SB Nation Cleveland - Big Ten Has 5 Teams In The AP Top 25; LSU And Alabama Are 1-2https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48841/cleveland-fave.png2011-10-16T17:40:31-05:00http://cleveland.sbnation.com/rss/stream/21668462011-10-16T17:40:31-05:002011-10-16T17:40:31-05:00AP Poll Has SEC Juggernauts LSU, 'Bama 1-2; Big Ten's Wisconsin Is 4th
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<p>More and more it is looking like the class of the country in college football resides in the Southeastern Conference, with the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-football/teams/lsu-tigers">LSU Tigers</a> and the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-football/teams/alabama-crimson-tide">Alabama Crimson Tide</a> coming in at 1-2 in the <a href="http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/polls?poll=1&week=8">latest AP rankings, released today</a>.</p>
<p>But a representative from the Big Ten is forging their way into the national title mix, with the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-football/teams/wisconsin-badgers">Wisconsin Badgers</a> ranked 4th in the country, just behind the third-ranked <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-football/teams/oklahoma-sooners">Oklahoma Sooners</a>.</p>
<p>Rounding out the Top 5 are the Boise State Broncos, while the rest of the Top 10 are Oklahoma State, Stanford, Clemson, Oregon and Arkansas.</p>
<p>The Big Ten has a total of five teams in the Top 25, with Nebraska 13th, Michigan State 15th, Michigan 18th, and Illinois (fresh off of a loss to Ohio State on Saturday) 23rd.</p>
<p>Penn State is just outside of the Top 25 in the AP poll, coming in at 26th.</p>
<p>The SEC has six teams in the AP poll.</p>
https://cleveland.sbnation.com/ohio-st-buckeyes/2011/10/16/2494408/ap-poll-has-sec-juggernauts-lsu-bama-1-2-big-tens-wisconsin-is-4thAncientMariner2011-10-10T10:41:14-05:002011-10-10T10:41:14-05:00Big Ten Tied With Big 12 for Conference Lead in Top 25 Polls With Six Teams
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<p>The Big Ten has a reputation right now for being one of the weaker conferences among the best in the country, but there’s no denying that in the early part of this season, teams from that conference have played some very good football.</p>
<p>In the latest <span class="caps">USA</span> Today Coaches Poll, the Big Ten put six teams in the top 25, including four in the top 15.</p>
<p>Wisconsin is the highest ranked team in the conference, coming in at 4th. Michigan follows at 10th after their big road win against Northwestern, and also in the top 15 are Nebraska and Illinois, both of whom had impressive victories over the weekend.</p>
<p>Also in the top 25 for the Big Ten were Michigan State and Penn State, two teams that people seem to be very “on the fence” about.</p>
<p>Michigan State ranked 19th in the Coaches poll, and only 23rd in the AP poll. Penn State came in at 25th in the coaches poll and unranked in the AP poll.</p>
https://cleveland.sbnation.com/ohio-st-buckeyes/2011/10/10/2481008/big-ten-tied-with-big-12-for-conference-lead-in-top-25-polls-with-sixSayre Bedinger2011-10-03T09:53:05-05:002011-10-03T09:53:05-05:00Five Big Ten Teams in Latest USA Today Top 25, Buckeyes Still Unranked
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<p>Not to anyone’s surprise, the Ohio State Buckeyes are still unranked after losing on their home field to the Michigan State Spartans on Saturday, but that doesn’t mean the Big Ten isn’t well-represented.</p>
<p>In the latest <span class="caps">USA</span> Today Coaches Poll, five Big Ten teams are ranked in the top 25, all five of which are in the top 20 teams in the country.</p>
<p>Wisconsin is ranked fifth after their big home win over the Nebraska Cornhuskers, who dropped from 8th to 15th.</p>
<p>The Michigan Wolverines made the biggest jump from 19th to 11th overall, but Illinois also moved from 22nd to 16th in the country.</p>
<p>Michigan State was ranked 25th last week and after their win against Ohio State, they rank 20th in the country.</p>
<p>The only real difference in the AP poll was that Michigan State was left off entirely, though they did receive the most votes of the non-top 25 teams.</p>
<p>Two teams really on the rise right now are Michigan and Illinois, Big Ten teams that no one really pegged as legit contenders before the season, and now they have a real chance to make a splash if they can keep it up.</p>
https://cleveland.sbnation.com/ohio-st-buckeyes/2011/10/3/2466011/five-big-ten-teams-in-latest-usa-today-top-25-buckeyes-still-unrankedSayre Bedinger2011-09-27T11:41:49-05:002011-09-27T11:41:49-05:00Ohio State Ranked 7th in Big Ten Power Rankings by Athlon Sports
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<p>Every year, one of the first publications I look for on news stands is the Athlon Sports college football preview, and this year is no different from others—they are on top of their game covering college football.</p>
<p>They have a week four Big Ten Power Ranking poll out, which <a href="http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/college-football-power-rankings-big-ten-1" target="new">you can find right here</a>, and you’ll see that the Ohio State Buckeyes are ranked 7th in the conference as of week four.</p>
<p>Here is there analysis of the Buckeyes thus far:</p>
