2013 Big Ten Preview

The Big Ten is a conference that was one of the toughest conferences to be in. Some argue that it still is. With the SEC running wild down South, many don't believe that the Big Ten is a power conference anymore. But teams like the Ohio State Buckeyes, Michigan Wolverines and Wisconsin Badgers have something to say about that. Granted, the SEC has won the National Championship seven of the last nine times. And the Big Ten hasn't won the National Title since the Buckeyes defeated the Miami Hurricanes in 2002. But the Big Ten have a couple of contenders this year, that very well could find themselves battling for the National Championship this winter.

We all know that Maryland and Rutgers will be joining the Big Ten next season, and with that change in 2014 we will see the Leaders and Legends Division go away for a more common East and West division. We will see Michigan and Ohio State playing in the same division, along side Maryland and Rutgers as well as Indiana, Michigan State and Penn State. They will obviously make up the East Division while the West Division will consist of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern, Purdue and Wisconsin. But we will save the 2014 Big Ten for 2014. Let's see how the Big Ten very well could play out in this final season of the Leaders and Legends Division.
This is a preview and my own predictions for the Big Ten conference in 2013.

Leaders Division

1. Ohio State Buckeyes
After a 12-0 season last season, Urban Meyer and the Ohio State Buckeyes will look to not only recreate the magic of an undefeated season. They will not only look to win a Big Ten Championship. They will look to go on to win the first National Championship that the Big Ten has won since 2002 (when Jim Tressel led the Bucks to an undefeated season and National Championship). Junior quarterback Braxton Miller will lead the Buckeyes on offense. Last year he threw for 2,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards. He also scored a total of 28 touchdowns. Depending on if Carlos Hyde plays for the team this year (he found himself a person of interest in an incident in a bar about a week ago) he will be a reliable back for Miller on offense. Hyde ran for 970 yards last season and 16 touchdowns. Braxton will also have a couple of reliable wide receivers such as senior Philly Brown and Jordan Hall. Junior linebacker Ryan Shazier is coming off of a 115 tackle season and will be a big leader on defense.

2. Wisconsin Badgers
The Badgers lost Bret Bielema but gained Gary Andersen as their new head coach. The quarterback spot will either go to junior college transfer Tanner McEvoy or sophomore Joel Stave. The running backs will consist of senior James White and sophomore Melvin Gordon. White rushed for a little over 800 yards last season behind Montee Ball and hit paydirt 12 times. Senior receiver Jared Abbrederis returns after an 837 yard and 5 touchdown season in 2012. All of Wisconsin's defensive stats ranked fifth or higher in the Big Ten. Attacking the QB with blitz packages is what their defense will look to consistently do this year. Their defensive coordinator Dave Aranda was quoted saying, "I'm a big advocate of attacking protections."

3. Penn State Nittany Lions
The Nittany Lions come back for head coach Bill O'Brien's second season as head coach. O'Brien started the season rocky as Penn State's coach, but came back leading the team to an 8-4 season. O'Brien won the Project CFB Coach of the Year last year. This year he will look to true freshman Christian Hackenberg to lead his team to victory. Tyler Ferguson, a junior college transfer will be Christian's backup just in case. Running back Zach Zwinak lead the team in rushing with 1,000 yards and 6 touchdowns in 2012. He will look to have another year like last year if not better. Five wideouts return from last season, led by junior Allen Robinson. Penn State's offensive line is solid. Their defense returns quite a few starters as well. Sophomore defensive end Deion Barnes and senior DaQuan Jones will look to disrupt the pocket while cornerback Adrian Amos and safety Stephen Obeng-Agyapong will look to defend the pass.

4. Indiana Hoosiers
Indiana sophomore quarterback Tre Robinson will return this season after suffering a broken leg in the second game of the season last year. Robinson is a dual-threat quarterback who is an impressive QB and will look to prove it on the field. He will have wide receivers Shane Wynn, Cody Latimer and Kofi Hughes as great options. Indiana also has two reliable running backs in Stephen Houston, who rushed for 749 yards and 12 touchdowns last season, and Tevin Coleman, who is a full sized back with power. Indiana gave up a ton of points in their last three games last year. And their top two defensive tackles are gone. Linebacker David Cooper and safety Greg Heban are the returning lead tacklers. Also lineback Zack Shaw is moving to defensive end to assist in pass rush.

