Tom Dienhart, BTN.com Senior Writer, October 30, 2015
Well, Nebraska QB Tommy Armstrong has been ruled out for the Huskers? game at Purdue this Saturday.
So, for the first time in 23 games, NU will have a starting QB without the last name ?Armstrong? as Ryker Fyfe will make his first start. He has attempted a total of 18 passes in his career, just three of which have come in games decided by fewer than 30 points.
Fyfe made brief appearances in the Michigan State and Iowa games last year due to minor injuries to Armstrong, but this will be the first extended action of his career. Still, knowing all this, Nebraska will do just fine with Fyfe under center.
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I still can?t get over the retirement of Minnesota?s Jerry Kill. It?s largely because of stuff like this, a story of a football coach who helped save a man?s son?s life. Kill was about much more than Xs and Os and promoting his own brand.
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Northwestern got back on track last week with a big win at Nebraska that came on the heels of brutal losses at Michigan and vs. Iowa. The Wildcats are off this week. But, they have work to do to enhance their bowl positioning.
No. 1 on this list from InsideNU.com: Get healthy. But this team also must remember to feed its best asset: RB Justin Jackson. As this story notes, Jackson is a dynamic playmaker who needs the ball in his hands.
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Here are some Week 9 football preview videos from our BTN YouTube channel.
[youtube https://youtu.be/Y0GUnyV5H3A?list=PL2RRF9GtC9s3dY5E5ll8WvmPcSLfxVJGv]***
J.T. Barrett has to defend his arm strength when compared to Cardale Jones? Come on.
This makes me chuckle. Sure, Jones has the stronger arm. But I always was told by coaches and scouts that arm strength is overrated. Stuff like accuracy, release, pocket presence, ability to read a defense and toughness rate much higher than arm strength. And Barrett excels at those things.
"I threw deep balls the whole year, and it was like, 'Oh, Cardale, he's got a strong arm, they're going to be throwing deeper and pass it downfield,'" Barrett said. "What? What are you talking about? I can do the same things. The thing is, now when a play breaks down and somebody is 80 yards down the field, am I going to throw it? Absolutely not. Cardale is going to throw that. I'm not going to throw that. But I feel that's different.?
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This isn?t good news for Rutgers: WR Leonte Carroo is listed as "questionable" for the game at Wisconsin. Minus Carroo, this RU offense get very ordinary very quickly.
"It really just comes down to what the doctors tell me," Flood said. "I have to lean on the medical professionals because they are the ones who have been through it and they've had situations like this in their past. I take their advice and I lean on that. And there is always a certain part of it with the player himself. How does he feel? Does he feel like he can perform? Because regardless of what the medical people say, if the player doesn't feel like he can perform then he can't. A little bit is the player and a lot of it is the medical people."
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Pennlive.com has a nice slide show that looks at Penn State?s top 10 playmakers. None excels at changing as well as DE Carl Nassib, the best defensive player in the Big Ten.
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In case you haven?t noticed, former Michigan State DC Pat Narduzzi is doing pretty well at Pitt. Yes, the Panthers lost last night to North Carolina, but this still has been a good season.
Pitt is off to its best start since 2009 and have climbed into the Associated Press Top 25 for the first time since the 2010 preseason poll.
?I can?t say it?s been a challenge. The biggest challenge is winning on Saturdays,? Narduzzi said of adjusting to being a head coach.
This guy is good. I knew he would be. It was just a matter of finding the right job to jump to, and he's clearly found it.
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Now here is some high praise: Tom Izzo says incoming freshman Deyonta Davis could be one of Michigan State?s best big men ? ever. Whoa.
"He could be one of the most talented big men we've ever had," Izzo said of the 6-foot-10 McDonald's All-American from Muskegon. "He's in the Paul Davis mold."
Izzo said Davis needs to learn to play harder – like "99 percent" of freshman big men in college basketball – but that if he continues progressing the way he has since the beginning of the summer, "you're gonna see a lot of Deyonta Davis."
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The coaching tumult around the Big Ten is rampant. Then, there is Iowa, which has had Kirk Ferentz for 17 seasons.
A 7-0 record, the new $55 million Iowa Football Performance Center and the perception of New Kirk/Ferentz 3.0 have converged in 2015 to embolden the Hawkeye brand: a program that develops players and contends for championships. What a difference a year makes, huh?
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It?s a bye week for Indiana, which is still dreaming of a bowl.
Kevin Wilson?s bye-week message to the players is simple and direct: ?You have to dig deeper and keep progressing. It?s that trust factor. It?s one of the last Achilles heels you have to get through (in turning around a program).?
Getting to a bowl for the first time since 2007 may be a challenge for the 4-4 Hoosiers. In fact, it may come down to the last two games: at Maryland, at Purdue.
