We are back! The Power Poll returns with a bang, considering a cluster of fascinating new quarterbacks, four new coaches and some fresh fizz in the final year of the much-maligned West division, and a very interesting power struggle in the East. Here they are, bottom to top.
Penn State fans enjoy the West Virginia game on Sept. 2, 2023. Joe Hermitt | [email protected] Power Poll returns with a bang, considering a cluster of fascinating new quarterbacks, four new coaches and some fresh fizz in the final year of the much-maligned West division, and a very interesting power struggle in the East.
Rutgers defensive back Desmond Igbinosun blasts Northwestern quarterback Ben Bryant during the first half on Sunday in Piscataway, N.J.There was a 4th/8 fake punt that failed not because punter Hunter Renner threw a bad pass but because receiver Rod Heard didn’t run past the 1st-down stick. McCord threw his first pick early in the second quarter with the classic cardinal sin combo throw – rolling right, tossing late, across his body, down the middle. Every quarterback is told not to do it. Just enough get away with it to embolden themselves and witnesses. But they all learn better eventually. Safety Phillip Dunnam’s pick and return with the Hoosiers down just 7-0 kept the Bloomington locals energized a little while.
Actually, they hit hard on offense, too. To that end, a series of plays early in the second quarter illustrated why Rutgers took total control of this game. They all revolved around the molar-jarring blocks of RB Kyle Mononghai. If your older brother ever warned you about dudes you don’t wanna mess with in a bar, it’s guys the size and shape of Mononghai – 5-9, 205.
The Knights also have two RBs they can live with including freshman Ja’Shon Benjamin . He’s another fireplug, good at slipping tackles while maintaining forward momentum.Matt Rhule didn’t turn over his roster like Deion Sanders did at Colorado. But maybe he should’ve thought about it. Well, I feel an all-time side bet coming on in Iowa City, except I think it’s the sort of action you might only get at one of those crazy prop parlors in England where anything can be wagered upon. I’d bet, if you will, that a ton of Hawkeye fans have already laid $50 or $100 or more that Brian Ferentz willWhat is that, you ask? Well, the Iowa OC’s annual salary was docked from $900K down to $850K after the Hawkeyes’ sickly 2022 production of 17.7 points per game.
and huge Antwain Littleton. TE Corey Dyches and WR Jeshaun Jones got plenty of run and combined to catch 11 balls. Noted West Virginia-transfer Kaden Prather, who was heavily involved in negotiations with Penn State before getting a better NIL offer from UMD, caught a couple balls. It’s a very good receiving corps if young Lia can remain healthy.
Illinois’ new quarterback Luke Altmyer, a transfer from Mississippi where he was the backup last season, is an impressive dual-threat talent. He threw for 211 and 2 TDs and ran for 69 net and is every bit as quick as West Virginia’s Garrett Greene who gave the Nits’ defensive front periodic fits. And if he breaks a bone, his dad can do the surgery. Dr. Chad Altmyer is the team surgeon at Mississippi State.
Just be forewarned, Nit fans: Altmyer looks like one of those McSorley types with a little magic in him.It took a little more than a half for the Spartans to turn a dreary pillow fight with Central Michigan into a showcase for some exciting and desperately needed skill players. In short order, a 7-3 deficit late second quarter was turned into a 31-7 laugher.
The junior Emanuel hit a 12-yard TD pass in the second quarter that briefly staked Central to that 7-3 lead. The Spartans had to overcome sloppy, undisciplined play including a rash of unsportsmanlike-conduct penalties and a 12th-man penalty that blew a 4th-down stop in the third quarter. Fickell has been around enough to know when to cut his losses. He reined in Mordecai and shifted into beast mode, equipped as he is with a typical Wisconsin line of bread trucks on the O-line and two good experienced backs in Chez Mellusi and Braelon Allen . That was the end of the Bulls in what became a 38-17 stroll for UW.Those in Madison hoping for a Russell Wilson or even a Scott Tolzien redux might be disappointed.
Ohio State tight end Cade Stover bounces off Indiana safety Phillip Dunnam during Buckeyes' 23-3 win in Bloomington, Ind.As for the defense, it flew all over Memorial Stadium like an alert security force, shutting down anything that moved. The Hoosiers were totally overmatched. The depth and numbers of OSU defenders who made stops was remarkable. Multiple tacklers arrived at the ball over and over. This looks like as fast a defense as Ohio State has had in a while.
Here, Brown sees through the lens of a career Big 12 guy who’s played with and against defenders who run around instead of through blockers. And I think he sees the Lions as the great athletes they are instead of the physical presence they’ll need to be against the best of the Big Ten – which they’ve not been lately. I still think the PSU run defense is suspect and Brown got away from the test he should have given it, that is, an extra helping of big 6-1, 238-pound C.J.
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