5. Illinois Fighting Illini
Illinois went 2-10 last season without a win in the Big Ten. Senior quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase returns after a 1,300 passing yard season. He only threw four touchdowns, and threw eight interceptions. He also rushed for four touchdowns. Illinois running back Donovonn Young returns. He rushed for 571 yards and three touchdowns last season and also was the Fighting Illini's leading receiver with 38 receptions, 172 yards and one receiving touchdown. Defense is young, but they welcomed 10 mid-year enrollees including five junior college transfers in an attempt to stack the defense.

6. Purdue Boilermakers
Purdue looks to new head coach Darrell Hazell who is going to get rid of the spread style offense Purdue fans are used to seeing for a pro-style type offense. Senior Rob Henry should be the Boilermaker's quarterback this season. He has the most experience and can make plays with his feet. Hazell has two other options at QB if he needs it. "We've got three capable guys at that position," he said. Running back Hakeem Hunt returns after rushing for 134 yards in the spring game. He had a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against Ohio State last season. Purdue's defense returns eight starters.

Legends Division

1. Michigan Wolverines
Michigan looks to junior quarterback Devin Gardner to lead the team this year in the post-Denard Robinson era. Offensive coordinator Al Borges will finally get to run his pro-style offense that he had a hard time running with the playmaker Denard Robinson on the field. Behind Gardner is a pool of running backs. Thomas Rawls, Derrick Green and Justice Hayes are just a few names you may see at running back, as well as Fitzgerald Toussaint who suffered a broken leg last season playing against the Iowa Hawkeyes. Gardner will have reliable receivers such as Jeremy Gallon and Drew Dileo to throw to. Michigan suffered a blow on defense when Jake Ryan tore his ACL in practice. He likely will not play in 2013, but that doesn't mean he won't work his butt off trying to return. Michigan will look for Brennen Byer, Jibreel Black, Taco Charlton, Desmond Morgan and Courtney Avery to step up on defense and make plays.

2. Nebraska Cornhuskers
Bo Pelini and the Cornhuskers are coming off of a couple of tough losses in the Big Ten Championship Game and the Capital One Bowl. Nebraska has returning quarterback senior Taylor Martinez who threw for 2,871 yards, 1,000 rushing yards and a total of 23 touchdowns. Behind him is junior running back Ameer Abdullah who is a playmaker himself. He rushed for over 1,000 yards last season and eight touchdowns. Junior receiver Kenny Bell will be Martinez's go-to guy on offense. Bell reeled in 50 receptions last season for 863 yards and eight touchdowns. Nebraska ranked first in the Big Ten for rushing yards per game and also ranked first in the Big Ten for passing defense (fourth Nationally). All their cornerbacks return. However their linebackers are all new, and their defensive line only returns two with experience.

3. Northwestern Wildcats
Pat Fitzgerald has done good things in Northwestern. He will has two quarterbacks this season just like last. Senior Kain Colter, who is a dual-threat quarterback able to make plays returns as well as junior Trevor Siemian. Northwestern has Venric Mark at running back this season, who rushed for 1,366 yards last year. The Wildcats also have three reliable receivers for their QB duo to pass to. Juniors Christian Jones and Tony Jones, as well as senior Rashad Lawrence. Northwestern has all three level of defense. Tyler Scott anchors the d-line. They will also have two linebackers in Damien Proby and Chi Chi Ariguzo who will make plays. Northwestern ranked first in the Big Ten in turnovers. A trend that Pat Fitzgerald will look to continue.

4. Michigan State Spartans
Michigan State has senior quarterback Andrew Maxwell returning under center this season. He will have a trio of wide receivers to toss the ball to. One being senior Bennie Fowler, junior Keith Murphy and sophomore Aaron Burbridge. Michigan State's new running back is freshman Riley Bullough, who is a former linebacker. The Spartan's defense looks to have potential, but they will have to step up and play hard against the big offensive lines from the Big Ten and the playmakers they'll face against Notre Dame.

