Your Predictions For The West

teachercd

teachercd

Active member
Might as well get it started!  

The Non-conference games really don't matter much, NU probably has the hardest game when they host OU.  Iowa fan will try to convince you that playing powerhouse ISU is the hardest game.  I think Duke, Virginia, Cuse and WSU are the other P5 non-conference games.

I will work backwards to make it more suspenseful! 

7)  Northwestern:  3-9 last year might look like a good season compared to this year.  They are going to suck.

6)  Illinois:  I think their season might hinge on Wyoming.  They should win that but start off 0-1 with a loss to Wyoming could ruin things

5)  Minny:  Bad QB, bag WR's 38 year old RB with no knees and no OL

4)  Iowa:  Lucky last year, that won't happen again.  

3)  Purdue:  Throw out the last half of the season when everything went right for them.  Easy cross over games (I think) will help.

2) Wisconsin:  No real reason that they could not be 1,2,3,4.  But their QB is horrible.

1)  Nebraska:  Why not?  The West is filled with basically the same average to below average teams.  If NU is just error free for the most part they should win, they have the most talent in west by far.

 
I like your optimism.  Could happen but I will hold my predictions until after NW game.  Regardless of talent, the team needs confidence to compete for the West title.  Hopefully that starts building in Ireland.

 
I'm in the 'Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me 2x shame on me" camp.  It is hard to be a :koolaid2:  drinker anymore.   But with that I'm cautiously optimistic

that we will will finish 2nd (at best) or 3rd in the west.  I have got to think that the coaching and portal changes will make a big difference.  My optimism isn't based on Frost but on the new coaches on the offense and that I think Chin has 'it figured out' on D.  Frost has to proved himself as a game manager/CEO and allow  his offensive coaches to run the offense.  IF we can beat OU, then there should be enough momentum to get us to 2nd in the west barring serious injury to key skilled people and the OL.   I think Wiscy wins the west just because we haven't proven we can beat them or Iowa.  I think we beat Iowa this year (finally) - even though it is at Iowa.  Since the Wisky game is at home, maybe we get fired up and pull that one too.   If would be a dream to beat OU, Iowa, Wisky in the same year.  But I better stop there less someone accuse me of drinking the  :koolaid2:

 
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teachercd said:
Might as well get it started!  

The Non-conference games really don't matter much, NU probably has the hardest game when they host OU.  Iowa fan will try to convince you that playing powerhouse ISU is the hardest game.  I think Duke, Virginia, Cuse and WSU are the other P5 non-conference games.

I will work backwards to make it more suspenseful! 

7)  Northwestern:  3-9 last year might look like a good season compared to this year.  They are going to suck.

6)  Illinois:  I think their season might hinge on Wyoming.  They should win that but start off 0-1 with a loss to Wyoming could ruin things

5)  Minny:  Bad QB, bag WR's 38 year old RB with no knees and no OL

4)  Iowa:  Lucky last year, that won't happen again.  

3)  Purdue:  Throw out the last half of the season when everything went right for them.  Easy cross over games (I think) will help.

2) Wisconsin:  No real reason that they could not be 1,2,3,4.  But their QB is horrible.

1)  Nebraska:  Why not?  The West is filled with basically the same average to below average teams.  If NU is just error free for the most part they should win, they have the most talent in west by far.
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This is pretty spot on for what SHOULD happen. The bolded is the problem.

 
The league is getting stronger top to bottom and won’t be any easier. It may look easier without OSU but no win is easy (last 5 or 10 years proves that).  It won’t change this year imo. New coaches and players can’t transform a team in one offseason from perennial losers to winners.  Lots to get a lot better at (offense, special teams) and lots of unknowns on defense as well.  Maybe but don’t bet on it.  Odds are still 1-10.  
 

Biggest wildcard, never mentioned by anybody that I’ve read, is team psychology/confidence - very ify after 5 years of consistent losing.  Change is unsettling.  Big Ten moves glacially and will be a tremendous challenge - period.  4 league wins is a big jump for us with all that against us. Injuries will happen - always a part of fb.  

 
7)  Northwestern:  3-9 last year might look like a good season compared to this year.  They are going to suck.  Same Every year yet Seem to compete with us lol

6)  Illinois:  I think their season might hinge on Wyoming.  They should win that but start off 0-1 with a loss to Wyoming could ruin things / We better win

5)  Minny:  Bad QB, bag WR's 38 year old RB with no knees and no OL / Seem to beat US every year with Bad qb's 

4)  Iowa:  Lucky last year, that won't happen again.   Lets hope not. 

3)  Purdue:  Throw out the last half of the season when everything went right for them.  Easy cross over games (I think) will help.  I think we blow them out.

2) Wisconsin:  No real reason that they could not be 1,2,3,4.  But their QB is horrible.  Again they make us look bad for 3quarters and have a 4th quarter meltdown NU wins.

1)  Nebraska:  Why not?  The West is filled with basically the same average to below average teams.  If NU is just error free for the most part they should win, they have the most talent in west by far.   Scott Frost team Error Free......  Damn good thing We brought in Mickey and the Old guy. 

 
I'm with Hilltop. 

If I would guess now I would have us at 4-5, behind Wisky, Iowa, Purdue and Minny.  It will be an interesting season as outside OU, we don't really play a name except Michigan.  The season is full of bottom-dwellers of the B1G we always speak down too but yet seem to own us.  

I think the endurance and stamina will come into play as our errors compound with fatigue from the OL and DL's of the B1G schools and leave us on the losing end in a few games we think we should win.

 
I like all the new pieces added to this team. If they can stay healthy on both sides of ball I could see this team surprising a lot of teams.  Just can't have them come out and lay an egg in the first game like last year.  

 
Purdue benefits (just like we do) from only playing one good team in their cross-divisional games, and in their case it's Penn State. Then they play away against both Maryland and Indiana.

So it's hard to predict whether we can finish ahead of them or not.

But I think the best we can realistically hope for is third in the West, or fourth if Purdue somehow has a good season based on their easy schedule.

 
Undone said:
Purdue benefits (just like we do) from only playing one good team in their cross-divisional games, and in their case it's Penn State. Then they play away against both Maryland and Indiana.

So it's hard to predict whether we can finish ahead of them or not.

But I think the best we can realistically hope for is third in the West, or fourth if Purdue somehow has a good season based on their easy schedule.
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Yeah, I think it will all come down to the cross division games (3-0 and you are winning the west for sure, 2-1 you are top 3 for sure, anything less and it is a mess).

And you can't have a lame loss, like vs NW or vs Illinois.

 
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