Wildcats’ Wootton finds inspiration after injury

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg
EVANSTON, Ill. — Corey Wootton's pity party lasted all of five minutes on the Alamodome carpet. 
The Northwestern star defensive end had mangled his right knee late in the fourth quarter of the Alamo Bowl against Missouri. His instant self-diagnosis — a torn ACL — would turn out to be spot on, and Wootton went to the sideline in obvious…
Continue reading at ESPN.com – Big Ten – Blog

Spring Q&A: Northwestern’s Corey Wootton

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg
It was one of the more heart-wrenching moments of the Big Ten bowl season, a star player sprawled in pain after his right knee buckled on the Alamodome carpet.
Northwestern's Corey Wootton led a stingy defensive effort against heavy favorite Missouri in the Alamo Bowl, recording an interception and a sack against Chase Daniel. But the standout…
Continue reading at ESPN.com – Big Ten – Blog

Florida, Oklahoma odds on favorites for 2009

The Wiz spotted BodogLife’s updated odds for the college football season. Long story short… it looks like the Gators and Sooners are the early picks, followed by USC, Texas, and Ohio State.

Here’s the complete rundown:

Alabama 22/1
Arizona 100/1
Arizona State 150/1
Arkansas 150/1
Auburn 150/1
Boise State 100/1
Boston College 100/1
California 60/1
Cincinnati 90/1
Clemson 60/1
Colorado 100/1
Florida 7/4
Florida State 30/1
Georgia 50/1
Georgia Tech 50/1
Illinois 80/1
Iowa 75/1
Kansas 75/1
Kansas State 175/1
Kentucky 125/1
Louisville 150/1
LSU 20/1
Maryland 200/1
Miami 35/1
Michigan 120/1
Michigan State 100/1
Missouri 90/1
Nebraska 55/1
North Carolina 45/1
North Carolina State 100/1
Notre Dame 30/1
Ohio State 17/2
Oklahoma 5/1
Oklahoma State 50/1
Oregon 20/1
Oregon State 100/1
Penn State 35/1
Pittsburgh 60/1
Rutgers 125/1
South Carolina 100/1
South Florida 80/1
Tennessee 100/1
Texas 8/1
Texas A&M 150/1
Texas Tech 60/1
UCLA 150/1
Utah 125/1
USC 5/1
Virginia 100/1
Virginia Tech 20/1
Wake Forest 80/1
Washington 200/1
West Virginia 75/1
Wisconsin 100/1
Field (Any Other Team) 20/1

And remember… entertainment purposes only… of course.

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2009 Big Ten Football Must See Games of the Week

In the Big Ten, no one left the season satisfied. Each team is looking to 2009 for improvement and redemption. Let’s look at a week by week of the biggest games that could have the biggest impacts. Though I’ll agree with anyone who says it’s too early to make picks on the games, let’s throw that in too.

Week One

Illinois and Missouri were both teams with big dreams in 2008, yet both fell short…
Continue reading at Bleacher Report – Big Ten Football

2009 Big Ten Must See Games of the Week

In the Big Ten, no one left the season satisfied. Each team is looking to 2009 for improvement and redemption. Let’s look at a week by week of the biggest games that could have the biggest impacts. Though I’ll agree with anyone who says it’s too early to make picks on the games, let’s throw that in too.

 

Week One

Illinois and Missouri were both teams with big dreams in 2008, yet both…
Continue reading at Bleacher Report – Big Ten Football

Final Grades: A look back at the preseason AP poll

It’s time to pay the piper. Here’s a look back at the 2008 pre-season AP poll contrasted against the final 2008-2009 AP poll.

2008 AP College Football Poll Comparison – Preseason vs Final Poll

TEAM	FINAL RANKING	PRESEASON
Florida	1	5
Utah	2	NR
USC	3	3
Texas	4	11
Oklahoma	6	4
Alabama	6	NR
TCU	NR	NR
Penn State	8	22
Ohio State	9	2
Oregon	10	21
Boise State	11	NR
Texas Tech	12	12
Georgia	13	1
Ole Miss	14	NR
Virginia Tech	15	17
Oklahoma State	16	NR
Cincinnati	17	NR
Oregon State	18	22
Missouri	19	6
Iowa	20	NR
Florida State	21	NR
Georgia Tech	22	NR
West Virginia	23	8
Michigan State	24	NR
BYU	25	16

The big standout poll flops are Georgia (P-1 F-13), Ohio State (P-2 F-10), Missouri (P-6 F-19) and West Virgina (P-8 F-23). And — of course — the teams that never even made it to the final poll, including LSU, Clemson, Auburn and Wisconsin.