5. Iowa Hawkeyes
Iowa will look to quarterback Jake Rudock to lead the offense this year. Rudock threw for over 5,000 yards at St. Thomas Aquinas High School. Iowa also has two junior running backs in Mark Weisman and Damen Bullock returns after combining for 1,300 yards last season. The offensive line looks solid and will be able to open holes for the running back duo. Receivers struggled to get yards after catch last season. Junior Kevonte Martin-Manley had 52 receptions but only two touchdowns. Iowa was lowest in the Big Ten for sacks last season. They have to replace cornerback Micah Hyde and looks to do so with sophomore Jordan Lomax. Their defense will struggle against the schedule this season.

6. Minnesota Golden Gophers
Minnesota’s quarterback Philip Nelson had his red-shirt taken off in the middle of last season. He threw for over 800 yards, eight touchdowns and eight interceptions in 2012. The Golden Gophers have question marks at wide receivers. Issac Fruechte and Devin Crawford-Tufts look to assist in the passing game. Junior running back Donnell Kirkwood rushed for 926 yards last season. Sophomore running back Rodrick Williams is available too. Minnesota gave up an average of 197.1 rushing yards per game in Big Ten play last season. They will struggle this season as well unfortunately. Minnesota hasn’t won a Big Ten Title in 46 years. It looks as if they’ll at least go one more.

- Matt Lytle
@mattlytle
matt.projectcfb@gmail.com

First Ever Project CFB Top Ten

We here at Project CFB have worked together to create the official Project CFB preseason top ten list. This is a list which is made up of several lists (more specifically a top ten list from each of us), averaged out to make one final preseason top ten.

In the coming days, we will reveal all ten teams in our top ten, starting obviously with #10 and working our way down to our preseason #1.

Today however, we will discuss a few of the teams who almost made the top ten. It was a close list. Here are our honorable mentions.

Michigan Wolverines

Led by junior quarterback Devin Gardner, the Wolverines will have its first season sans Denard Robinson as the starting quarterback since 2009.

Gardner is an accurate quarterback, who can also make plays with his feet. As long as veteran wide receivers Jeremy Gallon and Drew Dileo can step up and help Gardner out, Michigan's offense, which will finally be playing Al Borges' kind of football, could be amazing.

Of course Michigan's star linebacker Jake Ryan injured his ACL in the spring. The Wolverines will look for other defensive players, like Blake Countess, Courtney Avery and Desmond Morgan to step up and make the plays while Ryan is out.

Michigan has a couple tough road games this season, taking on the Michigan State Spartans in East Lansing, as well as Penn State at Beaver Stadium. However they do have the luxury of playing Notre Dame, Nebraska and hated rival Ohio State at the Big House.

Florida Gators

Last year Florida's defense allowed only seven plays of 30 yards or more. Their defense will look to continue dominating in arguably the toughest conference in college football, while their offense gets things done on the other side of the ball.

Junior quarterback Jeff Driskel looks to lead the Gators to another pretty successful year of college football. Las season they went 11-2 (7-1 in SEC play), and they'd like nothing less then to make it to the SEC Championship Game, and come out victorious.

Sophomore running back Matt Jones will look to lend Driskel a helping hand, as well as junior Loucheiz Purifoy who plays wide receiver as well as cornerback.

Florida faces the Miami Hurricanes, LSU and South Carolina in away games while they take on teams like the Georgia Bulldogs and the FSU Seminoles in the Swamp.

LSU Tigers

Another SEC team, the Les Miles led LSU Tigers are led by senior quarterback Zach Mettenberger. Mettenberger threw for 2,609 yards last season, as well as 12 touchdowns. However he did toss up seven interceptions.

LSU's new offensive coordinator, Cam Cameron is known to be a strong tutor for quarterbacks. Mettenberger looks to only get better under Cameron's tutelage.

Wide receivers Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham Jr will look to step up and help make Mettenberger's job a little easier.

