ESPN's Resident Biased Hater Pat Forde Ripping the Big 10 Again—What's New?

Posted by HD Handshoe
Founder
BlockONation


On the January night in 2003 when Ohio State stunned Miami and won the national title, the Big Ten seemed poised for a renaissance.

The Buckeyes were back under Jim Tressel, and that wasn't all.

Michigan and Penn State were their usual selves, rolling up 10 and nine victories, respectively.

Iowa went 11-2 that season. Wisconsin and Minnesota each won eight games.

Surely, those schools and others in the league would rise to meet the Buckeyes at or near the summit.

Six humbling seasons later, Ohio State is still waiting for backup.

Yes, there have been high points for the rest of the conference: Iowa's 20 victories in 2003 and '04 combined; Penn State's 11-1 mark in 2005; Michigan's 11-2 and Wisconsin's 12-1 records in '06; Illinois' 2008 Rose Bowl berth; Northwestern and Michigan State each winning nine games last year.

But beyond the Buckeyes, every single program in the Big Ten has had at least one big bust of a season.

Ohio State has not ranked lower than No. 21 in the Sagarin computer ratings in any of the past six seasons. The other 10 teams in the league have ranked in the lower half of the FBS nationally at least once during that time.

Michigan had its 3-9 train wreck last year, finishing 95th.

Wisconsin threw in a 7-6 clunker last season against a soft schedule to finish 61st.

Iowa was 79th in 2007.

Penn State was 71st in 2003 and 63rd in '04.

Purdue slid in its final years under Joe Tiller, finishing 62nd in 2006 and 78th last year.

Michigan State had a couple of rough seasons under John L. Smith, ranking 66th in 2004 and 80th in '06.

Minnesota cratered in 2007, winning one game and finishing 123rd.

Northwestern is justifiably proud of earning three Big Ten titles since 1995, but it was No. 93 in the Sagarin ratings in 2006 and No. 86 in '07.

Illinois has been higher than 68th only once in the past six years.

And Indiana -- where they're now selling league home games to the highest bidder -- has failed to crack the top 70.

Compare that to the other leagues, and you'll see a consistency problem.

Five schools in the Big Ten's nemesis league, the Southeastern Conference, have ranked in the top half of the FBS nationally all six years: Florida, LSU, Georgia, Tennessee and South Carolina.

Three of them -- Florida, LSU and Georgia -- have done what the Buckeyes have done, ranking in the top 30 every season.

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I'd just like to add:

During his hateful rant against the Big Ten, I absolutely love how Pat slurps several SEC teams, yet conveniently doesn't mention the fact that the Big Ten has a winning record vs. the SEC this decade and all-time.

I suppose that's not really that important when your employer has a $3 Billion TV deal with the SEC though, huh...

Just focus on those lowly season end rankings and not the fact that many of those "terrible" Big Ten teams went on to beat an SEC team in a bowl game that same year.

Spun like a true ESPN anal-yst.

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Here's a video of Forde's take, in case you want to see and hear what he has to say about the top five conferences and how he ranks them 1-5.



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This article was written by Pat Forde and posted on ESPN.com

Michigan Football Forecast 2009: Mostly Cloudy With a Chance of Failure

by HD Handshoe
Founder
BlockONation.com


Following what was essentially the worst season ever for Michigan football, the 2009 outlook isn't much better for Rich Rodriguez and his Wolverines in year two of his reign.

Overall, it's been stormy in Ann Arbor for the better part of the last two seasons.

With several embarrassing and/or lop-sided losses—especially those home losses to Appalachian State and Toledo—things have to get better, and soon, right?

Oh, and then there's that little matter of the Buckeyes having won five straight and seven of eight under Jim Tressel.




With the arrival of new quarterback and UM savior Tate Forcier (I am a Buckeye fan so please detect the sarcasm), maybe 2009 will get a little bit better.

But then, it really can't get much worse after a 3-9 season, can it?



2009 UM Schedule and Game Breakdown

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Week One

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Michigan vs. Western Michigan

Prediction: Michigan had never lost to a MAC team before losing to Toledo in 2008. Michigan will wish they had WMU QB Tim Hiller when lightning strikes twice in consecutive seasons and the Broncos pull off the very mild upset, and I do mean mild.

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Week Two

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Michigan vs. Notre Dame

Prediction: Michigan barely showed up for the game in South Bend last year, losing by three scores. It could be closer this year since the game is in Ann Arbor, but Notre Dame will be more improved this year than Michigan and should send the Wolverines to an 0-2 start.

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Week Three

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Michigan vs. Eastern Michigan

Prediction: Michigan makes it rounds across the state for yet another directional school from TSUN (that state up North). This time, they finally found one more pathetic than themselves to play and will get their first win of the season, bringing their record up to 1-2. I'm so confident this is a lock for UM that I'd bet on it, (as long as no money was on the line).

