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2007 Big Ten Football Prospectus
April 17, 2007
Big Ten Football Prospectus Website Welcome Back: Returning to Big Ten fields in 2007 are 26 All-Conference players from last season, including 11 first-team honorees and 15 second-team selections. The first-team returnees are comprised of six offensive and five defensive standouts. The second-team picks include five players on offense, nine on defense and one kicker. In addition, 31 honorable mention honorees from last season also return to campus. ALL-BIG TEN FIRST-TEAM RETURNEES OFFENSE Adam Kraus, SR, OG, MICH (Media only) Jake Long, SR, OT, MICH Mario Manningham, JR, WR, MICH (Coach only) Dorien Bryant, SR, WR, PUR (Media only) P.J. Hill, SO, RB, WIS (Media only) DEFENSE Malcolm Jenkins, JR, DB, OSU James Laurinaitis, JR, LB, OSU Anthony Scirrotto, JR, DB, PSU (Media only) Jack Ikegwuonu, JR, DB, WIS (Coaches only) ALL-BIG TEN SECOND-TEAM RETURNEES OFFENSE Chad Henne, SR, QB, MICH Kirk Barton, SR, OT, OSU (Media only) Jordan Grimes, SR, OG, PUR (Media only) Travis Beckum, JR, TE, WIS (Media only) DEFENSE Mike Klinkenborg, SR, LB, IOWA (Media only) Jamar Adams, SR, DB, MICH (Coaches only) Shawn Crable, SR, LB, MICH (Coaches only) Willie VanDeSteeg, SR, DL, MINN (Media only) Vernon Gholston, JR, DL, OSU Dan Connor, SR, LB, PSU Justin King, JR, DB, PSU (Coaches only) Matt Shaughnessy, JR, DL, WIS SPECIAL TEAMS Familiar Faces in Starting Lineup: Nine of the Big Ten's 11 teams return more than half of their starters from a season ago, with Illinois and Purdue leading the way with an impressive 20 of 24 starters back on the field in 2007. The Illini and Boilermakers bring back nine starters on both offense and defense along with their kickers and punters. Wisconsin, which ranks third among all teams with 19 returning starters, tops all Big Ten programs with 10 starters back on offense, including a pair of players who shared starts at tight end. Illinois' and Purdue's nine returning offensive starters rank second followed by eight returning offensive starters for Indiana and Penn State. On the defensive side of the ball, Minnesota joins Illinois and Purdue with a Big Ten-leading nine starters back on the field in 2007. Indiana, Iowa and Northwestern all return eight defensive starters. The breakdown of starters returning and lost appears on the PDF version of the prospectus. Big Ten Winning Streaks: Wisconsin enters the 2007 campaign with the third-longest winning streak among all schools after the Badgers concluded last season with nine straight triumphs, including a Capital One Bowl victory. Boise State concluded the year on a 13-game winning streak while Brigham Young ranks second with 10 straight triumphs. The Badgers nine-game winning streak is the longest for the program since opening at 9-0 in 2004. Ohio State entered last year's bowl season with 19 consecutive victories before falling to Florida in the BCS National Championship Game, the Buckeyes' first defeat since losing to Penn State on Oct. 8, 2005. OSU's 19-game string of success marked the longest winning streak for the program since claiming 19 straight victories during the 2002 and 2003 seasons, including a perfect 14-0 mark and a national championship in 2002. Michigan holds the Big Ten record with a 29-game winning streak from 1901-03. Ohio State enters the 2007 season with a 14-game winning streak in Big Ten matchups, the school's longest string of in-conference success since winning 15 in a row from 1979-80. OSU set a school record by winning 17 straight Big Ten games on three different occasions, most recently from 1974-76. Michigan is the only team to win more consecutive conference games, setting the all-time record with 19 straight victories from 1990-92. Big Ten Record Chasers for 2007: A pair of Big Ten players have already cracked the conference's career top 10 with one season left on campus. Michigan quarterback Chad Henne ended his junior campaign tied for sixth with 70 touchdown passes while also appearing among the top 10 in passing attempts (10th with 1,109) and just outside the top 10 in yards (7,777) and completions (666). Purdue's Drew Brees holds the career records in all four passing categories with 90 touchdowns, 1,678 attempts, 1,026 completions and 11,792 yards from 1997-2000. On the receiving end, Purdue wideout Dorien Bryant has hauled in 205 passes to rank sixth on the Big Ten career chart. A pair of Boilermakers stand atop the career receptions list in Taylor Stubblefield (325 from 2001-04) and John Standeford (266 from 2000-03). Hill Comes Back for Seconds: Wisconsin running back P.J. Hill returns to the field in 2007 after becoming just the seventh freshman in NCAA history and the second first-year player in Big Ten annals to collect more than 1,500 rushing yards in his first season on campus. Hill wrapped his freshman campaign with a conference-best 1,569 yards and 15 rushing touchdowns to join fellow-Badger and former Heisman Trophy winner Ron Dayne as the second Big Ten freshman to crack the 1,500-yard mark. Dayne set a national freshman record with 1,863 rushing yards in 1996 before boosting those numbers to the Big Ten record of 2,109 yards after bowl play (note: the NCAA did not count bowl game statistics for national records prior to 2002). The other first-year players to post 1,500 or more yards on the ground include Oklahoma's Adrian Peterson (1,925 yards in 2004), North Texas' Jamario Thomas (1,801 in 2004), Nevada's Chance Kretschmer (1,732 in 2001 before bowl play), Georgia's Herschel Walker (1,616 in 1980 before bowl play) and Pittsburgh's Tony Dorsett (1,586 in 1973 before bowl play). Other Returning Young Guns: Hill was one of six Big Ten players in their first or second years on campus to rank first in conference statistical categories last season. Sophomore quarterback Curtis Painter of Purdue topped the Big Ten in passing yards and total offense