Blog Ten Gameday: Illinois Flattens Michigan 38-13

Illinois 38  Michigan 13

This I was not expecting.  I actually had to leave my house for about 20 minutes earlier this afternoon, and when I did the Wolverines had a 13-7 lead at halftime.  Then when I was back in front of the television it was 14-13 Illinois, and they kept piling it on thereafter.

The momentum shifted in this game when Illinois stopped the Wolverines on a 4th and goal from the 1 yard line, and went on to score 31 unanswered points.  For the first time all season — save the game against Illinois State — the Illini offense looked like the unit we thought we’d see all season...

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Blog Ten Gameday: Iowa Does It Again, Now 9-0

The Hawkeyes just can’t make it easy can they?

Today’s game against Indiana at home was supposed to be the first time Iowa had an easy win since they beat up on Iowa State earlier this year, and instead they caused Hawkeye fans across the nation to age about 25 years.  When it was all said and done, though, the Hawkeyes emerged victorious once again to improve to 9-0 on the season and keep their National Title hopes alive...

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David Wells Is Not a Fan of Philadelphia

What can't David Wells do?

The man has thrown a perfect game while hungover, is now an analyst for TBS and now he's even a columnist for the New York Post. A columnist that is not shy about sharing his feelings about the fans of Philadelphia, particularly that they're "ruthless and rude."

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New Cubs Owner Plans on Winning the World Series

For the first time since they officially became the new owners of the Chicago Cubs, the Ricketts family spoke to the media on Friday morning in Chicago, and they made their top goal as owners perfectly clear. They are going to win a World Series. That's what Tom Ricketts told the throng of reporters surrounding him.

It was one of many things the new owner shared, but obviously, considering the Cubs history of not winning the World Series, that's the line that will either solidify the Ricketts family as legends in Chicago, or hang over their heads for as long as they own the club...

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Blog Ten Cheat Sheet - Week 9

I’m going to resist any urge to talk about some teams possibly having a nightmare weekend, or any other stupid Halloween type of metaphors this weekend.  To be honest, the only nightmarish thing about this weekend’s games in the Big Ten is that there really aren’t any great matchups on Saturday.  I think it’s going to turn out to be a pretty boring day all in all, so if you want to go out and get some candy during the day, feel free.  You probably won’t be missing anything anyway.

Besides, if your following Blog Ten on Twitter and turn on the notifications, you’ll be getting real-time updates while your out egging houses anyway...

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Larry Johnson Is The Newest Player Bears Fans Will Want In The Morning

Twitter has its first casualty as it was announced late Tuesday night that the Kansas City Chiefs are going to release running back Larry Johnson. It seems the Chiefs decided that rather than deal with the headache of Johnson's latest comments on Twitter about his head coach Todd Haley -with some gay-bashing mixed in to give it that extra flair -- they'd just drop him like a bad habit.

In case you missed it, here's what Larry had to say after the Chiefs got waxed at home by the Chargers on Sunday.

"my father got more creditentials than most of these pro coaches. … google my father!!!!!!"

"My father played for the coach from "rememeber the titans". Our coach played golf. My father played for redskins briefley. Our coach. Nuthn"

Larry's father, of course, is Larry Johnson Sr. He's been coaching at Penn State since 1996, which is where Larry went to college. Who knows? He might actually be a better coach than Todd Haley, but I'm not here debate that.

No, I'm just waiting to see how many Chicagoans are buzzing tomorrow for the Bears to sign Larry Johnson.

Sale of Cubs Finally Complete

It only took two and a half years, but it was announced on Tuesday that the sale of one of baseball's most storied franchises, the Chicago Cubs, was completed. Tom Ricketts bid to buy the team was first approved of earlier this year, and now the team belongs to the son of TD Ameritrade founder Joe Ricketts...

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Adam Robinson Will Miss the Rest of the Regular Season

The hits just keep on coming for the Hawkeyes this week. 

We learned on Monday that guard Dace Richardson broke his left ankle during the Michigan State victory on Saturday and won’t be back before the bowl game, which is a big blow to Iowa’s offensive line and running game.

Now on Tuesday, the Hawkeyes running game has another casualty.  The team’s leading rusher Adam Robinson is going to miss the rest of the regular season as well with an ankle injury of his own.

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Blog Ten Power Rankings - Week 8

No that picture does not mean that the Iowa Hawkeyes have fallen from the top spot.  That dog is there because I’ve run Iowa photos here the last two weeks, so a change is needed.  Plus, you have to admit.

The dog is kind of cute.

