It has been a very long time coming for Michigan, Penn State


Typically, you don’t keep in mind how lengthy it has been till the streak ends.

Take the Indiana Hoosiers, for instance. They hadn’t overwhelmed Michigan soccer since 1987 — a span of 24 video games over 33 years. Overlook speaking about streaks being “sufficiently old to vote” or “sufficiently old to drink,” this one was practically sufficiently old — two years shy — to run for President of america of America. (Although, properly, profitable in Michigan seems to be a key a part of success in that, as we had been reminded this week.)

Or the Maryland Terrapins. They’d solely gone 5 years since beating Penn State in soccer, which isn’t that lengthy. However earlier than that win in 2014, the Terps’ first season within the Massive Ten? You must return to 1961 — the 12 months John F. Kennedy was inaugurated. And earlier than that? Nicely, Maryland was 2-40-1 all time towards the Nittany Lions, courting again to 1917. (Even that lone tie got here in 1989, which is veering into run-for-president territory itself).

[ Mitch Albom: Three games in, Michigan’s horse has yet to leave the post ]

Michigan Wolverines security Brad Hawkins lays on the sphere after breaking apart a play in the course of the second quarter towards the Indiana Hoosiers at Memorial Stadium on Nov. 7, 2020 in Bloomington, Ind.

Maryland’s losses weren’t even that shut — Penn State’s common margin of victory, when you strip out the one-point win in ’14 and the four-pointer in ’61, was roughly 23 factors. That features a 63-point beating in 1993, the 12 months Penn State joined the Massive Ten and the sequence went dormant for 21 years, and a 59-point beating simply final season. Michigan hadn’t been a lot kinder to Indiana, profitable by practically 19 factors a recreation, both.

However there they had been Saturday, strolling victoriously off the sphere; Maryland by 16 factors and Indiana by 17. (Oh, and the final time the Hoosiers beat the Wolverines by two scores, a lot much less three? 1959 — Eisenhower, child!)

[ Forget Ohio State. Michigan football now lags behind Indiana, too ]

All of that is chilly consolation for followers of the Nittany Lions and the Wolverines, after all. Odds are, the Terps and Hoosiers dropped off your rivalry radar across the time the “Ten” in “Massive Ten” turned figurative reasonably than literal.

However they remembered, as a result of shedding streaks linger longer than wins. And we remembered, as a result of, properly, we’re the Distress Index; it’s what we’re right here for.

The most important disgrace is Indiana and Maryland followers didn’t get their time-honored payoff of a great ol’-fashioned field-rush. (Solely one group within the state of Indiana had that means on Saturday, and we’ll see how that seems in a pair weeks.)

However hey, perhaps the Hoosiers and Terps could make it two in a row subsequent 12 months, and have fun twice as onerous.

Till then, nonetheless, we’ll run by the distress index, from least depressing to most:

2020 Big Ten football standings: Where everyone stacks up ]

14. Maryland: W, 35-19, over Penn State

Document: 2-1. Final week: 12.

Maryland’s Taulia Tagovailoa passes towards Penn State.

QB Taulia Tagovailoa’s switch from Alabama has labored out so properly — 58-for-86, 770 yards and 6 touchdowns in three video games — that coach Mike Locksley needs to be providing scholarships to each Tagovailoa member of the family he can discover, whether or not they’ve performed soccer or not.

READ: The one Massive Ten rating that places Jim Harbaugh behind Mike Locksley

13. Indiana: W, 38-21, over Michigan

Document: 3-0. Final week: 11.

Wanting on the massive image, we don’t know why everybody’s so excited concerning the Hoosiers being undefeated in November – they used to do it on a regular basis below Bobby Knight.

12. Ohio State: W, 49-27, over Rutgers

Document: 3-0. Final week: 13.

We’ll transfer them down a spot for permitting 27 factors to the Scarlet Knights, with most of these coming after OSU was up 35-3 and ex-OSU DC Greg Schiano emptied the trick-play part of the playbook. (Good for him for not saving these for a extra winnable recreation; that is Rutgers soccer, in any case, and there might not be any extra of these this season.) The stat that issues for the Buckeyes: 4 incompletions, by QB Justin Fields (24-for-28, 314 yards, 5 TDs) , bringing him to 11 on the season. In three video games.

MISERY INDEX FLASHBACKS

WEEK 1: Changing Rutgers because the butt of our jokes

WEEK 2: A brand new kind of contagion hits Michigan soccer

11. Northwestern: W, 21-13, over Nebraska

Document: 3-0. Final week: 10.

The Wildcats have but to permit some extent within the second half this season, which makes their very own 34 second-half factors much more palatable. Then once more, 3-0 is 3-0, and it’s their first time opening convention play with three straight wins since 2000.

10. Iowa: W, 49-7, over Michigan State

Document: 1-2. Final week: 5.

The win was Kirk Ferentz’s 163rd at Iowa, breaking a tie with Penn State’s Joe Paterno for fourth place all-time amongst Massive Ten coaches and trailing solely Amos Alonzo Stagg (232), Woody Hayes (205) and Bo Schembechler (194). Simply 32 wins to go Schembechler, by the way in which, so mark your calendar for 2025.