The Cinderella stories of Utah, TCU, Boise State, and Alabama surprised pollsters and fans alike. (Outside of Alabama, of course, who always expects the Tide to be #1… and they’re not afraid to tell you about it, as well. Still, I suspect there were more than a couple of surprised Bama fans out there this season when the Crimson Tide rose to the top of the polls.)

The biggest surprise for me was how many of the teams were actually ranked consistently from pre-season to final poll. That shocked me, actually. I have long advocated not doing any polls at all until the fourth week of the season, but there’s enough balance between the good & bad of the pre-season poll to suggest that *some* of the pollsters might actually put some thought into this whole thing.

What stands out to you and where do you stand on pre-season polls — sacrosanct or sacrelidge?

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Early schedule snapshot: Illinois

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

The book is closed on 2008, and as part of our look ahead at 2009, it's time to take a team-by-team look at the schedules. The analysis begins with Illinois, one of two teams without a fully finalized nonconference slate. This marks the final Big Ten season without a bye week, which returns for good in 2010. 

Here's what we know right now about the Illini:

NONCONFERENCE SCHEDULE

Sept. 5 Missouri (at St. Louis)
Sept. 12 Illinois State
Nov. 21 Fresno State
Nov. 28 TBA

My take: An Illinois spokesperson last week was unable to confirm a fourth nonconference game at Cincinnati on Nov. 28, but the two schools have been talking and could sign a contract soon. Should the Illini add the Bearcats, they would have a strong case for owning the Big Ten's toughest non-league slate. Missouri loses several key pieces (Chase Daniel, Jeremy Maclin, Chase Coffman) but always shows up to face the Illini, who haven't beaten the Tigers since 1994. A season-opening win would be huge for quarterback Juice Williams and Illinois, who don't have many sure things this fall.

BIG TEN SCHEDULE

Sept. 26 at Ohio State
Oct. 3 Penn State
Oct. 10 Michigan State
Oct. 17 at Indiana
Oct. 24 at Purdue
Oct. 31 Michigan
Nov. 7 at Minnesota
Nov. 14 Northwestern
Byes: Iowa, Wisconsin

My take: The start to league play is brutal, making a 2-0 start to non-league play all the more important for Illinois. The good news is that Illinois has won in Columbus, and an upset Sept. 26 could set the stage for a major push. Illinois' road schedule other than Ohio State isn't too bad, so if it can defend the turf at Memorial Stadium and pick up a marquee win or two, a solid season certainly is within reach. The Illini could be 1-3 when Michigan State comes to town, but a 3-1 start will set them up for some pretty big things. 

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Illini lose out on Wingo

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

Running back Ronnie Wingo announced today that he will play his college ball at Arkansas. 

Wingo selected the Razorbacks over Missouri and Illinois, which finished third in the running. He would have been a solid pickup for the Illini, who plucked another running back, Jason Ford, from the St. Louis area last season. Ford became a key contributor as a true freshman. 

Illinois has two other running backs committed — Bud Golden and Greg Fuller — for its 2009 class. 

Wingo was ranked as the nation's 34th-best running back by ESPN's Scouts Inc. 

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Jumping Ship: Who’s leaving early for the NFL?

The good folks at ESPN’s data center have the updates on which college football underclassmen are leaving school in search of huge bags of money a career in the NFL. Here’s the updated list, with a few notable talents highlighted.

