Tom Dienhart, BTN.com Senior Writer, August 5, 2015
It can be a prickly subject: Should prospects who have verbally committed be allowed to take visits elsewhere? All coaches have their own policy.
Ari Wasserman of Cleveland.com has an in-depth look at the subject and how Big Ten programs handle the situation. Michigan State?s Mark Dantonio recently pulled an offer from a kid who was committed but still visited OSU. I mean, if a kid has verbally committed to you, why should he keep taking visits?
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The great Pat Forde of Yahoo! is out with his ?Most Intriguing? lists of 2015. Up first: The 25 most intriguing coaches.
Yes, Jim and Urban made the cut. In fact, they are Nos. 1 and 2. Please, tell me you aren?t shocked.
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As if you needed another reason to think the Alabama vs. Wisconsin game in Arlington, Texas, on Sept. 5 was a big deal, ESPN College Game Day will be there.
This is a great opportunity for Paul Chryst in his debut. And, the Badgers have a chance, as the Crimson Tide are breaking in a new quarterback.
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How about this from Minnesota: QB Chris Streveler will practice at receiver.
The guy really hasn?t been much of a passer, making most of his hay as a runner. Streveler is a nice athlete who could help at this position of need. Marcus Fuller of the St. Paul Pioneer Press notes that the redshirt sophomore completed four passes for 37 yards and a touchdown and rushed 36 times for 235 yards and a touchdown in five games last season. One of the five fastest players on the team, he was Big Ten freshman of the week after rushing for 161 yards in a start against San Jose State.
"He's a good athlete," Jerry Kill said. "I said to him, 'While you're working, do some things at receiver.' So we'll see."
I like the idea.
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Good podcast on Madison.com from Tom Oates and Jason Galloway that looks at Wisconsin?s academic appeals process with a preview of camp. And can the Badgers win the West?
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Here is another good podcast, this time from Pennlive.com that previews PSU camp and predicts breakout players for the Nittany Lions.
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Which Rutgers players bulked up the most this offseason? Dan Duggan of NJ.com has it all. No doubt, this is a team that needs to get bigger-especially up front.
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Iowa made a pretty big change this year, moving practices to the morning. Will it provide an edge as the program looks to emerge from a funk? Hey, it?s worth a look.
The transition, Kirk Ferentz said, actually creates fewer conflicts with class scheduling, with practices wrapping up by 11 a.m.
?Less interference of guys leaving early or getting there late. To me, it?s a win-win situation,? Ferentz said. ?We?re really eager to try it out. Our first week of school, fortunately, we don?t have a game that week. So we have a little bit of a dry run.?
That?s all well and good. But I guarantee that if Iowa went 10-2 last year and 9-3 the year before, no change to the practice routine would have taken place.
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Five keys for Indiana making its first bowl since 2007? Zach Osterman of IndyStar.com has ?em.
One area to watch is wideout, a position with little experience that already has taken a hit with J-Shun Harris already lost for the season with a knee injury.
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I?ll leave you with some hoops-Nebraska hoops. The Huskers will get a boost this season from Kansas transfer Andrew White.
Lee Barfknecht of Omaha.com says that for a program that finished last season 305th out of 345 schools in scoring (61.5 points, NU?s third-lowest average in 52 years) and 337th in 3-point shooting (28.4 percent, second-lowest in school history), the emergence of a long-range offensive threat like White is worth talking about.
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| About Tom Dienhart | BTN.com senior writer Tom Dienhart is a veteran sports journalist who covers Big Ten football and men's basketball for BTN.com and BTN TV. Find him on Twitter and Facebook, read all of his work at btn.com/tomdienhart, and subscribe to his posts via RSS. Also, send questions to his weekly mailbag using the form below and read all of his previous answers in his reader mailbag section. |
