Jon Joseph

Hats off to Coach Key and the Ramblin' Wreck. The game in Dublin cemented my belief that opening with an FCS opponent is the way to go. Highly touted transfers are not ipso facto going to meld into their new teams. The 'best D-line in the USA' had zero sacks, 2 TFL, and gave up an average of 5.3 yards per rushing attempt. And with a playoff format that has the playoff champ playing 16 or 17 games, scheduling a 'certain win' makes even more sense. In 2025, Michigan opens with a visit to Oklahoma and Ohio State opens with a visit from Texas. I don't get it. Under existing revenue disbursement agreements, you get the same cut playing Tulane and Rice. B1G Upset Alert: No. 8 Penn State at No. 33 (others receiving votes) West Virginia. Three years running Michigan made the 4-team playoff playing thin-air OOC. FSU opens at home vs. Florida A+M and the Seminoles are 1-0 and have not used up a playoff mulligan. Playing in the B1G means there is no reason to play brand-name opponents out-of-conference. For that matter, why schedule H+H series with B12 teams? Pound the Potato Pickers! Ducks -44.5. 😍

Get Your B1G Bowl of Popcorn Ready! Hammerin’ the B1G: Key storylines to watch in Week 1 SATURDAYTRADITION.COM Week 1 of the college football season is finally here. Be prepared for the Big Ten action with the key storylines in play to start the season.

Good call DM. I am hoping this W/L being the be-all and end-all approach does not carry into a 12-team PO. If it does and this favors the SEC with an 8 conference game schedule, Tony Petitti better raise Cain and then some.

The Buckeyes Spent Big Bucks in the Offseason. Ohio State went all-in this offseason, motivated by Michigan - ESPN WWW.ESPN.COM After watching rival Michigan win a national championship, the Buckeyes went all-in this offseason, ratcheting up the pressure on Ryan Day. I hope this investment pays off for Ohio State with the No. 5 seed behind OBD in the 1st or 2nd Rose Bowl seed. 😍

Where in the hay is Strength-of-Schedule? What difference does it make if a team like Liberty does 13-0 against thin air? In back-to-back seasons, the Flame(r)s do not play a P4 opponent. A 13-0 Liberty should get in over an 11-2 Boise State or an 11-2 Memphis? How about: NO!

I imagine Seminoles fans would have preferred playing Georgia Southern in Tallahassee over being Ramblin' Wrecked in Dublin. SC vs LSU, Texas at Michigan, Bama at Wisconsin are great for CFB fans and the networks but play these teams in the Playoffs. You get the same revenue cut whether you play Texas or Rice. At OK ST in the 2nd game next season is a reach. Fortunately, it's not this season with the Cowboys returning close to everyone on O including RB Ollie Gordon. Stillwater is a tough place to win a football game. Ask Dillon G. Are games vs B12 teams worth the candle? Win and it's ho-hum. Lose and you have used a Playoff mulligan. Play the brand-name opponents in the Playoffs. As long as the B1G allows it, play an FCS team in the opener. Danno will be bringing transfers to Eugene every season. Work out the kinks. (Right, FSU?) Play a mid-level G5 team and a P4 team that is not a conference champ threat. You want to have at least 7 home games every season and 8 if possible. At Utah State in 2028 must disappear. Michigan does not play at E. Michigan and Ohio State does not play at Ohio U.

Herbie, a team captain when he QB'd tOSU, goes out of his way not to favor Ohio State like McAfee favors his alma mater West Virginia. Herb's two older sons played football for Clemson. He owns a residence in Franklin, TN., 40 miles south of Nashville, but is renting in Cincinnati to watch his youngest son play HS ball. Kirk Herbstreit is a resident of Ohio again. Here’s why. BUCKEYESWIRE.USATODAY.COM Herbie is an Ohio resident once again, and for some really good reasons. He was run out of Columbus by tOSU fans who did not appreciate his objective tOSU CFB coverage. He is used to what he heard in Dublin, Ireland, not Dublin, Ohio, yesterday.

Boise has all 11 starters returning on D including a DE who is in Herbie's Top 3 DEs in CFB and an RB who could be the first RB off the board in the 2025 draft. Yesterday, SMU was a 27.5-point favorite on the road in Reno vs Mountain West Nevada. SMU fought back to win by 5 points. 9/7, even though the game is on The Bird, this will be the Broncos best chance to show its bona fides to the playoff committee. As noted above, Oregon is 0-3 vs. Boise including Chip's 1st game as the Ducks HC. A game that featured Chip's O being shut down and Sugar Ray Blount. Rob broke a cardinal scheduling rule: Never Ever schedule Boise State.

