Soxbadger

2 solid games, just have to keep winning and hope that the Twins lose some time.

Must have thought there were 2 outs.

You get what you ask for sir: JUST A SMALL TOWN GIRL!

A smell of wine and cheap perfume.

Some people are speculating when the Big 10 goes to 9 game season in 2015 that Iowa-Wisconsin may become a second protected rivalry. Hard to tell but I think the simple fix here was Minnesota in Wisconsin's division with Iowa as protected rival.

The team with the biggest gripe is Wisconsin so of course im part of the group that is displeased. Every day of the week Id trade with Iowa to be in UM/Nebraska's division, I dont care how great Michigan was, they aint what they used to be. And when push comes to shove Id say OSU is going to stay stronger than them in the future. Nebraska v PSU is a toss up. Nebraska hasnt been great for a while and while they have been solid, theyve been in the weaker Big 12 North. Im not just going to say they are better than Iowa/PSU/Wisconsin until they actually play Big 10 games. PSU has the aging Paterno, so its hard to tell what will happen when he eventually retires. Basically Wisconsin was put in the tougher division, lost one of its biggest rivals Iowa and did not even get the Nebraska rivalry they asked for. For the screw job Wisconsin gets to play Nebraska in Madison for Nebraska's first Big 10 game. Im sure most Wisconsin fans would have been much happier with just a small change, something like Minnesota being in the same division as Wisconsin therefore Iowa became the protected rivalry. But Wisconsin basically got nothing they wanted.

Depends on what the Sox priorities are. Do they care more about 2-3 years from now, or do they care more about winning next year. Ideally they can get solid vets for the bullpen and Sale could start in the minors. But who knows what will happen.

I guess I would prefer none of the Sox players "break down". If the Sox have 5 great starters next year Sale could really help the pen. Otherwise expect sale to be in the minors.

Two threads are better than one.

Sale may be a reliever in the future. With his mechanics you could risk an injury like Strasburg if he is pitching 100+ pitches. Conversely as a reliever you may get 10+ years of success. I think the Sox are going to have to make a difficult decision.

Its hard to say what Nebraska will be in the Big 10. Theyve been playing the crappy Big 12 North for years racking up wins. I think that you can easily argue PSU, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Iowa are all on similar levels and any given season one could be better than the other. The problem is Michigan. They were good, but they arent right now. Its easy to say that they will get better, but who knows, the Michigan basketball team has never recovered. And the UM/OSU game matters to those fanbases. I think OSU fans would enjoy beating Michigan 100-0 and would want to make sure they get the chance to pound them each year. And I dont think that Purdue or MSU are on the same level as Iowa/Wisconsin. When the Big 10 started talking divisions, they separated UM, OSU, PSU, Nebraska, Iowa and Wisconsin as the top teams. Which is why they are all split.

The reason I say that is because Illinois has the most potential (imo) compared to MSU, Purdue and Minnesota is that they have a much stronger potential recruiting base. Just because they havent put it together, doesnt mean that they couldnt. I agree that NU has been better than Illinois since 1993, but Minnesota, Purdue and MSU are generally going to the lower level bowl games. Illinois on the other hand is more boom or bust, either going to a good game, or nothing. I guess I just dont really think any of them stand out so much that it really matters how they were split. Id rather be in the same division as MSU, Purdue or Minnesota, then IL/NU, but thats just me.

Illinois is an inconsistent program. But so are the other programs listed. I dont know how many times Minnesota, MSU or Purdue have gone to bowl games, but I just have always felt Illinois is a more dangerous program. Im not sure about Nebraska. I predict them to be in the Wisconsin/Iowa mold, solid team every year. I guess you can put PSU in that area as well. The big problem is Michigan. If you consider Nebraska, PSU, Wisconsin, Iowa to all be similar, with OSU being the class of the conference, it would stand to reason that there would only be 2 of those 5 teams in OSU's division, and the other 3 would then offset the fact that OSU is generally the better team. From where Im sitting I say a split of Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin in Division 1 and UM, PSU and OSU in Division 2, makes a lot more sense. Even replacing PSU with Iowa/Wisconsin would be far more fair. Based on this years rankings you have: OSU #2, Wisconsin #12 and PSU #19 in one division. Nebraska #8, Iowa #9 in the other division. I just think it would make more sense to have Iowa, Nebraska, Wisconsin in the same division because each year 1 of those 3 teams may be good enough to take on OSU. And OSU's division would still be strong because itd have PSU and Michigan. (Edit) Yah NU has been a thorn in the side for some programs, but I dont think your really concerned about the middle range teams when youre making these alignments.

