Jon Joseph

Grandpa, thanks for the post. If it all comes together, the Ducks can finish 11-1. It hasn't been easy to get 14 new starters to bring 'IT' to the field with the same attitude and cohesiveness every week. The defense's pick-six gave OBD a shot to win the Indiana game, but the defense was unable to prevent Mendoza from driving the Hoosiers 75 yards and a TD for the winning points. The defense also folded in the 4th quarter at Penn State. They are subs, but the subs on defense were duds in the 4th quarter of the Northwestern game. If the PO committee truly starts from scratch, which I doubt, three of the final four regular-season games should be against teams, Iowa, SC, and UW, all in the top 25 on Tuesday night. OBD needs this because heading into the bye, the best win on paper is against 5-3 Northwestern. OBD's QB is untested, especially compared to Bo Nix and Dillon Gabriel. However, QBs with the same or less experience and lesser supporting casts are lighting it up across the country. I am not an Xs and Os guy, and more than welcome being corrected if I am off base, but last season's starters at tackle on offense are both in the NFL. 6th round draft choice Cornelius Ajani with the Cowboys, and Josh Conerly starting for the Commanders. Their replacements have not played at the same level, and the play-calling does not seem conducive to helping them out. D-tackles Caldwell and Harmon are also in the NFL, and both are contributing to their team's effort. Has not having these two guys on the field led to the disappearance of Maytayo U and Tuioti? Still, it's a one-loss team with a good chance of going 4-0 and being a high seed in the PO field, but three of the opponents today are playing better than many thought they might before the start of the season. (I'm not surprised that USC and UW are competitive, with only two losses, and both could be ranked when they play Oregon. I wasn't as certain about a two-loss Iowa team that has two 'good' losses.) Compared to the other Power-2 conference, and according to the Coaches and AP Polls, wins in the B1G just mean less, and the losses just mean more. Will the PO committee follow suit? Thanks again for the positive post. Win the Bye! Kick Iowa in Kinnick!

Pitt is on a roll, winning four games in a row behind QB Heintschel for a 6-2 record, 4-1 in the ACC. And Coach Narduzzi's defense is once again salty, 27th in total defense. Like the offense, the defense is much improved over the last four outings. The schedule sets up perfectly for a Panthers PO push: Saturday at Stanford Then, after a buy on November 8th, Pitt has a chance to shake up the CFB playoff. November 15th vs. No. 12 Notre Dame - this looks to be the toughest remaining game on Notre Dame's schedule. November 22nd, at No. 8 Georgia Tech - Ready for a slobber knocker? November 29th vs. No. 10 Miami - The Canes were ahead of Syracuse last year before blowing a 21-point lead, dropping the final regular-season game to the Orange, and missing the PO. And the Syracuse game was played indoors. 😁 Thanksgiving weekend, you can count on Three Rivers Stadium being windy and cold. TCB vs. Stanford, which is decent at home, and win the final three games against top 25 opponents, and Pitt is PO-bound with the possibility of hosting a 1st round game. The ACC title and a 1st round bye could also be in play. True frosh Mason and true frosh BYU QB Bear Bachmeier are balling out this season. Pitt Panthers #H2PHeintschel, Johnson Earn ACC Football Player of the Week...Pitt quarterback Mason Heintschel and wide receiver Kenny Johnson have been honored by the ACC this week for their performances in the Panthers' 53-34 win ov...

I apologize for jumping the Week 10 games gun. I can't help but wonder if the Miami coaches and players will need a 'How to Fasten the Seatbelt' tutorial before leaving the State of Florida for the first time this season? Go Mustangs! 9 AM - ESPN - No. 10 Miami -12.5 Canes WarningFull matchup history between Miami and SMUMiami and SMU have met only once on the football field. On Sept. 18, 1965, the Mustangs opened their season by grinding out a 7-3 win over the Hurricanes at the

Is the Apocalypse near? A Trojan Wire writer acknowledging that OBD is one of the B1G 3? 😇 And Indiana will win it all! Whoa Traveler! But wait a minute! Oregon will not make the PO? Thanks, now I won't have to move into the bunker. 😁 https://trojanswire.usatoday.com/story/sports/college/2025/10/29/winners-losers-week-9-big-ten-football/86953071007/?utm_source=smg-trojanswire-strada&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=SMGbaseline&

Michigan visits Autzen next season. 😎 Which is nice.

