Ferentz gets 4th Coach of the Year nod in Big Ten

Elliott, as expected, was also named to the all-Big Ten first team by both the coaches and media. So the Spartans have no problem saying what they seek, and it’s not some outdated abstract like validation or vindication. History is on Iowa’s side heading into the contest. Sparty and the Hawkeyes have a date in the Big Ten Championship game scheduled for Saturday night in Indianapolis. The Big Ten Championship Game is essentially an unofficial, but quite obvious, quarterfinal for the College Football Playoff. The conference no longer is viewed skeptically, not after Ohio State won it all last season and Iowa, Michigan State and Ohio State are 4-5-6 in the latest selection committee rankings.

“I wanted to look around just for a bit, see other schools, just because you don’t get this opportunity every day”, Jones said. This is when people started to question if Ohio State might be able to sneak into the playoff given this win. “We’ve been out to prove everyone wrong and really it’s about us and what we do”.

LB-Josey Jewell, Iowa; Darron Lee, Ohio State; Raekwon McMillan, Ohio State. Clemson faces the most straight forward road into the playoff needing only to beat the Tar Heels to get in.

And still, pundits across America want to discredit them.

Iowa and Michigan State have waged some epic battles the past few years. His 59 catches rank seventh best in the Big Ten this year. And so for the fourth time since arriving at Iowa in 1999, Kirk Ferentz is the Big Ten Coach of the Year.

“We didn’t make our schedule”.

The one complaint that most critics have had about Iowa is that they have not played a team that many would consider to be top tier.

Split sideways? Square in the gap?

The Spartans won the Rose Bowl two seasons ago, and followed up by executing a comeback for the ages to defeat Baylor in the Cotton Bowl.

Iowa is 3-3 against Michigan State in its last six meetings.

Leading by 10 going to halftime, 20-10, Michigan State took firm control of the game right out of the halftime break by driving right down the field on Penn State for an eight-play, 75-yard touchdown drive to build a 27-10 lead.

Let’s take a look at five things we learned about this team from the win over Penn State.

Click below to hear from quarterback C.J. Beathard, center Austin Blythe, offensive tackle Boone Myers, fullbacks Macon Plewa and Adam Cox, running back Jordan Canzeri, receiver Tevaun Smith and linebacker Cole Fisher. Both teams have used four backs.

Now they will have to start over with a new AD and a new football coach. And that shouldn’t stop fans of hard-nosed, smashmouth Big Ten football from tuning in either. “But more than the changes we’ve made, the changes the coaches have made, it’s been the changes in the player’s attitudes”.