Eh Minnesota, NU and Michigan State arent exactly world beaters. Indiana is probably the worst team in the Big 10. Illinois is a hit or miss team, they went to the Rose Bowl a few years ago, which is more than a team like Minnesota or MSU can say. Purdue has been solid in the past. Id say Indiana is the worst, but on any given year NU, Illinois, Minnesota, MSU could be the 2nd worst. Honestly I consider Illinois to be the team with the highest upside of that group (long term). That being said, its more about the top teams in the conference. I dont expect Iowa to lose to Minnesota, NU or MSU on a consistent basis. And Id much rather face those 2 teams than having to face PSU/OSU instead of UM/Nebraska. Most Wisconsin sites are reporting that Iowa and Wisconsin were considered equals. Im just not sure how Nebraska= PSU and UM= OSU. Geography must have played a role, because the more logical split would have been PSU/OSU as the 1/2 split. And this isnt about right now, its about since 1993. And since 1993, I believe NU/Illinois have more Big 10 titles and more Rose Bowl appearances then MSU and Purdue.

Early results on ESPN poll have fans saying Division II is stronger by a 2 to 1 margin. Only states that say Division 1 is stronger, Iowa, Michigan, Nebraska and North Dakota. What a joke.

Im sure Michigan loves it. They arent what they used to be. The teams who are going to be the most upset are PSU, OSU and Wisconsin. As I believe that division is far stronger.

So from everything im reading tonight the Big 10 will announce divisions split as follows: - Michigan, Nebraska, Iowa, Michigan State, Northwestern and Minnesota. - Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin, Purdue, Indiana and Illinois. Or as I will refer to them: Man's League: Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin, Purdue, Indiana and Illinois. Juniors: -Michigan, Nebraska, Iowa, Michigan State, Northwestern and Minnesota. Not sure why this is a competitive split. Outside of Iowa, the Juniors have to rely on Michigan becoming relevant again and Nebraska being as good as Wisconsin/PSU on a consistent basis. If it was me, I would have figured out the top 6 programs, and then split them. OSU is clearly #1, after that its murky but I think the next 3 are PSU, Iowa and Wisconsin (in no order). You then put Michigan and Nebraska in opposite divisions and youve got a good mix. Oh well I guess the road to the Big 10 Championship goes through Columbus. Fortunately Wisconsin has done better against OSU than most teams, but I have a feeling that most PSU, OSU and Wisconsin fans are going to be displeased with the split. Where as I expect Iowa, Nebraska fans are counting down the days.

For those of us at work, what is going on?

Teams try and run Wisconsin out of the gym every year. They gave up over 70 points in regulation 3 times last year. Against Purdue (60 and 66), OSU (43 and 61), MSU (54 and 49) and Illinois (58, 57 and 63). Like you said yourself they will run a typical Bo Ryan system. A system that does not allow teams to run them out of the gym. They are going to play slow and methodical and frustrate teams and players who want to run and are unwilling to match them in a half court game. It would be more convincing if you said that all of those teams had dynamic shooters and were going to have improved half court games to combat Wisconsin's style. This is just my annual, Wisconsin will be better than what everyone has predicted. im sure that if you go in the past NCAA threads youll see similar posts of mine that came true more often than not. Im not predicting Big 10 champ, just 4th place. Wisconsin is one of the most consistent teams in the Big 10. I know that I am obviously biased, but they do it every year. Just saying theyd be the 4th best isnt going to far out on a limb here. MSU lost Raymar Morgan who I always thought was one of their most talented, although inconsistent, players. Kalin Lucas is a solid player and Summers should shoot but I just think that they are going to be a team that splits with the better teams in Big 10 play. MSU does better in tournaments because of their style of play. They like to run but are forced to play a lot of half court games in Big 10 play. When they get to the tournament they are able to both run and play half court. Add to that the focus on defense and rebounding (ie hustle) they make a lot of their own luck. I respect them, I just think that they will split with Wisconsin. Wisconsin has a ridiculous record at home for whatever reason and it makes them finish higher in the standings.

So your saying relying on Soph and Frosh arent young guys? Im perplexed. When your relying on multiple Soph/Frosh to be contributors, I consider that relying on a lot of young guys. If they had 5 starters who were Seniors/Juniors, it wouldnt be relying on young guys. As for which 4 Wisconsin will be better than? Who knows, they could be better than MSU and Illinois, possibly even Purdue. They could be worse than all 3 too, I havent seen a game yet so its hard for me to try and guess at other teams at this point. Im just saying that when you look at the schedule and look at what Wisconsin has done under Bo Ryan, they have never finished worse than 4th. I personally feel they have one of their stronger teams this year, they will have a starting line up with only guys who have been in the program 3+ years. The question is why do people think Purdue, MSU and OSU are so much better than Wisconsin? Wisconsin split with each of them last year. They almost (not that it counts) beat Purdue 2x one of them without Leur. Purdue and MSU did not get significantly better, so is it just name recognition?

Thank you Edwin for getting my back.

EDWIN JACKSON!

Cant blame Jackson, asking a guy to go 120+ pitches and he gets you to 1 strike away from a 1 run game

Cant blame Jackson, asking a guy to go 120+ pitches and he gets you to 1 strike away from a 1 run shut out

Higher than high fastball ks marte here