LSU's defense unfortunately will see a lot of new faces, however the defensive squad stepping up could h r more potential than the group that just left.

LSU faces of against TCU this year, as well as SEC opponents Auburn, Georgia, Florida, Alabama and Texas A&M.

All three of these teams could very well find their way into the top ten this season, however they just missed the cu in our first ever preseason top ten.

Make sure to check back tomorrow for the unveiling of our #10 ranked preseason team!

- Matt Lytle
@mattlytle
matt.projectcfb@gmail.com

Former Arkansas QB Brandon Mitchell Considering 5 Schools

Former Arkansas quarterback Brandon Mitchell has added another school to the list of schools he may possibly be transferring to. The Michigan Wolverines.

Mitchell, who stands 6-foot-4 and weighs 239 pounds, has appeared in 21 college football games with only three starts under his belt. He has thrown for a little over 300 yards with two touchdowns. He has rushed for 75 yards and also two touchdowns. He has also caught 17 passes for a total of 272 yards.

This dual-threat athlete could be used many different ways at Michigan, although Devin Gardner seems to have the starting QB role all to himself. Brandon is also considering UAB, where he has a close relationship with coach Garrick McGee. He is also contemplating transferring to NC State, Louisiana Tech and Northwestern State.

I believe every school he is considering could definitely benefit from having Mitchell's presence on their team. It's only a matter of time before we find out where he'll be going.

- Matt Lytle

@mattlytle

matt.projectcfb@gmail.com

Can Brady Hoke Lead the Wolverines to the Big Ten Title in 2013?

After three abismal years as Rich Rodriguez as their head coach, the Michigan Wolverines were delighted to announce Brady Hoke as their new head coach back in 2011. In said year, Hoke lead the Wolverines to a 11-2 record and a Sugar Bowl victory against Frank Beamer and the Virginia Tech Hokies. In Hoke's first year as Michigan head coach, he not only accomplished these things, but also led Michigan to it's first victory over Ohio State since 2003.

Can Brady Hoke lead the Wolverines to a B1G Title?

After a very successful first year, Hoke led Michigan to an 8-5 record in 2012, and a close Outback Bowl loss to the South Carolina Gamecocks. Unfortunately for Michigan fans, Michigan yet again lost to the Ohio State Buckeyes, and also the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. But Hoke's record in the Big House is still perfect.

In 2013 Michigan will be looking for Brady Hoke to lead the Wolverines to their first Big Ten Title since 2004 when they split the title with the Iowa Hawkeyes. However, Michigan not only lost one of their most electric players in Michigan history, Denard Robinson, but lost quite a few key players as well. Wide receiver Roy Roundtree, defensive end Craig Roh, center Elliott Mealer, defensive tackle Will Campbell, linebacker Kenny Demens, and strong safety Jordan Kovacs are just a few of the key players Michigan will be without in 2013.

There is quiet a few positives to look at however for the Michigan Wolverines. Devin Gardner has seemed to prove that he not only can scramble with the best of them, but also has an arm that any quarterback would be lucky to have. Although Denard Robinson was a huge playmaker, Gardner seems to have the arm to be able to put the ball exactly where the receiver needs it, unlike Denard. And to assist Gardner will be senior Jeremy Gallon, Jerald Robinson and sophomore tight end Devin Funchess, who came down with some great catches last season.

Fitzgerald Toussaint will look to come back this year after breaking his leg in a game against Iowa last season. He will lead the stable of running backs that Michigan is equipt with, such as Thomas Rawls, Dennis Norfleet and Justice Hayes.

Monster linebacker Jake Ryan tore his ACL in sprint practice.

On defense Michigan has seemed to play quite well, being led by Greg Mattison, who many believe is a defensive genius. Demond Morgan, Courtney Avery and Thomas Gordon will be a few of the names that you'll see wreak a little havoc on the other side of the ball for the Wolverines. Michigan will look for Joe Bolden and Cam Gordon to step up in the linebacker roles since Jake Ryan tore his ACL during spring practice.

