LGHL Behind Enemy Lines: Which Big Ten team will surpass preseason expectations?
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Behind Enemy Lines: Which Big Ten team will surpass preseason expectations?
Jami Jurich via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
One Big Ten team has just enough talent to really mess things up for their opponents, despite what preseason rankings predict.
From now until preseason camp starts in August, Land-Grant Holy Land will be writing articles around a different theme every week. This week is all about Ohio State’s opponents. From looking at the Big Ten Conference to individual opponents to specific players, we will bring it all to you. You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all of our ”Behind Enemy Lines” articles here.
As preseason power rankings and updates continue to roll in, there are a few teams I’m surprised to see consistently toward the bottom of the Big Ten lists. Of course, conference expansion pushes a few teams down to make way for powerhouses like Oregon and Washington, particularly as more power teams means tougher schedules.
Take Rutgers for example—they went bowling last year after a 6-6 season in which I believe they were more talented than their final wins and losses would lead you to believe. But they enter 2024 with an absolutely brutal schedule in which they face Virginia Tech, Washington, Nebraska, Wisconsin, UCLA, and USC back to back.
That would take a lot out of any team.
But you’re telling me Maryland—another sleeper team last season, not quite strong enough to be considered on the same level as Michigan, Ohio State or Penn State but certainly strong enough to pose a threat to any of these three teams on an off day—won’t even finish in the top 50 percent of the Big Ten?
Most power rankings have Rutgers somewhere around the mid-way point. I’ve seen them as high as eight and as low as 15. Maryland, however, falls below Rutgers in most rankings, coming in somewhere around 12 or 13 on average but falling as low as 16 out of 18 on some.
ESPN, for reference, has Rutgers at 11 and Maryland at 12 currently.
Now, power rankings are largely meaningless in terms of the actual numbers—that is to say, any of the top four teams could easily finish in the No. 1 spot in actual rankings (or fall out of them altogether, replaced by an unexpected foe depending on how some of the more challenging schedules play out). These rankings are more helpful in terms of gauging expectations.
So in looking at the aggregate data across various power rankings from late spring through the present, the takeaway is that Maryland is expected to fall somewhere in the mid-to-bottom half of the Big Ten this season.
I was born at night, but not last night. I understand that the Big Ten became even more competitive this year, almost overnight thanks to the expansion. With the addition of Oregon, Washington, USC, and UCLA, the mid-level teams are going to have to fight a lot harder to maintain their status. We added two, possibly three playoff-caliber teams to a conference that already had two dominant teams in Ohio State and Michigan and one fighting hard to join them in Penn State.
Still, that ranking feels low for Maryland in a conference with so many teams who are just kind of there. You’re telling me Indiana is going to be better than the Terrapins (and some power rankings do have Indiana ranked higher)? Indiana. A team that won just one conference game last season, going 3-9 on the year? I just don’t buy it. (In all fairness, ESPN has Indiana at the bottom of the conference, while other rankings have them as high as 13).
I mean no disrespect to Indiana—the program has made extremely smart moves in the offseason, with the hiring of new head coach Curt Cignetti and the addition of Kurtis Rourke at quarterback (the standout transferred to Indiana from Ohio). Six wins are not out of the realm of possibility for them this year, and it would be fun to see them do well as a spoil.
But Maryland is coming off a season in which they won their bowl game against Auburn and gave the Big Ten power teams good scares.
Maryland was tied, 10-all, with Ohio State at the half in 2023, and while Ohio State came up big in the fourth quarter, they held a narrow three-point lead at the end of the third. They finished within just one touchdown against the reigning National Champions in a November matchup.
And though they will certainly have an uphill battle in replacing their star quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa, the rest of their roster remains full of talent, particularly defensively where they are fairly intact. While M.J. Morris (a transfer from NC State) and Billy Edwards Jr. duke it out for the starting role, the Terrapins will be able to rely on running back Roman Hemby and wide receivers Tai Felton and Kaden Prather to support their QB.
The Terrapins also have the benefit of a fairly easy schedule. They’ll have a tough home matchup against USC, with road games at Oregon and Penn State, but they’ve managed to escape Michigan and OSU, and nine wins is not out of the realm of possibility for them this season.
Of all the teams that seem poised to surpass their preseason expectations, look to the Terrapins to continue surprising people for the fourth season in a row. They won’t have to face the Buckeyes or the Wolverines this season, but there’s still plenty of opportunity for them to throw a wrench in people’s expected outcomes and keep things interesting in this newly expanded Big Ten.