per contest in both all games and conference games only. In all games, sophomore kicker Kevin Kelly of Penn State equaled Hill for the conference lead in scoring while leading the way in field goals per game as well. Other youthful leader in all game categories included Nittany Lion's sophomore Anthony Scirrotto in total interceptions and Indiana sophomore Marcus Thigpen in average yards per kickoff return. In conference games only, Hoosiers' sophomore James Hardy topped all players in receiving yards per outing. Big Ten Welcomes Two New Coaches: The Big Ten will feature two new head coaches in 2006 in Michigan State's Mark Dantonio and Minnesota's Tim Brewster. Dantonio joins the Spartans after serving as the head coach at Cincinnati for the past three seasons where he built an 18-17 record. He became the first head coach in 23 years to guide Cincinnati to a winning campaign in his first season on campus, producing a 7-5 mark in 2004 which including a win in the Fort Worth Bowl. Dantonio returned to bowl play last season, leading the school to another 7-5 mark and the International Bowl. Prior to joining the Bearcats, Dantonio served as the defensive coordinator at Ohio State for three seasons (2001-03), winning a national championship in 2002. He also spent six years (1995-2000) serving as Michigan State's secondary coach, including associate head coach duties in 2000, after stints as an assistant coach at Kansas, Youngstown State and Akron. Brewster became the Gophers' head coach after spending the past two seasons as tight ends coach for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He returns to college football after spending five seasons in the NFL, including coaching tight ends at San Diego from 2002-04. Prior to tutoring pros, the 21-year coaching veteran also served as an assistant coach on the college level with Texas (1998-2001), North Carolina (1989-97) and Purdue (1986). A former two-time All-Big Ten selection at Illinois, Brewster captained the Illini to the 1984 Rose Bowl against UCLA. Dantonio will begin his Michigan State tenure with a home game against UAB on Sept. 1 while Brewster will serve as a head coach for the first time on the same day at home against Bowling Green. Paterno and Carr in Big Ten Century Club: Penn State's Joe Paterno and Michigan's Lloyd Carr passed a pair of coaches last season to move up to ninth and tenth, respectively, on the list of coaches with 100 or more wins at a Big Ten school. Paterno has built a record of 116-54 since the Nittany Lions joined the conference in 1993 while Carr has produced a mark of 113-36 in his 12 seasons leading the Wolverines. Both coaches moved ahead of Michigan State's Duffy Daugherty (109 wins from 1954-72) and Ohio State's John Cooper (111 wins from 1998-2000) on the century club list in 2006. Next on the chart is current Wisconsin Director of Athletics Barry Alvarez, who wrapped up his 16-year coaching tenure in Madison following the 2005 campaign with 118 wins. The complete list of coaches in the Big Ten century club appears on the PDF version of the prospectus. Big Ten Mentors Near Coaching Landmarks: Five Big Ten coaches are on the verge of coaching landmarks. In his seventh season in Columbus and 22nd year as a head coach, Ohio State's Jim Tressel is aiming for his 200th career victory after producing a mark of 197-71-2 with the Buckeyes and Youngstown State. Michigan's Lloyd Carr, who boasts a career mark of 113-36 in 12 years in Ann Arbor, will serve as a head coach in his 150th game in the season opener against Appalachian State. He will also coach in his 100th Big Ten game this year after ending the 2006 campaign with a conference record of 75-21. Purdue's Joe Tiller, with a career mark of 114-79-1, will serve as the head coach in his 200th game on Oct. 6 against Ohio State. Two Big Ten mentors are nearing the century mark, as Iowa's Kirk Ferentz has coached in 98 games in his first eight seasons with the Hawkeyes while Indiana's Terry Hoeppner has been the head coach in 96 contests during his eight-year tenure with the Hoosiers and Miami (Ohio). Spreading the Love: Parity has reigned over the Big Ten landscape for the last decade (1997-2006) with eight different teams winning the conference title either outright or as a co-champion: Illinois ('01), Iowa (`02, '04), Michigan (`97, `98, `00, '03, '04), Northwestern (`00), Ohio State (`98, `02, '05, '06), Penn State ('05), Purdue (`00) and Wisconsin (`98, `99). The title has been shared by at least two teams five times in this span, with a pair of three-team ties in 1998 and 2000 and two teams atop the standings in 2002, 2004 and 2005. Breaking Down the 2007 Schedule: The 2007 Big Ten non-conference schedule features 12 games against 2006-07 bowl opponents, as nine of the 11 conference programs will face at least one bowl team. Iowa, Michigan and Purdue all will be challenged by a pair of bowl teams. The Hawkeyes open and close non-conference action with bowl teams from the Mid-American Conference, including Northern Illinois (Poinsettia) in the season opener and Western Michigan (International)) in the finale. The Wolverines will host bowl opponents in back-to-back weeks, welcoming Oregon (Las Vegas) on Sept. 8 before taking on Notre Dame (Sugar) on Sept. 15. The Boilermakers will also host the Fighting Irish on Sept. 29 after taking on Central Michigan (Motor City) on Sept. 15. Notre Dame will also play games against Penn State on Sept. 8 and Michigan State on Sept. 22. Other Big Ten squads challenging bowl teams in non-conference action including Illinois battling Missouri (Sun) in St. Louis, Indiana facing a road test at Western Michigan, Northwestern hosting Nevada (MPC Computers) and Wisconsin squaring off against Northern Illinois. No Plays for 2007: Each year, two Big Ten teams do not meet. Here is the breakdown of "no-plays" for 2007: Team -- Does not play
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