Sept. 26, 2006
Big Ten Play
Our football team travels to Penn State this weekend to open Big Ten play, and most of our fall teams have already started conference action. Our men's soccer team got off to a great start in Big Ten play with a win over Ohio State last week. It was our first win against Ohio State in 13 years. The team was ranked 14th in the country last week. Although our football team faces a great test at Penn State, we have played well against the Nittany Lions in recent years (2-1 in the last three meetings, with a narrow loss in the Big Ten opener for both teams last year). While our team has played well at times in our nonconference games, we must play more consistently, particularly on offense, in order to do well in the Big Ten.
Rule Changes
With the college football season now a third over, we have a better sense of the impact of the rule changes involving the starting of the clock (under the new rules, the clock starts sooner on kickoffs and change of possession). The changes have had the impact that the NCAA Rules Committee desired -- games are now shorter by 17 minutes and there are 14 fewer plays in the game. There has been an outcry from coaches, though, that the Rules Committee went too far. The new rules have forced coaches to adjust and to change their strategy at the end of the first half and game. I also think that many fans are concerned about the rule changes, because it makes it more difficult for teams to catch up at the end of the game. Don't be surprised if the Rules Committee doesn't go back to the old rules for the last minutes of each half, and possibly add a time warning (timeout) as is used in the NFL.
Walk With Us
We have established a new tradition at our home football games. Two and a half hours before game time, our team arrives at Ashland Avenue and walks down the newly named Walker Way to the south of Nicolet Football Center, through a tunnel of fans and band members. We've had great turnouts for our first two home games, and I encourage all of our fans to participate in this new tradition.