In 2022, Dizzy, er Dessy, picked Texas A+M to win it all. A+M finished 5-7. 😁

I had a lot going on yesterday, I just watched the FSU/GT game tape. THAT, but for 3 FG tries of +50 yards, 2 good, was an old-school football game. Only 7 possessions for both teams. And passing 'attacks' that took the game back to before HUNH spread Os. A game won on the LOS by terrific O-line play from a team coached by an O-line guy who looked like he found his attire in a Dublin thrift store. The ACC almost had 2 upsets yesterday with SMU having to come back to win by 5 and not the 27.5 the Ponies were favored by. (Do not overlook Boise State. Rob broke a cardinal rule: Never Ever schedule Boise State.) But as noted above, FSU and SMU are still in the hunt for an ACC title and top 4 playoff seed. FSU with college football's best D-line (LOL!) will get it figured out and play better together. But the O looked bad. Traditionalists had to love the fact that highly rated transfers do not ipso facto play together come game day. Which newbie takes the leadership role, the guy making the most money? FSU rights the ship, wins the ACC, and is a top 4 seed with a bye, no one will remember this game. But FSU used its playoff at-large mulligan and had better discover a passing attack.

Another heavily favored ACC team almost lost yesterday with SMU coming back in the 2nd half for a close win in Reno against Nevada.

Wanna Brew? Costs $6. 😒 Oregon Ducks' Autzen Stadium Selling Six Dollar Beers, New Concessions WWW.YARDBARKER.COM Beer, food and football. There is no better trio and the Oregon Ducks at Autzen Stadium are doing it right this season. Autzen Stadium just unveiled all of their new concession items and the...

OK, it's a Michigan site, but Maize + Brew predicts that Ohio State will go Under 10.5 wins and OBD will go over 10.5. This is a good summary of the B1G's Over/Under win totals in 2024. Betting the Big Ten O/U’s for the 2024 football season WWW.MAIZENBREW.COM College football is almost here! Let’s take a look at the O/U win totals for the Big Ten this fall

Steven, with Pete Carroll and SC in the news recently, I think back to not that long ago when Carroll, Reggie Buch, Matt Leinart, etc. were balling out at SC. I think back to an SC defense that had all 11 starters drafted. An SC team that brought in or came close to having the top recruiting class every year. In the SC hay days, did any Oregon fan envision OBD having a better roster than 13 of the 16 SEC teams? A better roster than every B1G team except Ohio State? Oregon has come a long way baby. Hopefully, the Ducks now have a roster and the coaching to bring a Natty back to Eugene. 😍

Over 10.5 Wins with a Chance to Go 12-0. https://athlonsports.com/college/ducks-digest/cover-3-podcast-crew-goes-unanimous-pegs-oregon-to-hit-the-over

Idaho is ranked No. 9 in the preseason FCS poll. Puddles, peel some potatoes.

247 Sports 2024 Team Composite, Recruits and Transfers, Rankings. Team Talent Composite 2024: Familiar names atop list of most talented teams, but parity is here 247SPORTS.COM For the seventh consecutive year, the trio of Alabama, Georgia, and Ohio State have produced the top three spots in the 247Sports Composite Team Rankings. But a new age of parity and a trend... OBD moves up from 10th in 2023 to 6th in 2024. Top 50 on the 2024 schedule: 3 Ohio State; 16 Michigan; 27 Wisconsin; 29 UCLA; 35 UW; 37 Purdue; and 41 Michigan State.

This is the same maturity that Michigan fielded last season and Oregon and Ohio State bring to the table in 2024. Experience makes a difference; especially, when playing 16 or 17 games to win a title. And it doesn't hurt that Dan has another year of experience. Pet Peeve - Sark in his career has one conference title that came with a roster advantage in the B12. With a better-rated roster, he lost to UW in Houston with the game close only because DeBoer late in the 4th Q didn't have his RB take a knee. Sark abandoned the run game much too early vs. UW, a mistake that Harbaugh did not make in the champ game. This was Sark's second loss to UW in consecutive seasons. But it's Danno who cannot win the big games, right? Even with an easy SEC schedule, I see Texas losing 3 games in 2024; I think Texas is the most overrated team coming into this season.

NJ, should this information regarding how to tune into B1G+ be pinned? Jon Wilner reported today that B1G+ will have a replay of every game including the games streamed on Peacock. Week 2 vs. Boise will be streamed on The Bird. I don't know if streamed games can be recorded. Does someone more tech-savvy, everyone on the board, know the answer?

2026 class is looking good, and perhaps, great. Oregon Ducks Football Dominating 2026 Recruiting Class: No. 1 In College Football? WWW.YARDBARKER.COM Oregon Ducks coach Dan Lanning and his assistants are putting their recruiting skills to good use in obtaining commitments from several highly ranked recruits from the class of 2026.

Little doubt that Flowers will bloom.

I was 6. Toilet trained since I turned 5 and a half. 😁

Hammerin' Five B1G Games. Hammerin’ the B1G: 5 games in September I’m most excited about SATURDAYTRADITION.COM Big Ten football is just about ready to make its long-awaited return! These early-season matchups should be circled well ahead of time as must-see showdowns.

WOW! Michigan Site Maize + Brew (brewskis will be available in the Big House this season 😍) Predicts OBD to go 12-0 in 2024! Predicting the final records for each of Michigan’s 2024 opponents WWW.MAIZENBREW.COM Last year, many argued the Wolverines faced a soft schedule en route to a National Championship. Today, we’ll predict how each of Michigan’s 2024 opponents will fare this season: Texas 11-1 with the Fansville QB jinx? I don't see it!

Steven A., hopefully, Tier One for OBD will mean tears for the Buckeyes. 😁