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Week Four

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Michigan vs. Indiana

Prediction: As bad as Michigan has been recently, there is no weaker BCS program in the Big Ten and quite possibly the nation than Indiana. Back to back cupcakes on the schedule should translate into back to back wins for UM and a 2-2 record.

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Week Five

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Michigan @ Michigan State

Prediction: The Spartans spanked Michigan 35-21 in the Big House a year ago. Even with the departure of Javon Ringer and Brian Hoyer, I believe the Spartans will win nine games again in 2009. This years game is in East Lansing and I just don't think Michigan will be improved enough to beat MSU on the road, dropping them to 2-3.

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Week Six

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Michigan @ Iowa

Prediction: The Wolverines didn't face Shonn Greene and Iowa in 2008 but will travel to Iowa City this season. Greene is gone but running back Jewel Hampton and quarterback Ricki Stanzi, along with a crazy-loud crowd in Kinnick Stadium, will prevail. Iowa could actually challenge for the Big Ten title this year. Michigan, not so much. The Hawkeyes victory will drop the Wolverines to 2-4.

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Week Seven

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Michigan vs. Delaware State

Prediction: Michigan looks to avoid another loss to an FCS opponent as Delaware State comes to town. I don't know much about the 2009 Delaware State Hornets other than they went 5-6 in 2008. Another cupcake should equal another win, bringing Michigan's record to 3-4.

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Week Eight

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Michigan vs. Penn State

Prediction: Michigan actually kept it close for a little bit vs. PSU in 2008 but in the end, Clark and Royster were too much and the Wolverines folded like lawn chairs, 46-17. It will be more of the same in 2009 and UM will drop to 3-5.

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Week Nine

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Michigan @ Illinois

Prediction: Quarterback Juice Williams had one of his biggest games of the year in Michigan Stadium as the Illini thumped the Wolverines 45-20 last season. Williams returns along with star wide-out Arrelious Benn and running backs Daniel Dufrene and Jason Ford. The game is in Champaign and UM dropping to 3-6 is all but an absolute certainty.

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Week 10

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Michigan vs. Purdue

Prediction: In the 2008 Big Ten "No-defense Bowl", Purdue out slugged Michigan 48-42 in West Lafayette in Joe Tiller's final season. I'm not sure Purdue has much "Hope" to win four games this season. Even If they do, this won't be one of them and Michigan will improve to 4-6.

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Week 11

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Michigan @ Wisconsin

Prediction: Michigan beat Wisconsin, 27-25 in 2008 but this year, they play in Madison. Camp Randall is one of the toughest stadiums to play in as the visiting team. Ohio State eked out a win over an average Badgers team last season. Wisconsin was the better team, but choked a year ago. They will be better in 2009, while Michigan will be about the same. That fact, and the crowd will be the difference as Michigan will drop to 4-7.

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Week 12

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Michigan vs. Ohio State

Prediction: As noted above, Ohio State has won five in a row over Michigan and Coach Jim Tressel boasts a 7-1 record over the most hated team North of Ohio. This all comes down to Terrelle Pryor. Ohio State won the recruiting battle for him last year and as long as he is running the show Columbus, it's extremely unlikely that UM wins again in this series. If the world truly ends in 2012, Wolverine fans will never see their team beat the Buckeyes again. I was right though: 4-8 is a little better than 3-9.

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Michigan's Tate Forcier: Lofty Expectations Will Lead to Major Letdown

by HD Handshoe
Founder
BlockONation.com



After a couple of weeks of practice and their Spring game, many out-of-touch fans of that school up North already believe that Robert "Tate" Forcier will lead them to a victory over Ohio State in 2009.

Never mind that they lost nine games in 2008, including a 42-7 beatdown at the hands of the Buckeyes.

Never mind that they still have no defense and are unproven at wide receiver and running back.

Never mind that Tressel is 7-1 and Dick-Rod isn't the savior they all believed he was and wanted him to be.

Sure, he built a decent program at West Virginia, but I mean, that's the Big East, where you play schools like UConn, Rutgers, Cincinnati, and Louisville, not the Big Ten where you deal with Wisconsin, Iowa, Penn State, and Ohio State.

Never mind that Forcier might not even be the starter in 2009.

Even if he is and he has a decent year, he can never live up to the hype and unrealistic expectations scUm fans (like Jordan from B/R) are placing on his shoulders.

I had better remind them once again, just for good measure:

UM lost nine games last year.

They're not going to win nine or 10 games this year.

Forcier looked OK, but remember, he was playing against his own weak defense so you be the judge.

Here are the video highlights from the 2009 UM Spring game—GO BUCKS!



Here's a friendly reminder to my scUm fan homeboys—LMFAO!



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