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<p>7. Ohio State (3-1) – True freshman Braxton Miller, the nation’s No. 2 ranked Class of 2011 quarterback, played poised football in his first career start. He threw two touchdown passes to Devin Smith, ran for 83 yards on 17 carries, didn’t turn the ball over and directed the Buckeye offense to a 37-17 win over Colorado. Tailbacks Jordan Hall and Carlos Hyde got in on the action as well as Ohio State rushed for 226 yards on 47 attempts. It was a key weekend of experience for Miller as <span class="caps">OSU</span> rebounded from its debacle in Coral Gables last weekend and is now preppped for fellow 2011 Big Ten co-champs Michigan State to come to town this weekend.</p>
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<p>The Buckeyes’ game against Michigan State should be one of the top matchups in the Big Ten this weekend.</p>
https://cleveland.sbnation.com/ohio-st-buckeyes/2011/9/27/2452886/ohio-state-ranked-7th-in-big-ten-power-rankings-by-athlon-sportsSayre Bedinger2011-09-25T17:45:46-05:002011-09-25T17:45:46-05:00LSU Takes Over Top Spot In AP Poll
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<p>The <span class="caps">LSU</span> Tigers have taken over the top spot in the Associated Press college football rankings, replacing the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-football/teams/oklahoma-sooners">Oklahoma Sooners</a>.</p>
<p>Alabama, Boise State and Oklahoma State round out the first five.</p>
<p>The Tigers won convincingly at West Virginia on Saturday while Oklahoma won a relatively close game at home, and that seems to be the catalyst for the change at the top.</p>
<p>Numbers 6-10 in the newest poll are Stanford, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Oregon and South Carolina.</p>
<p>The Buckeyes of Ohio State are still not in the Top 25, for the second week in a row. Other teams from the Big Ten besides the Badgers and the Cornhuskers are Michigan at 19th and Illinois at 24th.</p>
https://cleveland.sbnation.com/ohio-st-buckeyes/2011/9/25/2449090/ncaa-football-poll-9-25-lsu-takes-over-top-spot-in-ap-pollAncientMariner2011-09-24T18:23:40-05:002011-09-24T18:23:40-05:00Ohio State Rolls Over Colorado, Winning 37-17
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<p>The Ohio State Buckeyes rebounded from their loss against Miami very nicely as they hammered the Colorado Buffaloes at home 37-17 behind a nice performance by freshman Braxton Miller.</p>
<p>Miller had 78 yards rushing and 110 through the air with two passing touchdowns to wide receiver Devin Smith.</p>
<p>The Buckeyes established a solid ground game against Colorado with Jordan Hall who had 87 yards rushing and a touchdown.</p>
<p>This was a must-win game for the Buckeyes as they head into Big Ten play.</p>
https://cleveland.sbnation.com/ohio-st-buckeyes/2011/9/24/2447212/ohio-state-rolls-over-colorado-winning-37-17Sayre Bedinger2011-09-24T13:48:05-05:002011-09-24T13:48:05-05:00Ohio State Buckeyes Set to Take on Colorado Buffaloes in Braxton Miller's First Start
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<p>Ohio State is looking to rebound after a disappointing loss to the Miami Hurricanes last week in which pretty much every glaring weakness on the team was exposed.</p>
<p>Head coach Luke Fickell felt he had seen enough of senior quarterback Joe Bauserman and decided to hand the reins over to freshman playmaker Braxton Miller, who had a great Spring but has been underwhelming in three games thus far in 2011.</p>
<p>Miller is the first <span class="caps">OSU</span> freshman to start at quarterback since Terrelle Pryor in 2008, who had been the starting quarterback up until this season obviously.</p>
<p>I fully expect the Buckeyes to try and pound the ball right at Colorado, who is one of the weaker teams in the Pac 12. Miller is going to need to be eased into his starting role and the Buckeyes have a solid stable of backs to be able to establish a solid ground game with guys like Carlos Hyde and even Braxton Miller from the quarterback position.</p>
<p>It will be interesting to see if Miller and the Buckeyes can continue to incorporate breakout tight end Jake Stoneburner into the offensive game plan. Stoneburner has caught only eight passes this season, but four have gone for touchdowns.</p>
<p>This is a big game for the Buckeyes, who really need a win heading into Big Ten play. Check back during the game for more updates.</p>
https://cleveland.sbnation.com/ohio-st-buckeyes/2011/9/24/2446740/ohio-state-buckeyes-set-to-take-on-colorado-buffaloes-in-braxtonSayre Bedinger2011-09-22T14:31:36-05:002011-09-22T14:31:36-05:00Ohio State Buckeyes Turn QB Position Over to Freshman Braxton Miller
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<p>After losing their first game of the season to the Miami Hurricanes, the Ohio State Buckeyes have decided to see what they have in freshman Braxton Miller, a dual-threat quarterback who was one of the top high school players in the country this past season.</p>
<p>Joe Bauserman wasn’t turning the ball over a lot, but he had completed only 50 percent of his passes and Ohio State’s offense has clearly been struggling.</p>
<p>Miller, on the other hand, was 2 for 4 against the Hurricanes and had an interception and a lost fumble, so there’s really no excuse on his part either. This is simply a move made with the future of the program in mind.</p>
<p>Ohio State has not started a freshman at quarterback since Terrelle Pryor back in 2008, and the Colorado Buffaloes are a good opponent for Miller to get his first start against.</p>
<p>Miller looked solid in Spring practices and was 8 for 12 for 130 yards in the Buckeyes’ season opener where he played about half the snaps.</p>
https://cleveland.sbnation.com/ohio-st-buckeyes/2011/9/22/2442839/ohio-state-buckeyes-turn-qb-position-over-to-freshman-braxton-millerSayre Bedinger