Asher Allen CB 5-1 198 Georgia
Chris Baker DT 6-2 298 Hampton
Kenny Britt WR 6-4 215 Rutgers
Eben Britton OT 6-5½ 310 Arizona
Donald Brown RB 5-10 210 Connecticut
Everette Brown DE 6-4 252 Florida State
James Casey TE 6-4 245 Rice
Jeremy Childs WR 6-0 196 Boise State
Glen Coffee RB 6-1 198 Alabama
Austin Collie WR 6-2 206 BYU
Emanuel Cook S 5-10 203 South Carolina
Jared Cook TE 6-5 243 South Carolina
Michael Crabtree WR 6-3 214 Texas Tech
Andrew Davie TE 6-5 266 Arkansas
Nate Davis QB 6-1¾ 217 Ball State
Vontae Davis CB 5-11⅞ 203 Illinois
Josh Freeman QB 6-5½ 238 Kansas State
Shonn Green RB 5-10¾ 233 Iowa
Percy Harvin WR 5-10¾ 187 Florida
Darrius Heyward-Bey WR 6-1⅞ 203 Maryland
P.J. Hill RB 5-11 236 Wisconsin
Greg Isdaner OG 6-4 322 West Virginia
Ricky Jean-Francois DL 6-3 289 LSU
Paul Kruger DE 6-5 265 Utah
Jeremy Maclin WR 6-0 198 Missouri
Sen’Derrick Marks DT 6-0⅞ 289 Auburn
Aaron Maybin DE 6-3½ 250 Penn State
LeSean McCoy RB 5-11 205 Pittsburgh
Gerald McRath LB 6-3 220 Southern Miss
D.J. Moore CB 5-10 184 Vanderbilt
Knowshon Moreno RB 5-10¾ 207 Georgia
Captain Munnerlyn CB 5-9 185 South Carolina
Hakeem Nicks WR 6-1 215 North Carolina
Kevin Ogletree WR 6-2 189 Virginia
Jerraud Powers CB 5-9 191 Auburn
Mark Sanchez QB 6-2½ 225 USC
Andre Smith DT 6-4⅞ 341 Alabama
Sean Smith CB 6-2½ 212 Utah
Matthew Stafford QB 6-2½ 235 Georgia
Brandon Williams DE 6-5 246 Texas Tech
Chris “Beanie” Wells RB 6-1 235 Ohio State

Of course, it’s worth mentioning a few standout players who are not going pro this year:

Tim Tebow, QB, Florida
Sam Bradford, QB, Oklahoma
Colt McCoy, QB, Texas
Jermaine Gresham, TE, Oklahoma
Brandon Spikes, LB, Florida
C.J. Spiller, RB, Clemson
Greg Hardy, DE, Mississippi

Equally notable, FSU S Myron Rolle will leave the Noles, but isn’t going to the NFL… yet. Rolle accepted a Rhodes Scholarship and will study medical anthropology at Oxford. Rolle was expected to be a top 50 or better pick, but will instead look to enter the 2010 NFL draft.

The NFL Draft is scheduled for April 26th and 27th in New York City.

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Phillips pushes for Northwestern game at Wrigley

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

Quite possibly the toughest part of Jim Phillips' job is finding ways to boost attendance at Northwestern home football games.

Despite having the Big Ten's smallest stadium and a competitive team since 1995, Northwestern repeatedly struggles to fill Ryan Field and often needs fans of opposing teams to sell out its 47,130-seat venue. A small and scattered alumni base certainly contributes to Northwestern's quandary, but the university also hasn't effectively connected with Chicago sports fans who choose to spend their dollars elsewhere.

Phillips, the enterprising first-year athletic director at Northwestern, might have found one way to bridge the gap.

He wants to schedule a Big Ten game at Wrigley Field in the coming years, possibly against in-state rival Illinois.

"We are continuing a dialogue with Illinois," Phillips said. "Within the next month or so, we'll decide if it's something that can work. There are a lot of moving parts, but it's something I will pursue aggressively."

Illinois doesn't sound too jazzed about the idea right now, but that certainly could change when more details are ironed out. Obviously, the Illini don't want to lose a valuable home game, especially since they play Missouri every year at a neutral site (St. Louis).

For this to work, Northwestern likely will have to give up one of its home games. But think what the program could gain in the process.

Chicago sports fans would be excited to see football in Wrigley Field, which hosted the NFL's Bears until the end of the 1970 season before becoming almost exclusively a baseball venue.

The NHL's Winter Classic game on New Year's Day at Wrigley generated an insane amount of buzz in the city. Though November football doesn't have the novelty of an outdoor hockey game, it still could pique the interest of fans who otherwise would never attend a Northwestern home game. Perhaps after seeing a game at Wrigley, they would be more inclined to attend others in Evanston.

A game against Illinois makes sense for obvious reasons, but if the Illini are hesitant, Phillips should look elsewhere. Almost every Big Ten team has a sizable alumni base in Chicago and likely would love to play a historic game on the North Side of the city.

While AD at Northern Illinois, Phillips orchestrated a game against Iowa at Chicago's Soldier Field to kick off the 2007 season. I remember him saying at a news conference that his hand trembled while signing the contract for the game, which isn't cheap to rent out.

A game at Wrigley Field also could present some obstacles, but the payoff for Northwestern — capturing casual sports fans in Chicago — could be huge.

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