Anywho, on to the rankings...

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Blogpoll Ballot: Week 8

I forgot to post this yesterday, so here you go.

Rank	Team	Delta
1	Alabama
2	Florida
3	Texas
4	TCU	4
5	Iowa	1
6	Boise State	1
7	Southern Cal	3
8	Cincinnati	1
9	Oregon	2
10	Georgia Tech
11	Penn State	3
12	Houston	3
13	Pittsburgh	5
14	Oklahoma State	3
15	LSU	2
16	Virginia Tech
17	Miami (Florida)	8
18	Ohio State	1
19	Central Michigan	3
20	South Carolina	1
21	Utah	4
22	West Virginia
23	Mississippi
24	Brigham Young	12
25	Notre Dame
Last week's ballot

Dropped Out: Kansas (#20), Texas Tech (#23), South Florida (#24).

Reasoning and more after the jump.

Jamie McCourt Called 911 On Dodgers Owner Frank McCourt

While the Los Angeles Dodgers season may be over it appears that team owner Frank McCourt's divorce from his wife Jamie McCourt is going to continue for a while. The latest story being reported about the estranged couple is of Jamie McCourt calling 911 after being startled at home by Frank.

According to the police report that was filed, Frank did not attack Jamie in anyway, but rather came over to the house while she was swimming, which prompted her to make the call...

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The NCAA Is Looking At Michigan

Remember back in August when the Detroit Free Press ran a story featuring quotes from Michigan Wolverines players that said Rich Rodriguez and his coaching staff were forcing them to work a lot more than they’re supposed to?  Yeah, it seems a lot of folks forgot about that.  What, with the way the Wolverines started off the season and the emergence of Tate Forcier in a big win against Notre Dame.

The school did an investigation of its own into the matter, but winning streaks tend to make things disappear.  Well, the Wolverines have now lost three games in a row after winning their first four, and what do you know, the NCAA is suddenly interested in all of this again...

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The Tommie Harris Situation Gets Weirder

There's a lot to sort through from yesterday's Bears 45-10 anal raping loss against the Bengals on Sunday, but the biggest mystery of all just got a bit cloudier.  Tommie Harris didn't play in the game, but until about 15 minutes ago I thought it was because his knee was bothering.

That's not the case according to head coach Lovie Smith.  Lovie just completed his Monday press conference, which was played live on-air at ESPN 1000, and according to Smith it wasn't that Harris was too hurt to play.

It was because Lovie chose not to dress him.

Blog Ten Dean's List - Week 8

See who made it at Blog Ten

Michigan Loses David Molk For Rest of Season

It seems that the Iowa Hawkeyes aren’t the only team who are going to have a hole to fill in their offensive line for the next few weeks.  The Michigan Wolverines have learned that center David Molk, who left the Penn State game after the fourth play, has suffered a torn ACL.

Rich Rodriguez made the announcement on Monday morning, and as is normally the case when it comes to torn ACLs, Molk is going to miss the rest of the season...

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How About That Bears Game?

I work on Sunday nights, and have for years.  In the past however, Bears games were generally played at noon so I always had a chance to watch them before going into work.  Then Jay Cutler came to town, and now there's apparently a new rule that says the Bears can't play before 3pm against anybody who managed more than 3 wins the season before.

So a few weeks ago when the NFL announced that the Bears/Bengals game was being switched from a noon start to 3pm, I was ticked off.  Watching the game on DVR after work just isn't the same, especially when you already know the outcome.

Well, after seeing part of yesterday's game -- I didn't bother with the second half -- I'd like to apologize to the NFL for cursing them after they switched the start time.  Turns out they were doing me a favor because my television may not have survived had I been watching live.

Iowa's Dace Richardson Has a Broken Ankle

The Iowa Hawkeyes may have been able to escape East Lansing with their eighth victory of the season on Saturday night thanks to Ricky Stanzi’s touchdown pass to Marvin McNutt, but they lost quite a bit in the process.

It was a game of attrition to say the least, as two solid defenses spent the first 55 minutes of the game knocking heads, and the Hawkeyes injury report showed that.  There was Jeremy Ware’s hit on Colin Sandeman that knocked Sandeman out, Brett Greenwood suffering a concussion after colliding with teammate Tyler Sash, and both Adam Robinson and Brandon Wegher were banged up by the Spartans defense.

Those players should all be on the field next weekend, though.  Which cannot be said for guard Dace Richardson.