Michigan's schedule does have a few speed bumps in it. On September 7th Michigan will host Notre Dame, and look to defeat their rival who beat them last season in South Bend. On October 12th Michigan will travel to Happy Valley to face Penn State (lead by 2012 Project CFB Coach of the Year Bill O'Brien). Michigan also plays rival Michigan State in East Lansing, immediately followed by hosting the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the Big House. Michigan will go on the road to take on Northwestern and Iowa following that, then wrap the regular season up on November 30th to take on the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Big House, for what everyone knows as "The Game".

Michigan's chances of an undefeated season are very small. However, having a few key players really step up in these big games, could make all the difference between a 6-6 season, and a 8-4 or 9-3 season! Could Brady Hoke lead the Wolverines to a Big Ten Title in his third year as head coach in Ann Arbor? He very well could. But he needs to have his boys play the best they play against the likes of Notre Dame, Michigan State, Nebraska and of course their bitter rival Ohio State Buckeyes.

- Matt Lytle

@mattlytle

matt.projectcfb@gmail.com

Denard Robinson Should be on the Cover of EA Sports NCAA Football 14

I'm not a Michigan fan. But I'm also not a Michigan hater.

Denard Robinson is an electric football player. Is he the measuring stick for all college quarterbacks? No. Was he a great passer? No. But did he know how to make a play? Yes he did. Was he a threat to break a big play every single time he was on the field? Yes he was.

Robinson electrified crowds all over the Big Ten

Robinson began his career at Michigan with a broken play which led to a 43-yard scramble for a touchdown. From there, he played quarterback off and on, sharing time under center with Tate Forcier. Remember him?!

The next year is when Denard broke out. Rushing for just over 1,700 yards and scoring 14 rushing touchdowns. He also passed for over 2,500 yards and 18 touchdowns. His stats were video game like.

Denard's junior year he rushed for only 1,100 yards, but scored two more rushing touchdowns than the following year. He also threw for over 2,100 yards and two more touchdowns than the year before. The reason for the change in stats very well could have been the hiring of new head coach Brady Hoke, who is known for his pro-style offense.

His senior year, Denard failed to impress like he did his sophomore and junior year. He only rushed for seven touchdowns, and threw for nine touchdowns. He lost his starting quarterback spot to a younger, taller more precise passer in Devin Gardner. But Denard couldn't be taken off the field all together. Brady Hoke and Michigan offensive coordinator Al Borges knew that taking Robinson off of the field was a huge mistake. Like I said earlier, Denard is a threat to break a big play every single time he steps onto the field.

Denard Robinson will grace the cover of NCAA Football '14

Although he wasn't the best passer. Although he threw quite a few interceptions, didn't mean h
e isn't an elite player. He will surely be remembered for decades to come by Michigan Wolverines fans all over the nation. In a time when Michigan was at it's lowest, this young quarterback with dreadlocks flowing out of his helmet and a smile plastered on his face brought excitement back to the Big House.

You may completely disagree with me, and it's fine if you do, because we all get our own opinions, but I feel that there is no player as deserving to be on the cover of this year's NCAA Football video game as former Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson. And although it really wouldn't matter who is on the cover, as I buy the game every single year, I feel the people who go to vote on the player who would have the honor to grace the cover got this one exactly right. Denard Robinson will be on the cover.

- Jackson McNamara

@jacksonmcnamara

Project Rivalry: Battle for the Paul Bunyan Trophy; Michigan vs Michigan State

The Michigan Wolverines and Michigan State Spartans are separated by about 64 miles. They are about a one hour drive away from one another, but just because they're fairly close does not mean these two schools get along.

The Michigan Wolverines and Michigan State Spartans
lock horns every year in this popular rivalry.

The Wolverines and Spartans play yearly for the Paul Bunyan Trophy. Paul Bunyan, the imaginary lumberjack, seemed like the perfect person to represent this rivalry's trophy with Michigan being a major lumber producing state. However the Paul Bunyan Trophy was presented into the rivalry until 1953.