FWIW - The most recent odds from Bet MGM to win the 2025-26 championship. Ohio State +250 Indiana +700 Alabama +800 OBD, Georgia Notre Dame +1000 Miami +1500 Ole Miss, Texas Tech +2000 Vanderbilt +2500 Texas +4000 - Bet MGM has Texas -2.5 at home vs. Vanderbilt on Saturday. NOTE - Ohio State is odds-on to win it all by a large margin. Have we returned to: Defense Wins Championships? Ohio State's D under Matt Patricia (not Jim Knowles 😁) is posting historic numbers on defense with four games left to play - Penn State, at Purdue, UCLA, and at Michigan 🙃. Indiana's remaining B1G opponents, at Maryland, at Penn State, Wisconsin, and at Purdue, are 1-17 in conference play. There will have to be one or two major upsets for the Buckeyes and the Hoosiers not to meet in Indianapolis on December 6th, with the after-market ticket prices through the enclosed stadium roof. 🤑🤑🤑

I get your POV, but please get back to me after the Big Ten Championship game. I have not seen a dominant, sure thing CFB title winner this season. I have watched Indiana show up and win every game, including road games at a should-be-ranked Iowa and No. 6 OBD, with the opponents playing good defense and without its offense firing on all cylinders. Ohio State is the other most consistent team I have watched. The Texas A&M defense was rolled over in South Bend and by Arkansas.

Great post. But I am among many who believe that Miami was a great team and a step above all CFB teams that season. However, I am also among those who know the computers screwed over OBD, and Oregon, based upon humans watching the games played, should have been in that Rose Bowl. So it goes. The BCS system that screwed Oregon over was changed the next season. The PO format that screwed Oregon over last season was changed by a unanimous vote. And an Ohio State team OBD defeated in the regular season finishes in fourth place in the Big Ten and wins it all. 🤬 MERCY!

Thanks, Darren. If OBD doesn't win it all, I definitely want another Big Ten team to win it all. The B1G has won the last two national championships and is disrespected in the final AP Poll before the 1st PO committee poll. Iowa and UW at 6-2 should both be ranked. Nebraska at 6-2, with a win over No. 17 Cincinnati, has a case for being ranked. Michigan is No. 20, and an SC team that defeated Michigan at No. 23. Why in Hades did Michigan play a game at Oklahoma and USC a game at Notre Dame? Where would a 6-1 USC with a home game victory against Washington State, and a 7-1 Michigan with a home game victory over Miami of Ohio, be ranked? Don't laugh. Miami of Ohio is 5-3, 4-0 in the MAC. No. 7 Ole Miss defeated Wazzu in Oxford by three points. No. 15 UVA defeated Washington State at home by two points. Indiana is ranked 2nd and played the Universities of Thin Air out of conference. Thus, the voters must believe that Indiana's wins in the Big Ten are impressive, right? Wait a minute! Where is the same appreciation for wins by two-loss SC, Iowa, UW, and Nebraska? All of the 'Experts' believe the B12 will only advance its champion to the playoffs. And five B12 teams are ranked? What message are the voters in the AP Poll and Coaches Poll sending? How about: "Tony Petitti's Automatic Qualifier Playoff proposal is the only format that makes sense for the Big Ten conference." Please pay attention to where Vanderbilt and Texas are ranked after their game this Saturday. Ditto for Oklahoma at Tennessee. Where are 3-loss Texas and Oklahoma ranked? Where is a Tennessee team with two losses at home ranked? How about a 2-loss Vandy? How much of a bump do the Dores get from beating a team that had to go to OT to defeat Kentucky and Mississippi State? Tony Petitti's format makes B1G sense. The B1G winning, I don't know, five or six championships in a row will advance the B1G above the SEC? Don't count on it. Don't underestimate the influence of ESPN. On Tuesday night, if the PO Committee follows the AP voting pattern, DUCK!