9. Minnesota: W, 41-14, over Illinois

Document: 1-2. Final week: 2.

Overlook “Row the Boat” — P.J. Fleck can “Mo the Boat” this 12 months, with working again Mohamed Ibrahim placing up back-to-back 200-yard, four-TD video games towards Maryland and Illinois. The Gophers even managed to win a type of video games. (And sure, we already remorse giving Fleck the concept.)

8. Purdue: DNP

Document: 2-0. Final week: 9.

Purdue? Extra like Pur-don’t, am I proper? (We’re sorry. We had one other Perdue joke lined up, but it surely’s in a runoff in Georgia that received’t be determined till January. As a substitute, we’ll use this house to remind everybody, after some emails from West Lafayette, that the Boilermaker Particular prepare is Purdue’s official mascot, Purdue Pete is simply an oddly buff bystander with an curiosity in development tools and a Boilermaker is a drink all of us want after this election week.)

7. Michigan State: L, 49-7, to Iowa

Document: 1-2. Final week: 14.

Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz (heart) and Michigan State coach Mel Tucker (proper) discuss with an official earlier than the sport on Saturday, Nov. 7, 2020, in Iowa Metropolis, Iowa.

Dropping by 42 — the most important loss for the Spartans within the historical past of a sequence that dates again to MSU’s addition to the Massive Ten in 1953 — to a beforehand winless group ought to damage extra, however properly, c’mon, the Spartans beat the Wolverines final week. Additionally, did we point out that Michigan misplaced once more? And to Indiana?

[ Letdown from U-M game was real in every facet ]

6. Wisconsin: DNP

Document: 1-0. Final week: 8.

COVID-19 claimed its second Badgers recreation, leaving Wisconsin (which is scheduled to play Michigan on Saturday) greater than a bit of frightened about its path to the Massive Ten championship recreation; league guidelines require a minimum of six video games performed to qualify. Nonetheless, the Badgers entered the weekend ranked eleventh within the AMWAY Coaches Ballot and tenth within the AP ballot, which is a little bit of a change: Normally the one-win group with unlikely CFP aspirations is coached by Jim Harbaugh, not on the point of face him.

5. Nebraska: L, 21-13, to Northwestern

Document: 0-3. Final week: 3.

Nebraska quarterback Luke McCaffrey is tackled by Northwestern’s Blake Gallagher.

If you happen to thought in June that QB Luke McCaffrey, brother of NFL star Christian and U-M switch Dylan, would see vital time in Scott Frost’s offense when he had Adrian Martinez returning, give your self a hand. If you happen to thought McCaffrey (147 passing, 129 speeding) would have essentially the most 2020 yards within the McCaffrey household by Nov. 7, forward of Christian (156 speeding, 67 receiving) and Dylan (0 as he opted out/waits to switch), cease studying this, Luke McCaffrey.

4. Rutgers: L, 49-27, to Ohio State

Document: 1-2. Final week: 4

Saturday was the Scarlet Knights’ seventh recreation towards OSU since becoming a member of the Massive Ten in 2014. They’ve misplaced all seven, with shedding margins of (from least to most up-to-date): 39, 42, 58, 56, 49, 35 and 22. Which is to say: You recognize these motion pictures the place the principle character strikes to a brand new city/college/nation after a nasty relationship and learns to reside/chortle/love once more? Let’s ship Rutgers to the MAC, or a minimum of the Massive Ten West, for a pair years. It’d be like that.

3. Illinois: L, 41-14, to Minnesota

Document: 0-3. Final week: 7.

Illinois coach Lovie Smith (R) appears on from the sideline in the course of the first half towards Minnesota at Memorial Stadium in Champaign.

We’re not placing the Illini’s 2020 woes fully on Lovie Smith shaving his beard again in Could, however on Saturday, that they had their fourth-string QB try a go six or so yards past the road of scrimmage (poor Coran Taylor completed 6-for-17 passing and banged up his throwing hand whereas doing so), ran a third-and-goal play from the 48-yard-line (shocker: they didn’t convert) and dedicated 12 penalties for 120 yards. Additionally, Smith spent the entire recreation rocking some kind of clear plastic hybrid face defend/masks. Someone, please conceal his razor.

2. Michigan: L, 38-21, to Indiana

Document: 1-2. Final week: 1.

Hey, you rent a man to carry again “The Days of Bo,” you need to be extra particular about which days you imply.

Jim Harbaugh reacts in the direction of an official after a name in the course of the second half vs. Indiana.

1. Penn State: L, 35-19, to Maryland

Document: 0-3. Final week: 6.

The Nittany Lions had been down 21-0 simply over 18 minutes in, and 28-7 on the half, which isn’t what the whole nation meant when speaking about issues with mailing it in in Pennsylvania. However hey, perhaps they’ll flip up some further touchdowns in Allegheny County a pair days from now.

Contact Ryan Ford at rford@freepress.com. Comply with him on Twitter @theford

This text initially appeared on Detroit Free Press: Massive Ten soccer distress index: An extended anticipate Michigan, Penn State





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