The first meeting between these two teams was on October 12, 1898. In this meeting, Michigan won with a final score of 39-0. Overall (pre-Paul Bunyan Trophy as well as post-trophy), the teams have met a total of 105 times with Michigan leading the rivalry 68-32-5 (although they only lead the series post-trophy 35-23-3).

Michigan owns the largest margin of victory record in the rivalry, with a 49-3 victory in 2002, and a ridiculous 119-0 score in 1902 before the Paul Bunyan Trophy was presented.

Through 1957 the Wolverines had the home field advantage in the rivalry most of the time, hosting the rivalry game 44 times in Ann Arbor and only traveling to East Lansing six times.

From 1950-1969 the Spartans had a good grasp on the rivalry as they had a winning record of 14-4-2. However in 1969 the Wolverines hired Bo Schembechler as their new head coach. After his hiring, from 1970-2007 Michigan went 30-8 against their rival.

The Paul Bunyan Trophy was first presented
into this rivalry in 1953.

In 2004 the Wolverines and Spartans battled to triple overtime, which was the first time there had ever been a triple overtime game in Michigan Stadium. Michigan went on to win the game 45-37.

After winning their sixth straight victory over the Spartans, Michigan's running back Mike Hart referred to Michigan State as "little brother". After Hart said that, the Spartans defeated the Wolverines in four straight meetings with Michigan finally breaking the four game winning streak this past year in Ann Arbor.

This rivalry has not only seen some legendary players on the field, but it's also seen legendary coaches. It is a yearly game, which is obviously an in-state rivalry. It is a rivalry that should be played for years to come. It's a rivalry that has given us many great football memories, and will surely give us many more to come. If you are from or live in Michigan, odds are you either bleed maize and blue or you bleed green. Either way, you'll look forward to that Saturday when the Wolverines and Spartans lock horns.

The next matchup between the Wolverines and Spartans will be October 20, 2013. Surely it will be televised, and Michigan State will be looking to win the Paul Bunyan Trophy and lock it up in East Lansing.

- Matt Lytle

@mattlytle

#19 Michigan Wolverines at Ohio State Buckeyes Preview

I have always said that one of the things that makes college football better than the National Football League is the rivalry games, and I will stand by that statement until I'm long gone. This game, "The Game" is one of those rivalry games.

Growing up about an hour from Columbus, I got to experience the rivalry. I've seen die-hard Ohio State fans. I've seen die-hard Michigan fans. I've seen the competition and the hatred.



Since before Bo Schembechler and Woody Hayes, these two teams have hated each other, although Bo and Woody faced off in the 10 Year War, and really took this rivalry to a whole new level.



Bo went 5-4-1 against Woody in the 10 Year War.

Both teams have had off-seasons. Both teams have had their fair share of struggling against the other. Ohio State fans had to live through the John Cooper era, while Michigan fans had to endure the Rich Rodriguez era.

Michigan leads the rivalry with an overall record of 58-43-6. This is the 109th meeting between these two teams, and I have to say, this is one of the toughest to pick a winner. Both teams seem very much similar, despite what any Michigan or OSU fan would say.

Both teams have struggled this year throwing the ball. Michigan is ranked 97th in the NCAA averaging about 200 yards per game, while OSU is ranked 103rd, with an average of 180.8 passing yards per game.

Ohio State has the lead in rushing, being ranked 9th and averaging 245.5 yards per game. Michigan is only ranked 36th in the nation, and is averaging 194.5 yards per game.

Both teams average close to the same amount of points per game, Michigan averaging 30.8 (ranking 48th in the nation for points scored), while Ohio State scores an average of 38.2 (ranking 18th in the nation).

Defense could very well be the key here. Michigan's defense is allowing only 18.1 points per game, while OSU is giving up 23.0. That's a ranking of 17th for points allowed for Michigan, and a ranking of 34 for Ohio State.

Let's dig deeper shall we?

Michigan used to be led by quarterback Denard Robinson, and in some ways, they still are. Denard was injured earlier this season, and just stepped back onto the field last Saturday in Michigan's victory against Iowa. And although he did take some snaps at QB, Robinson's role was very much a running back and wide receiver, something that some Michigan fans have been asking Brady Hoke and Al Borges for for some time.