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MLB.com Already Selling Yankees AL Champions Gear

Maybe the folks at MLB.com never found out that Game Six of the ALCS was postponed on Saturday night, or maybe they're just playing the odds, but for some reason you can already buy your Yankees 2009 AL Champion swag in the MLB Shop. That's right, the AL Champions t-shirt that the Yankees will be wearing in the clubhouse as they douse themselves in champagne after knocking off the Los Angeles Angels?

It can be yours for only $24.99 plus shipping and handling! Who cares if they haven't actually eliminated the Angels yet?

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Blog Ten Gameday: Iowa Saves Undefeated Season on Final Play of Game

Wow wow wow wow wow.  That’s all I can think to say of tonight’s game in East Lansing.  After about 56 minutes of defensive smashmouth football that saw nothing but field goal after field goal, this game exploded over the final minutes.

Iowa 15  Michigan State 13  Final
For the first time in school history the Iowa Hawkeyes are 8-0 thanks to a last second drive by Ricky Stanzi and the Hawkeyes.  Iowa had a 9-6 lead in the final minutes, but then Mark Dantonio and the Spartans pulled the hook and ladder out to get a big gain to Blair White down to the Iowa 30-yard line...

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Jeremy Ware Lights Up Colin Sandeman

There have been plenty of big hits in tonight’s game between Michigan State and Iowa, but none quite as big as the one Michigan State’s Jeremy Ware put on Iowa’s Colin Sandeman.

See the video at Blog Ten

Lee Corso Shoots His Wad On Gameday

This really doesn’t have anything to do with the Big Ten, but on ESPN’s College Gameday this morning Lee Corso said something he probably shouldn’t have said.  When Corso, Kirk Herbstreit and Chris Fowler were joined by former BYU head coach Lavell Edwards to give their picks for Saturday’s games, Corso had a theory about Arkansas’ chances against Ole Miss.

He didn’t think they had a chance to win because they “shot their wad” last week...

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Blog Ten Gameday: Michigan's Beating Themselves, Though Penn State's Helping

Only one game going on this afternoon, but at least it’s a good one as the Penn State Nittany Lions go to Ann Arbor looking to win there for the first time since 1996.  So far, so good. 

Penn State 19  Michigan 10 Halftime
Things got off to a pretty good start for the Wolverines, as they put together a very nice opening drive to take the early 7-0 lead.  Unfortunately for Big Blue, they’ve been doing everything to help Penn State win since that point.  The Nittany Lions answered the Wolverines touchdown very quickly thanks to a 41-yard run by Evan Royster to set up a Brandon Zug touchdown catch...

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Nice Hat

Somebody needs a girlfriend.  And yes, that eagle on top flaps its wings.

Blog Ten Gameday: Homecoming Comeback for Northwestern

Well maybe the state of Indiana isn’t as dominant over Illinois as we thought? 

Northwestern 29  Indiana 28
The Northwestern Wildcats have a thing for big comebacks against Indiana schools.  Earlier this year they fell behind 21-3 against Purdue before coming back to get a victory, and today they wanted a tougher test.  After falling behind the Hoosiers 28-3 early in the second quarter, the Wildcats scored 26 unanswered points to get a big win on Homecoming in Evanston...

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Blog Ten Gameday: The State of Indiana > The State of Illinois

We’ve got two matchups this morning featuring the Big Ten’s Indiana contingent taking on Illinois’, and the Hoosier State is emerging victorious so far. 

Indiana 28  Northwestern 17  Halftime
The score in this game is a bit misleading, as Indiana jumped out to a 28-3 lead early in the second quarter, but then the Wildcats dominated the rest of the half.  Mike Kafka got off to a 2-for-8 start in this game, but has since gone 15-of-21 to lead Northwestern on two scoring drives...

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'Strong Indications' Ron Zook Will Return In 2010

Some bad news for all of those Illinois football fans who have been calling for the head of Ron Zook in recent weeks.  It’s starting to look like you’re going to have to deal with the Zooker for at least one more season.  At least, if you listen to what the school’s spokesman Kent Brown is saying.

Yes, the Illini are going through a very tough season and are hearing plenty of boos when playing at home.  It looks as though they may not win a single conference game this year, and considering that it’s Zook who put this team together and is responsible for coaching them, it makes sense that the fanbase would like him to go.  The sooner the better.

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The Recruiting Trail: Iowa's About to Poach An Illini Recruit

The world of recruiting can be pretty cutthroat at times, and a large reason for that is the fact that coaches across the country have to rely on the word of 17 to 18-year old kids who generally have a hard time trying to figure out whether they want Burger King or McDonalds.

