When Big Ten teams got blown out in the Rose Bowl and Not Fiesta Bowl in 2006, it was embarrassing and annoying. Very annoying, as sports commentators from sea to shining sea used it as a foolproof indicator the Big Ten was a dinosaur conference, destined for irrelevance and the scrap heap. This, of course, was the worst sort of overreaction, one that assumed that What Had Just Happened was Going To Happen Forever And Ever Amen, and the Big Ten was going to prove 'em all wrong in 2007.
Yeah. About that.
Okay, so everyone and their brother knew that Illinois-USC was not a remotely close matchup and was destined to be lopsided. And this was supposed to be Ohio State's rebuilding year -- the Buckeyes, terrifyingly, return 20 starters -- so a national championship game in which they actually outgained LSU but were undone by horrible Boeckman picks and ill-timed penalties and turnovers wasn't too bad. And over the last two horrible years the SEC and Big Ten are 3-3 against each other in bowl games, which doesn't exactly scream Midwestern Apocalypse.
Still, maybe this year it would be a good idea to, like, win something?
After the jump: yearly superlatives.
| Most Ridiculous Moment |
 Like last year, we have a strong set of contenters. Unlike last year, some of them have nothing to do with Michigan State. In no particular order:
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| Most Disappointing |
 Can we say Iowa again? Please? No? All right, Michigan it is. It's hard to be the biggest disappointment in a major conference and beat defending national champions Florida on New Year's Day, but damn if Michigan didn't pull it off. Blessed with four-year starters at quarterback and running back, the future #1 pick in the NFL draft at left tackle, and two explosive, underrated-by-the-NFL receivers, Michigan came out of the gate against a I-AA team and turned in what might be the most shocking upset in the history of college football. As a bonus, they got blown out of their own stadium the next week against Oregon, losing 39-7 in a game that could have been three touchdowns worse. In two weeks Michigan fans had gone from dreaming about national championships to watching Requiem For A Dream on repeat. Yeah, they'd pull out of the tailspin and rattle off eight straight, but two dismal losses at the end of the year killed off any BCS hopes and left a once-in-a-generation assemblage of offensive talent in a bowl game named after some stupid bank. |
| Most Improved |
Illinois (team). The Illini, suddenly flush with Zook-gathered talent and returning a boatload of starters, were a popular pick to leap into the Big Ten fray despite two consective miserable season. No one expected them to go to the Rose Bowl. To be fair to those who didn't expect the Illini in the Rose Bowl, the team itself was evidently so shocked by the invite that they forgot to show up. But they did get there, and there's no such thing as a disappointing end to a season in which you went from 2-10 to 9-4. As far as players: Ohio State defensive end Vernon Gholston was promising in 2006; in 2007 he was a one-man wrecking crew. |
| Fraudiest Fraud In All of Fraudland |
Purdue. It was Purdue last year, and it's Purdue this year. The Boilers went 8-5, but missed Wisconsin and Illinois in conference. And check out the nonconference schedule: Notre Dame, Toledo, Eastern Illinois, Central Michigan, and Central Michigan again. Purdue was 3-5 in conference for the second time in three years despite missing two of the top four teams in the league. Keep this in mind if you feel tempted to predict glory in Walrus Brimley's final rodeo before he resumes his fly-fishing and insurance-selling Wyoming ways. |
| Best Player |
James Laurinaitis was the most decorated, Vernon Gholston the most terrifying, and Beanie Wells the most likely to feature in the top five of next year's NFL draft, but Jake Long went first in this year's NFL draft, and at a position that doesn't often feature in that spot. His small consolation for never beating Ohio State (Michigan did win in 2003, but Long was redshirting): millions and millions of dollars. Poor guy. |