Devin Gardner has proven to be quite the QB for Michigan.



Michigan's man under center now is junior Devin Gardner, who has been quite impressive as QB. In his only three starts for Michigan as a QB, Gardner has thrown for over 800 yards, seven touchdowns, and three interceptions. He has also punched the ball into the endzone six times in those three starts.

Denard also looks to be a huge weapon as a running back/wide receiver. He has rushed for over 1,000 yards this season and hit pay dirt six times as well.

Michigan running back Fitzgerald Toussaint was unfortunately injured last Saturday and doesn't look to play for the rest of this season, but since he is a junior, he'll be back next year. It's still sad that he'll miss a game as important as this.

Gardner also has two reliable receivers in Jeremy Gallon and Roy Roundtree, who have combined for over 1,000 yards and four receiving touchdowns. Gardner definitely has a lot more accuracy than Denard, and is just as much a threat to be able to tuck the ball and run. With his 6'4" frame, he can stretch for those yards a little easier than Denard could.

Does this seem like it'll be the battle of two quarterbacks yet?!



Braxton Miller has been an impressive QB for OSU.

Braxton Miller will look to lead the Buckeyes to victory. The Buckeyes should somewhat be used to beating the Wolverines, having only lost two games in the last 10 years to their rival (that's if you count Ohio State's vacated 2010 victory over Michigan.

Miller has had quite the year, gaining Heisman talk with stats of 134/236, 1,850 yards, 14 touchdowns and only six interceptions. Miller has also scored 13 rushing touchdowns.

Miller's running back, junior Carlos Hyde will look to ad on to his 824 total rushing yards for this season. He also has 15 rushing touchdowns to his name as well.

Braxton also finds help in his wide receivers. Two of which, Devin Smith and Philly Brown, have combined for a total of over 1,000 yards rushing and eight touchdowns.

Their offenses have been rather impressive this season, but have also had their struggles. The same story is with their defenses. Both teams have defenses that can shut out teams, but also give up many points, and put their team in jeopardy of losing.

Michigan's defensive coordinator is none other than Ravens' former defensive coordinator Greg Mattison. With a defensive coach of that magnitude, you'd have to think that he'll have them ready and willing to flatten that Ohio State offense come Saturday in Columbus, Ohio. But obviously Luke Fickell will look to have his defense ready as well.



Urban Meyer looks to beat Michigan in his 1st year as OSU coach.



And let's not forget the coaches! Jim Tressel resigned as Ohio State's head football coach on May 30, 2011 due to NCAA trouble. Luke Fickell was named interim-head coach for the 2011 season, and since then, Urban Meyer was hired as the head coach of the Buckeyes. Meyer has ties to Ohio State and obviously the state of Ohio, and will be looking to gain a victory over Michigan in his first season as Buckeyes head coach.

Michigan head coach Brady Hoke has ties to Michigan as well, being a defensive coach for the Wolverines when they won the National Championship in 1997. Hoke dislikes Ohio State so much, he won't even say "Ohio State". He will only refer to their team as "Ohio". Just as well, many OSU fans and coaches refer to Michigan as "that team up north".

  

Brady Hoke is 1-0 against the Buckeyes as Michigan head coach.

Brady Hoke gained a victory over Ohio State in his first year as head coach of the Wolverines (last year - 2011), and like I said before, Urban Meyer will look to do the same thing this season.



I have followed this rivalry since I was a kid, and I can say that with Brady Hoke at Michigan and Urban Meyer at Ohio State, I really could see this being the start of the "new" 10 Year War. Woody and Bo did it in the late 60's and 70's. Will Brady and Urban do it in the 2010's and 2020's? Only time will tell.

"The Game" will start at noon ET and air on ABC. It'll take place at Ohio Stadium, "The Horseshoe" in Columbus, Ohio. Pick who you think will win if you must (or if you can), but it is lined up to be quite an entertaining game!

- Matt Lytle

@mattlytle

Should Devin Gardner Have Played QB for Michigan this Whole Time?



