PGWU Heisman Watch: Week 8

We had some great showings on Saturday and others weren’t.  Deanrd Robinson and Taylor Martinez fell to the back of the line after last weeks performances.  Terrelle Pryor failed to follow up a great pasing game against Indiana with a horrible game vs the Badgers.  Kellen Moore and Cam Newton continue to win and put up ridiculous stats.  Here is the top 5 for week 8:

5th Justin Blackmon WR Oklahoma State Cowboys  He leads the nation in most major categories for receiving and is a major reason behind his Cowboys being 6-0 with a big time battle against Nebraska this week.  He will be matched up with stud CB Prince Amukamara for the Huskers.  If he has a big game here, he will climb on this list.

4th DeMarco Murray RB Oklahoma Sooners   The All-Time leader in Touchdowns for the Oklahoma Sooners keeps getting it done every week.  He padded his stats against a weak Iowa State team last week, but he will have a national spotlight on Saturday night when his Sooners head to Mizzou for a battle with the Tigers.

3rd LaMichael James RB Oregon Ducks  He dropped a spot after the bye week, but LaMichael still has a great shot to hoist the trophy in December.  Look for him to have a huge game against the Bruins this Thursday night.

2nd Kellen Moore QB Boise State Broncos 14-16 fro 231 yards and 2 TD, and that is just in the half he played.  His stats would be twice as impressive if he played in the 2nd half of any games this year.  The fact that he plays a weak schedule in the WAC is what bothers me about him.

1st Cameron Newton QB Auburn Tigers His performance in the shootout against the Razorbacks was incredible.  He added another 4 TD’s to his tally this season and almost rushed for 200 yards.  He has the Tigers up to number 5 in both polls and 4th in the BCS rankings.  He finds a way to get it done every week.

Big 10 Report: Week 8

Overview: 

 Two big things were lost this weekend; Ohio State’s #1 ranking and Tim Brewster’s job.  You cannot talk about this past weekend’s games without mentioning the big win by the Wisconsin Badgers as they upset the #1 Buckeyes.  Wisconsin played their game and won because they were able to establish a running game.  John Clay and James White were a great 1-2 punch as they put up 184 rushing yards and 3 touchdowns.  The loss by the Buckeyes put a serious dent in their National Title hopes, now they must keep winning and hope that other teams lose.  Terrelle Pryor regressed as a passer and threw more than a handful of balls in the ground.  Not all is lost for Ohio State so they need to regain focus and play well.  Lost in upset talk was the nice performance by the unbeaten Michigan State Spartans.  I felt that this could possibly be a trap game for the Spartans but they came out and played their game.  They have a few tough games coming up including at Iowa and at Penn State.

Iowa also took care of business this weekend knocking off the Michigan Wolverines.  It appears that the Big 10 has as many as 4 teams battling for the title; those teams include Michigan State, Ohio State, Wisconsin, and Iowa.

You have to think this might be the start of the slide for Michigan as they have not lost 2 games in a row.  It is obvious that Michigan is struggling with the bigger stronger teams of the Big 10, compared to the different style teams they played early in the season.

Standout Players:  

Over at NFLMocks.com we looked at the performance of Gabe Carimi and I think he is worth mentioning here as a stand out player.  He had a tough match-up against Cameron Heyward but he held his own in pass protection and also opened up several big holes for the running backs.  I was really impressed with the way he got to the second level.  You also have to mention another Wisconsin player in JJ Watt as he was all over the field.  He was constantly in the backfield putting pressure on Pryor while holding strong against the run.  Finally, I want to point out the game by Iowa’s Adam Robinson who carried the ball 34 times for 143 yards and 2 touchdowns.  Robinson is going to be one of the most important pieces to Iowa’s Big 10 championship hopes.

Looking Ahead:

There is really only one game that will get a lot of attention and that is the match-up of Wisconsin @ Iowa.  This game could very well knock the loser out of title contention.  The key to the game is on the front lines as the Wisconsin offensive line looks to get a push against the impressive Iowa defensive front.  A nice head to head match-up to keep an eye on is Gabe Carimi vs Adrian Clayborn.

Written by Jon Dove.  Follow him on Twitter @NFLMocks.

Week 6 in the Big 10

Overview:

 This was a big weekend in the Big 10 as it was good to see some teams take charge of their spot in the pecking order.  Michigan State had a very good win against the higher ranked Wisconsin Badgers.  Michigan State looks to have a strong team that has hopes to make a run at a Big 10 title or at the very least a Rose Bowl bid if Ohio State makes it to the National Championship Game.  Iowa came out and did what they were expected to do against Penn State and you cannot count them out of the Big 10 race.  Penn State looked sluggish on offense and that has a lot to do with a inconsistent running game and a true freshman quarterback.  Northwestern and Michigan are undefeated but many will argue the neither has played a tough schedule, and that is probably true.  Michigan had another shootout win against Indiana giving up over 200 receiving yards to Indiana wideout Tandon Doss.  Ohio State had a dog fight of a game against Illinois and they looked terrible when Pryor went out briefly with an injury.  This is noteworthy because if he is unable to stay healthy, this Buckeye team could be in serious trouble.

