CHICAGO - As the Big Ten staged its annual dog-and-pony show - otherwise known as the preseason football luncheon - last Thursday and Friday, the growing gap between the upper-echelon teams and those resigned to looking up grew wider.
The class of the conference conjured up memories of the 1970s and '80s as Michigan and Ohio State head the list of those expected to battle for the conference championship. Experience, depth and character are the hallmarks of these two historic programs, and yet their ultimate focus differs as much as the speed traps within the respective states.
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| JOHN KRAFT/Daily Tom Brady will try to take over where Brian Griese left off when Michigan opens at Notre Dame on Sept. 5. The Wolverines were picked to finish behind Ohio State in the preseason media Big Ten poll Friday. |
The only dissenter seems to be their own coach, John Cooper.
"If I were picking, I'd pick Michigan," Cooper said. After all, "Michigan won it last year."
The national championship game on Jan. 4 will pit the nation's top-ranked team against the second-ranked squad, regardless of conference. According to the general perception - both in the Big Ten, where they were pegged as a substantial favorite, and around the nation - the Buckeyes are flawless, led by Big Ten preseason defensive player of the year Andy Katzenmoyer.
But Cooper harbors reservations.
"Nothing changes if you're picked one or 25," said Cooper, whose Ohio State record against Michigan - 1-8-1 - may be the sole chink in the Buckeyes' armor. "We're not going to be sneaking up on everyone. But whether we're the best team in the country remains to be seen."
Michigan is the defending national champion, yet coach Lloyd Carr's focus remains undeterred.
He opened his remarks "looking forward to defending the Big Ten championship," instantly regionalizing his team's goal.
"This is the greatest challenge to a Michigan team since 1947," Carr said, referring to Fritz Crisler's Mad Magicians squad.
Michigan's core talent also returns, but its respect does not. The Wolverines remain a distant second in the preseason Big Ten media poll.
Carr said the Wolverines are again prepared to face the nation's best, one year after conquering the nation's most challenging schedule.
"I think we're playing a tougher schedule this year than we did last year," he said.
Scheduling may be the bane of this Big Ten season, as the top teams may never meet. The next level of conference competition - Wisconsin and Purdue - could take the back door route to the conference title with schedules conducive to success.
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| MARGARET MYERS/Daily Michigan wide receiver Tai Streets (left) and tight end Jerame Tuman (right) will have their hands full trying to repeat as Big Ten and national champions - Ohio State has the No. 1 preseason ranking. |
The outlook is not so rosy further down the Big Ten totem pole.
Unfortunately for the trio of cellar-dwellers - all with second-year head coaches - last week's meetings may be the peak of their 1998 campaign. Optimism ran high among Indiana's Cam Cameron, Illinois' Ron Turner and Minnesota's Glen Mason, but reality tells a different story. The three teams combined for only five victories last season.
Uncertainty ruled most of these coaches' comments, as might be expected from programs in search of an identity. Each coach just explained it in his own manner.
"I'm sure we'll get help from incoming guys, but who they are we can only guess," Mason said.
Cameron claimed that just two offensive positions are filled and competition will determine this team's makeup. Turner tried to fill the gaps with humor, but holes that deep - the Illini finished 0-11 in 1997 - are difficult to escape.
"Believe it or not, I'm looking forward to this year," Turner said. "The key word for us this year is progress."
Progress, though achievable in measured steps, is that much more difficult in the Big Ten. With last season's national champion and this season's preseason No. 1 clearly in a different league of competition, programs such as Illinois and Minnesota will have to gauge success on a lesser scale.
But with a Big Ten-record seven ranked teams over the course of last season, the battle for middle-of-the-pack bowl invitations - among Michigan State, Iowa, Penn State and Northwestern - may be the strength of a widely disparate league.
For Openers: Discussions about adding Notre Dame as the Big Ten's 12th member were alive and kicking in Chicago, but mostly in media circles. Many coaches suggested that the addition would be a positive move for the conference - allowing for two six-team divisions and a revenue-generating postseason playoff - but all talks remain speculation.
Northwestern coach Gary Barnett said if the Fighting Irish were brought into the Big Ten, the advantages would be numerous.
"Having 12 teams keeps everyone in the race until the end of the season," he said. "Notre Dame is the logical choice (for expansion.) If Notre Dame were to come into this conference, it would establish us as the top conference in the country."
08-10-98
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