Denard Robinson has been a great player for the University of Michigan. Although passing was never his strongest asset, he was amazing to watch simply because with any play, in any situation, he could end up making magic happen. Whether throwing a long touchdown, or breaking a long touchdown run (which happened a lot more than throwing many touchdowns).
During Michigan's game vs Nebraska earlier this season, Robinson went down with an elbow injury. Michigan coach Brady Hoke then brought in freshman quarterback Russell Bellomy. Why didn't then bring in junior Devin Gardner, who came to the University of Michigan as a QB, but was transitioning to a wide receiver? There have been many explanations. But I don't think anyone knows the absolute truth.

Bellomy proceeded to have an absolutely terrible game. Throwing the ball 16 times but only completing three. For a grand total of 38 yards, and three interceptions. Michigan ended up losing 23-9. Earlier in the year they got beat by the Alabama Crimson Tide 41-14, and and week 4, Michigan got beat by Notre Dame 13-6. So the Nebraska loss was only the Wolverines' third of the year.

Many fans and analysts wondered why Devin Gardner wasn't brought in to be the quarterback for the Nebraska game. After all, he had experience as a quarterback. And not just in college.

The next week Michigan took on Minnesota. Denard couldn't play, but this time, Coach Hoke played Devin Gardner as quarterback. Devin played amazing. And Michigan won. Then the next week, Michigan played Northwestern. Again, Denard couldn't play, Devin took the role as QB, and the Wolverines won. And yesterday, Michigan played their final home game of the season against the Iowa Hawkeyes. Denard however did play, but played majority of the game as a running back, while Devin Gardner played QB. How could you not have Devin in as QB? He played so well, and so consistently in each of his games he played quarterback, you couldn't just bench him, or throw him back into the wide receiver position.

Devin and Denard being on the field at the same time seemed to be what Michigan has needed all season. Devin can throw the ball very accurately. He's not as fast as Denard, but still a fast quarterback, and he's tall. At 6'4", Devin Gardner towers over the 6' Denard Robinson.

Denard however, whenever he's on the field, like I said, magic can happen. He proved it during Michigan's win over Iowa when Michigan faced a 3rd and one, and Denard ran the ball for 40 yards.

So after seeing Devin Gardner perform so well as quarterback for three straight weeks, I wonder, should he have played quarterback for Michigan all along. Or at least, this whole season. We all have seen Denard Robinson struggle as quarterback. I love watching the guy, don't get me wrong. He's an amazing player. But he never could get into the groove of throwing accurate passes day in and day out.

Looking through the stats this season, Denard Robinson went 89/166 as quarterback. He threw for 1,319 yards, nine touchdowns, and nine interceptions. And he ran the ball 144 times for 1,044 yards and six touchdowns. That was starting in seven games (not counting the Nebraska game).

Devin Gardner however, has went 46/70, 834 passing yards, he has thrown for seven touchdowns, and only three interceptions. He also has rushed the ball 28 times for 105 yards, and six touchdowns (the same amount of rushing touchdowns as Denard). And that was with Devin only starting in three games.

If you look at it statistically, Devin Gardner seems to obviously be the hands on favorite for quarterback. He is more accurate with his throwing, almost equalling Denard's total touchdown throws with less interceptions, and Devin has punched the ball into the endzone just as many times. Although Gardner has significantly less rushing yards than Robinson.

I'm sure many Michigan fans will feel I am dogging Denard Robinson. That however is not the case. I just feel like if Michigan coach Brady Hoke, and offensive coordinator Al Borges made the decision to play Devin Gardner as starting quarterback instead of wide receiver, and let Denard Robinson play a running back/wide receiver type of role, Michigan very well could have won the three games they lost, and they might possibly could be in the hunt to play in the National Championship Game.

Michigan plays Ohio State this upcoming Saturday, in Columbus. In what could be the greatest rivalry in college football history, I'm sure Michigan will be looking to have Denard and Devin back on the field at the same time, to open up all kinds of different threats against Urban Meyer's Buckeyes. It should be a really good game.

- Matt Lytle

@mattlytle