Continue reading...
Jami Jurich via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
One Big Ten team has just enough talent to really mess things up for their opponents, despite what preseason rankings predict.
From now until preseason camp starts in August, Land-Grant Holy Land will be writing articles around a different theme every week. This week is all about Ohio State’s opponents. From looking at the Big Ten Conference to individual opponents to specific players, we will bring it all to you. You can catch up on all of the Theme Week content here and all of our ”Behind Enemy Lines” articles here.
As preseason power rankings and updates continue to roll in, there are a few teams I’m surprised to see consistently toward the bottom of the Big Ten lists. Of course, conference expansion pushes a few teams down to make way for powerhouses like Oregon and Washington, particularly as more power teams means tougher schedules.
Take Rutgers for example—they went bowling last year after a 6-6 season in which I believe they were more talented than their final wins and losses would lead you to believe. But they enter 2024 with an absolutely brutal schedule in which they face Virginia Tech, Washington, Nebraska, Wisconsin, UCLA, and USC back to back.
That would take a lot out of any team.
But you’re telling me Maryland—another sleeper team last season, not quite strong enough to be considered on the same level as Michigan, Ohio State or Penn State but certainly strong enough to pose a threat to any of these three teams on an off day—won’t even finish in the top 50 percent of the Big Ten?
Most power rankings have Rutgers somewhere around the mid-way point. I’ve seen them as high as eight and as low as 15. Maryland, however, falls below Rutgers in most rankings, coming in somewhere around 12 or 13 on average but falling as low as 16 out of 18 on some.
ESPN, for reference, has Rutgers at 11 and Maryland at 12 currently.
Now, power rankings are largely meaningless in terms of the actual numbers—that is to say, any of the top four teams could easily finish in the No. 1 spot in actual rankings (or fall out of them altogether, replaced by an unexpected foe depending on how some of the more challenging schedules play out). These rankings are more helpful in terms of gauging expectations.
So in looking at the aggregate data across various power rankings from late spring through the present, the takeaway is that Maryland is expected to fall somewhere in the mid-to-bottom half of the Big Ten this season.
I was born at night, but not last night. I understand that the Big Ten became even more competitive this year, almost overnight thanks to the expansion. With the addition of Oregon, Washington, USC, and UCLA, the mid-level teams are going to have to fight a lot harder to maintain their status. We added two, possibly three playoff-caliber teams to a conference that already had two dominant teams in Ohio State and Michigan and one fighting hard to join them in Penn State.
Still, that ranking feels low for Maryland in a conference with so many teams who are just kind of there. You’re telling me Indiana is going to be better than the Terrapins (and some power rankings do have Indiana ranked higher)? Indiana. A team that won just one conference game last season, going 3-9 on the year? I just don’t buy it. (In all fairness, ESPN has Indiana at the bottom of the conference, while other rankings have them as high as 13).
I mean no disrespect to Indiana—the program has made extremely smart moves in the offseason, with the hiring of new head coach Curt Cignetti and the addition of Kurtis Rourke at quarterback (the standout transferred to Indiana from Ohio). Six wins are not out of the realm of possibility for them this year, and it would be fun to see them do well as a spoil.
But Maryland is coming off a season in which they won their bowl game against Auburn and gave the Big Ten power teams good scares.
Maryland was tied, 10-all, with Ohio State at the half in 2023, and while Ohio State came up big in the fourth quarter, they held a narrow three-point lead at the end of the third. They finished within just one touchdown against the reigning National Champions in a November matchup.
And though they will certainly have an uphill battle in replacing their star quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa, the rest of their roster remains full of talent, particularly defensively where they are fairly intact. While M.J. Morris (a transfer from NC State) and Billy Edwards Jr. duke it out for the starting role, the Terrapins will be able to rely on running back Roman Hemby and wide receivers Tai Felton and Kaden Prather to support their QB.
The Terrapins also have the benefit of a fairly easy schedule. They’ll have a tough home matchup against USC, with road games at Oregon and Penn State, but they’ve managed to escape Michigan and OSU, and nine wins is not out of the realm of possibility for them this season.
Of all the teams that seem poised to surpass their preseason expectations, look to the Terrapins to continue surprising people for the fourth season in a row. They won’t have to face the Buckeyes or the Wolverines this season, but there’s still plenty of opportunity for them to throw a wrench in people’s expected outcomes and keep things interesting in this newly expanded Big Ten.
Continue reading...
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