Dillon Gabriel - 63 college starts. Bo Nix - 61 college starts. Dante Moore - 13 college starts. Fernando Mendoza - 27 college starts. This equals two regular seasons plus three more games than Dante has started. At the QB position, you never know. Experienced can't miss CFB QBs in 2025, Clemson's Cade Klubnik, Penn State's Drew Allar, and LSU's Garrett Nussmeier, as well as Heisman favorite Arch Manning, have, for the most part, not shown up. On the other hand, a completely under-the-radar transfer from D II Ferris State has shown up for Ole Miss, and his head coach is in a position to make $12 million plus per annum and buy any condo he so desires in Trinidad. 😁 In the NFL, how about cast-off QB Daniel Jones balling out in Indianapolis? No one can coach 'Experience.' Oregon's stats on offense and defense this season are, to date, excellent. It's a luxury to be able to witch about style points. I think Dante has the competitive moxie. After the defense surrendered a lead at Penn State, Dante did not fold up. I also liked that Dante returned from the locker room last Saturday after being knocked in the nose, and the love he showed Brock Thomas at the end of the Wisconsin game. I don't think there is another Power 2 team that is 7-1 with 18 new starters. OBD and Dante are a work in progress that will hopefully make the PO with a home game and advance to the semis at least. IMO, the play calls against Indiana and Wisconsin did not emphasize the run game enough and exposed Dante to Moore pressures and sacks than he should have faced. Perhaps a bit more smash mouth and less finesse? I think Will Stein is game planning like he still has the most experienced QBs in CFB behind center. No matter how much offense has evolved, you still have to kick tush and win the LOS to win football games. Regardless, the future's so bright ... 😎

I love the scenario. But if this were to happen, I'm not sure an 11-1 Ducks would be the 5th or 6th PO seed. We'll see what the PO committee's 'enhanced metrics' come up with on November 4th. SC, Iowa, and UW should be ranked, and 5-2 Nebraska has a win over No. 17 Cincinnati, a loss to No. 21 Michigan, and a bad loss at Wisconsin. No. 25 Memphis has a better resume than Iowa and UW? Even Nebraska? UVA with a season-long tightrope act is No. 15? Interestingly, UVA's loss to NC State was not a conference game, right? 🤪Heck of a 1 point OT win against the Bogus Belichick's. And how about that 2 OT win over FSU, a team that is 0-4 in the ACC. 5 B12 teams ranked? Why? Whether intentional or subliminal, I think Tony Petitti's AQ PO format has led to dumping on the B1G and giving even more love to the SEC, a conference going to nine games next season. Win the Bye!

Note - Due to AP voters failing to rank two-loss B1G teams in its last somewhat meaningful poll of the season, this post uses the Massey Computer Ratings. One third of B1G teams are napping in Week 10: No. 18 Iowa, No. 45 Northwestern, No. 6 Oregon, No. 62 UCLA, No. 61 Wisconsin, and No. 19 Washington. One of the preseason's most anticipated B1G games has not come to fruition. No. 1 Ohio State -20.5 vs. No. 33 Penn State - 9 AM Fox Make no mis-state, Franklin's flameout has burned the entire conference. This would have been a football game with over 4 million views. Now? Penn State did show up and compete at Iowa last Saturday. Will it do the same in Columbus? Another B1G question: Will Jim Knowles show up in a Halloween costume? Week 10 features one Big Ten playoff elimination game. The BCS (Battered Coaches Syndrome) Game. No. 31 6-2 Nebraska +6.5 vs. No. 20 5-2 USC - 4:30 NBC What if I were to tell you that Penn State was paying James Franklin 500,000 Franklins to get lost, because in twelve seasons at Penn State, Jimmy was 15-8 vs. Top 25 teams and 4-20 vs. Top 10 teams. And that Nebraska coach, Matt Ruhle, 2-23 against ranked opponents, is one of the leading candidates to replace Franklin. And that this isn't a movie. 😁 Losing to ranked opponents is the Ruhle for this once proud program. The last time the Cornhuskers shucked a ranked opponent happened in 2016, when No. 2 Alabama defeated No. 1 Clemson 🙃to win Saint Nick another Natty. What if I were to tell you that a coach being paid more than $10 million a year by USC is 4-11 against ranked opponents in his time at Troy, and is 1-6 East of the Rockies? There are no longer tie games in college football; one team has to win and remain playoff eligible. For OBD's SOS sake, let's hope it's SC (Gulp). Other, perhaps in name only, B1G games. No. 51 Maryland +21.5 vs. No. 2 Indiana - 12:30 CBS No. 21 Michigan -20.5 vs. No. 84 Purdue - 4 PM BTN Poor-Due keeps inventing ways to lose close games. Your QB catches his own batted pass, fumbles, and Rutgers kicks the winning FG with two seconds left? 🤪 No. 29 Illinois -12.5 vs. 64 Rutgers - 9 AM NBC No. 44 Minnesota +/- Who cares? vs. No. 71 Michigan State 12:30 BTN Top 25 vs. Top 25 - No. 17 (!!!) Vanderbilt at No. 10 (!!!) Texas - 9 AM ABC No. 14 Oklahoma at No. 11 Tennessee - 4:30 PM ABC No. 24 Cincinnati at No. 21 Utah - 7 PM ESPN HAPPY HALLOWEEN! Turn the clocks back and enjoy a few more IPAs and an hour-longer nap. 😴

