinois State at Kinnick Stadium, so things could change. But for now, McNamara will be the man under center starting the 2024 season.
Replacement for Ryan Day?
We haven’t even started Week 0 yet and ESPN college football analyst Desmond Howard is already making wild guesses about Ryan Day’s job status. In an appearance on Stand upThe former Michigan star suggested that new Ohio State offensive coordinator Chip Kelly could become the team’s new head coach if something goes wrong in 2024.
“I think the Ohio State guys just put everything on the middle of the table and spent about $13 million on college football’s version of free agents with the portal and NIL,” Howard said. “Not only that, but some fans would say, ‘If we get rid of Ryan Day, who would we hire?’
“They hired Chip Kelly as offensive coordinator, so if something goes wrong, I think they have someone who can back up Ryan Day (in Chip Kelly). I think Ryan Day is on the hot seat right now.”
As a reminder, Ohio State has a 56-8 record under Day as coach, won two Big Ten titles and made three appearances in the College Football Playoffs.
The biggest criticism of Day is that he has lost to Michigan each of the last three years – a huge disappointment in Columbus. Of course he’s under pressure to win this game, but would that really put him in trouble?
It is probably still a bit early for such predictions.
FERENTZ SUSPENDED FOR 1 GAME: Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz was suspended for one game for an alleged violation related to the recruitment of Cade McNamara through the transfer portal in 2022. CLICK HERE
RUTGERS LB SUFFERS ACL INJURY: Veteran Rutgers linebacker Mohamed Toure suffered a torn ACL and will miss the 2024 season. He had 93 tackles, 3.5 sacks and one interception in 2023. CLICK HERE
BIG TEN PRESEASON ALL-AMERICANS: A total of 19 Big Ten football players were named to the Associated Press All-America teams for the 2024 preseason. CLICK HERE
