Tom Dienhart, BTN.com Senior Writer, August 4, 2015
If there is one Purdue player who needs to have a big season, it is wideout Danny Anthrop. He?s the one proven playmaker for an offense in desperate need of playmakers. Anthrop is coming off a knee injury that ended his 2014 season early.
For what it's worth, the wideoout professed his health to me in Chicago. He could have a very big season.
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Tom Shatel of Omaha.com likes the Big Ten?s scheduling concepts that eschewing playing FCS foes.
This will make the Big Ten more attractive to TV networks with fewer mismatches-and it no doubt will strengthen all the schedules in the conference, a nod to the playoff committee.
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Northwestern is hunting for a quarterback. And, it?s a three-man race between Clayton Thorson, Matt Alviti and Zack Oliver. In determining a winner, Wildcat coach Pat Fitzgerald will consult with the players.
"I think Mick and I do a pretty good job of listening to the team and what they think is best," Fitzgerald said. "We've used that in the past, and it's been a pretty good indicator."
My money is on Thorson.
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I am already ready for Oregon?s visit to Michigan State on Sept. 12. And so is the great Mike Griffith, who has the five biggest changes to each squad since last year?s encounter in Eugene-won by the Ducks, who roared back in the second half to win.
The biggest ?change? could be the fact Duck QB Marcus Mariota turned pro, while MSU QB Connor Cook opted to stay.
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Andrew Logue of HawkCentral.com has a nice piece on how unbundling of cable has college power brokers uneasy. Will networks be cost-conscious when it comes to bidding on the Big Ten?s upcoming TV rights knowing the cable TV business model may be changing forever?
?We?ve had a great period running up to this,? Big Ten commish Jim Delany told reporters last week. ?I?m quite optimistic about our position in the marketplace even with the dynamic change which is occurring.
?We?ve prepared for it.?
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Penn State?s Beaver Stadium is iconic, one of the classic venues in the Big Ten. But what is its future?
Mike Poorman of StateCollege.com says as Beaver Stadium enters its 55th season in its present location, it comes with a host of problems and challenges that in number don?t quite match its capacity of 106,572. Should PSU rebuild or build anew?
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Steve Greenberg has a boffo piece on Urban Meyer and Jim Harbaugh on RollingStone.com.
Can Michigan's new man overtake Ohio State's latest legend and reignite college football's best rivalry? Would you bet against Jim Harbaugh? This is gonna be a lot of fun.
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Brendan F. Quinn breaks down Michigan?s non-conference hoops schedule. This slate has enough heft to get the Wolverines into the Big Dance, with a nice field in the Battle 4 Atlantis along with tilts vs. Xavier, N.C. State and SMU.
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This is interesting from Bleachreport.com, which tries to predict the best hoops coaches in ? 2025. Really. The Big Ten is repped. Matt Painter should like this. And the story is a bit harsh on Indiana?s Tom Crean.
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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. |