Saturday Tradition - 10 B1G things to watch heading into the stretch. Saturday Tradition10 things to watch in the Big Ten as the stretch run nearsThere are a lot of things to keep an eye on as the Big Ten season nears the home stretch, but here are the 10 biggest things to watch.

CBS's Tom Fornelli's weekly B1G take has questions for OBD. But 'facade' is a bit harsh, no? Penn State's meltdown is hurting the entire conference and OBD in particular. https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/b1g-time-cracks-starting-to-show-in-oregons-facade-marylands-youth-movement-might-save-mike-locksley/

QUACK x Five! Don't Forget OBD's QBs - Oregon Ducks On SIOregon Quarterbacks In NFL Reach Wild MilestoneThe NFL kicked off week 8 of the regular season and with it, Oregon Ducks fans were able to see multiple former Ducks quarterbacks on display. In a wild statis

QUACK! Sunday was a good day for the NFL Ducks. I know, Justin played on Thursday night and Gonzo helped to silence Gabriel's Horn, but Oregon Ducks On SIFormer Oregon Ducks Just Had One of Their Best NFL Weeks YetThe 2025 NFL season has provided Oregon fans plenty to cheer for – especially when it comes to Ducks who played in the Dan Lanning coaching era. Five different

A Senior Bowl Award for Bryce B, Senior LB, and Center Fielder, from Sheldon High School - https://duckswire.usatoday.com/story/sports/college/ducks/football/2025/10/28/oregon-football-bryce-boettcher-senior-bowl-defensive-player-of-the-week/86936399007/?utm_source=smg-duckswire-strada&utm_medium=email&utm_campa

In Kinnock Stadium, Kirk Ferentz has won .687 of Iowa's home games. Iowa gutted Minnesota and is showing signs of life on offense behind run-first QB Gronowski, not to be confused with The Gronk or the Big Leboski, and a very good O-line. Iowa DC Phil Parker is a Broyles Award winner and one of the best in the business. Coming off a bye, Ferentz is slightly over .500. Ditto for Dan Lanning, who at one point was 5-1 coming off a bye. Ferentz has the most overall wins in the history of the conference. Against Big Ten opponents, Ferentz is 131-89. The 89 losses are the most conference losses by a Big Ten coach.

He won't be a WOW hire, but 42-year-old Wake Forest head coach Jake Dickert has the Demon Deacons 5-2 with Saturday's upset defeat of SMU. He's doing this with the smallest student body, stadium, and the smallest football budget in the ACC. Dickert is 42 with 17 years of coaching experience, including at Washington State, another low-budget program, where he had the Cougars, with now Oklahoma QB John Mateer and OC Ben Arbuckle, playing competitive football. He helped move Mateer and Arbuckle into a higher tax bracket. Hw won't be offered the top-tier jobs, but he'd make sense at VA Tech or at Stanford.