Picking a college is an entirely different beast for any high schooler, let alone for one who is trying to base his choice more on what he wants to major in, or where his girlfriend is going.  Back in July C.J. Fiedorowicz, a tight end from Johnsburgh High School in Johnsburgh, Illinois gave a verbal commitment to Ron Zook and the Fighting Illini.

A commitment that seems to be waning...

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Don't Drink And Drive Your Recliner

This story has just about nothing to do with sports, but it takes place in Minnesota and has a high idiocy content, so anytime I can talk about idiots in Minnesota (or Wisconsin) I try to take advantage of that.

Do you have a recliner that you love?  I do.  Though I must admit that I've never been inclined to trick my chair out.  I mean, I put a blanket over the back of it, but that's only because it looks better there than just tossed on the floor.

Marcus Jordan Thinks He's More Important Than He Really Is

Having never been Michael Jordan's son, I can't say I know what life is like growing up with that shadow towering above me.  I also can't say that I know what it's like to grow up in a family with more money than God.

Judging from what's going on with Marcus Jordan down at the University of Central Florida, I think it's safe to say the feeling of entitlement Marcus feels being Michael's son outweighs any pressure he's felt to be the world's greatest basketball player.  If you haven't heard, Marcus will be a freshman on the basketball team this winter at UCF.  A school that has a merchandising deal with Adidas to supply the school with it's uniforms and equipment, including shoes.

Well, as we all know, Michael Jordan has a deal with Nike, and now his son is refusing to put on Adidas because it might besmirch the family name or something.

Youngstown State Wants Jim Tressel Back

Before The Sweatervest made its way to Columbus, Ohio, Jim Tressel was the head coach at Division II Youngstown State.  Tressel spent 15 years at the school, winning 70% of his games there along with four national titles.  So it’s no surprise that Tressel is still beloved at the school, even if he scheduled them to be beaten up by the Buckeyes a few times in the last few years.

In fact, Tressel is held in such high esteem at Youngstown State that according to the Columbus Dispatch’s Bob Hunter, a member of the faculty at the school has nominated The Sweatervest to be the school’s next University President.

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Those Rocks Are Slippery When Wet

Game five of the ALCS on Thursday night was a pretty exciting game for fans of both teams, and interested observers as well. Of course, not everybody in the world has an attention span long enough to focus on a baseball game for too long without deciding they need the world to be paying attention to them.

When alcohol is introduced into the mix, it speeds up this process, and we end up seeing a situation like the one that occurred in the 6th inning last night. That's when an Angels fan decided to make his way into the waterfall/rock formation that is beyond the left field wall in Angels Stadium...

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Blog Ten Cheat Sheet - Week 8

Sorry about the lack of posting the last two days, but between the real world job and covering the MLB playoffs over at FanHouse, I didn’t have much time to write anywhere else.  I’m here today though, and that means I’m back just in time to make bad picks on what’s going to happen during this Saturday’s games.

Hopefully I can rebound from a bad week, for which I place the entirety of the blame on Ohio State.  Had they beaten Purdue like they were supposed to, all of my other wrong picks would have magically been right as well.  Thanks a lot, Terrelle Pryor...

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Fox Hires Ozzie Guillen to Work During the World Series

Somebody get the dump button ready.

Fox has hired Chicago White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen to do studio work on their World Series pre- and post game shows. He'll be working in the studio alongside Chris Rose, Eric Karros and Mark Grace, and also contribute reports for Fox Sports Espanol.

So he'll be swearing in both languages...

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Jay Cutler Signs Contract Extension Through 2013

Some breaking news right now as it was just announced a little while ago that the Chicago Bears have signed our quarterback and savior Jaysus Cutler to a contract extension.  The deal adds two years to his current contract, so it will run through 2013, and includes $20 million guaranteed with the possibility of $30 million more than he's already getting.

So if you need to ask somebody for some money, you know who to go to now.

How Bad Is Derrick Rose's Ankle?

I haven't been paying very much attention to the Bulls so far this season because they're still in the preseason, and I don't care about the preseason in any sport.  Nothing that happens in the preseason matters in the regular season, so I don't really care if Joakim Noah, Tyrus Thomas, Taj Gibson and James Johnson are playing well.

I'll get excited if they do it when it counts.

There is one story though that I am keeping an eye on, and that's the status of Derrick Rose's ankle.  Preseason games may not mean a damn thing, but injuries can.  Rose hasn't played since the first game of the preseason, and though all the talk has been that he would be fine in time for the real games, now it seems that head coach Vinny Del Negro isn't so sure.