According to the AP voters, OBD has one ranked team left to play in the regular season, No. 23 USC. According to the widely circulated and referred to Massey Computer Ratings, including USC, OBD has three top 25 games left, with two of the games on the road at No. 18 Iowa and No. 19 UW. It will be very interesting to see the playoff committee's first ranking on Tuesday, 11/4. Will SEC commissioner Greg Sankey still be enamored with the committee's new metrics? Will B1G commissioner Tony Petitti have reason to stay with his automatic qualifier PO format? Oregon Ducks On SIBreaking Down Oregon's Rough Remaining Big Ten ScheduleThe Oregon Ducks are 7-1, going 4-1 in the Big Ten conference, following a win against the Wisconsin Badgers. The Ducks are heading into a bye week, and will ha

I think the SEC is deeper, no doubt. But I haven't watched an SEC team this season, including Texas A&M, that cannot be defeated. A&M surrendered a ton of points to Notre Dame and won on a Domer's special teams mistake. A&M defeated Arkansas 45-42. Terrific win over LSU, but LSU has floundered the entire season. The B1G had a winning record against the SEC last season, including winning two games, Illinois vs South Carolina, and Michigan vs. Alabama, where the B1G teams were significant underdogs. I think the SEC is the top football conference, but it is not that much superior to the Big Ten.

Thank you, DM, for another spot-on article. Several player rotations seem to be off this season, at least to me. 🙃 Some of this may be due to the coaching staff looking at the long game? Assuming Indiana and Ohio State run the table and Oregon makes the playoff, with the goal being a Natty, ideally, the season is half over. Eight more games to play with three in the regular season against Massey's top 25-ranked Iowa, USC, and Washington, and four PO games against top competition. Davison is a stud, but he is also a freshman who I don't think has played a 16-game season. Not an exact comparison, of course, but on many occasions, rookies in the NFL start strong and taper off as the season progresses. Thank you, thank you, thank you, for pointing out that the Badgers' run defense is not a pile of garbage. Luke Fickell could not have asked for better weather on Saturday. Oregon is not going to roll over every Big Ten opponent. OBD ran the B1G regular season and champ game table last season; Oregon won by three points in Madison. Winning football games is hard. Notwithstanding what ESPN has to say, winning B1G football games in a Power 2 conference is very hard. Even with a talented QB, but one who has not started close to sixty games. Thanks again. Please, OBD, win this bye week and kick Iowa in Kinnock on 11/8.

Gat, I love that you are on this board, but with all due respect, winning Big Ten football games is not a piece of cake. Cig's win at Oregon (sigh) was the one that grabbed the nation's attention, of course. But hanging in at 2-loss Iowa on a day the offense wasn't playing well, likely due to Iowa's defense, was a very good win. The win last season against a Michigan team that defeated Bama in the postseason was significant, as are the wins over bowl-eligible B1G teams. We live in a Power 2 CFB world. When did winning in the SEC become Herculean, and winning in the B1G passe? The B1G won two titles in a row, and there seems to be a journalistic jihad against the conference and its leadership. Texas and Bama have to come back against two mediocre SEC opponents, and the comebacks are the greatest of all time. In a monsoon, Wisconsin keeps it close against OBD, and The Athletic drops Oregon to No. 12 in its irrelevant poll. In the Massey computer rankings, Ohio State and Indiana are first and second. No. 6 Oregon has a respectable SOS ranking of 25 to date, 18th going forward. The computer does not rank a G5 team in its top 25. The SEC has the most teams ranked, with 10 in the top 25. The B1G has seven teams ranked: Michigan, Iowa, Washington, and USC are also ranked. Then it's B12 4, ACC 3, and Notre Dame. The Athletic's Stewart Mandel, in his latest Mailbag, referred to UW's record as being 'tainted.' A loss to the No. 1 team in the country and on the road at a ranked Michigan makes UW's 6-2 record 'tainted '? The B1G had the best postseason record in 2024-25. 3-loss PO screwed over South Carolina was defeated by 3-loss Illinois, and 3-loss PO screwed over Alabama was defeated by a 5-loss Michigan team that had many players sitting the game out while Bama had all hands on deck. I watch a lot of SEC football, and I more than respect the quality of play, but I haven't seen a team in any conference this season that cannot be defeated. Good luck with the Gators search. Florida should be competing for national championships.

Bo, the last of the QBs drafted at his position in the 1st round, leads them all in the most important stat - WINS! He refined and elevated his game at Oregon. When I see folks down on Dante, I realize how spoiled we were to have QBs with the most starts in CFB back-to-back.

Franklin, my dear, you screwed the whole conference, and I do give a damn! 🤬