Standout Players:

There is no way you mention Big 10’s top players without leading off with Denard Robinson.  This kid has himself positioned nicely for a Heisman trophy run and is stuffing the stat sheet every week.  He is such an electric player and is one of the most exciting players in College Football.  Iowa’s defensive end Adrian Clayborn showed up in a big way against Penn State recording 10 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, and 1 sack; a truly dominate performance.  You also have to give a lot of credit to Kirk Cousins because he led his team to a good victory while going for an efficient 8-10 118 yards in the second half.

Looking Ahead:

The top game on the schedule is the match-up between rivals Michigan and Michigan State, this will be an exciting one people.  Each team is ranked in the top 20 and are undefeated, this game will go a long way towards the final Big 10 standings.   It will be interesting to watch Denard Robinson go against a legitimate defense this week.  I like Michigan State in this game because I feel they will control the clock with their running game and slow down Robinson just enough. 

 Two other intriguing games to keep an eye on are Illinois vs Penn State and Ohio State vs Indiana.  The Penn State vs Illinois game pins two teams hoping to keep pace with the top part of the Big 10 and a loss for either team could be the beginning for a disappointing season.  The only reason I would give Indiana a chance against Ohio State is because I am a little unsure of the health of Pryor.  I feel if he misses any time due to injury the Indiana offense could make this game interesting.

Written by Jon Dove.  Check out his work at NFLMocks.com and on Twitter @NFLMocks

PGWU Heisman Watch

Every Week we will be giving out the top 5 Heisman candidates based on their performance so far in the season.  Last weekend gave us some strong showings, from some of the top candidates.  Michigan Wolverines QB Denard Robinson continues to seperate himself from the rest of the pack.  Terrelle Pryor took a step back with average play and an injury, LaMichael James had a huge week in a very important Pac 10 game..  Here are the top 5 Heisman candidates for this week.  They are ranked in reverse order.

5th Cameron Newton QB Auburn Tigers

He has carried the Tigers on his super-sized shoulders to a 5-0 record, both throwing and running the football.  His mix of accuracy, a big time arm and mobility are 3 of the biggest reasons Auburn is undefeated.

4th Daniel Thomas RB Kansas State

This do it all running back has the odds stacked against him every week, but he still manages to get his yards and big plays.  This former QB is a pro at running the Wildcat for HC Bill Snyder.

3rd DeMarco Murray RB Oklahoma Sooners

Did you see him tip toe the sidelines against Texas last Saturday?  He is a do it all player for the Sooners who deserves more pub.

2nd Colin Kaepernick QB Nevada

I know this is probably way too high for many peoples liking, but he is as good as they come with the ball in his hands.  He should lead his team to an undefeated record when the Wolfpack face Boise State later in the season.

1st Denard Robinson Michigan Wolverines

I really don’t need to say much about this phenom.  He is the Heisman winner right now and if his season continues this way, it will be impossible to overlook Mr. Robinson.

PGWU Heisman Watch

Every Monday we will be giving out the top 5 Heisman candidates based on their performance so far in the season.  Last weekend gave us some strong showings, from some of the top candidates.  Michigan Wolverines QB Denard Robinson continues to impress the voters.  Terrelle Pryor has put up some tremendous stats, so has Kellen Moore from Boise State.  Here are the top 5 Heisman candidates after week 3.  They are ranked in reverse order.

5th Taylor Martinez QB Nebraska Cornhuskers

He has led the Cornhuskers to a 3-0 record, and done so in a convincing manor.  He has rushed 40 times for 421 yards and 8 TD averaging 10.5 per rush.  In what isn’t a strong part of his game, he has thrown the ball for a 65% completion percentage and  392 yards with 1 TD and 1 INT.  He runs the Nebraska offense extremely well, and if they keep winning he will keep climbing on this list.

 

4th Andrew Luck QB Stanford Cardinal

Luck has played flawlessly so far this season.  He has led Stanford to a 3-0 record with a TD-INT ration of 10-0.  He has thrown for 674 yards this season and has a completion percentage of 64%.  He is no slouch on the ground either.  He averages 10.8 yards per carry and has another score on the ground.

 

3rd Patrick Peterson CB LSU Tigers

Peterson has played his role perfectly as a shutdown corner, he already has 2 INT.  He is also an incredible return man for the Tigers.  He is averaging 31.7 yards per kick return and 23.9 per punt return.  He is as good as they come for what he does.

 

2nd Ryan Mallett QB Arkansas Razorbacks

Mallet has done an incredible job leading the Razorback offense this season.  The Hogs have a huge game this weekend with number 1 ranked Alabama.  If Arkansas and Mallett come out of this game with a W, I could see a magical season for Mallett and his team.

1st Denard Robinson QB Michigan Wolverines

 

This kid has been a huge surprise this season.  Very few had any idea about him before he exploded against UCONN.  I figured it would slow down after that game, but he has continued to impress.  He has a 69% completion percentage, has thrown for 671 yards, 4 TD and 1 INT.  That is impressive, but here is where it gets ridiculous, his running stats are that much better.  He leads the nation in rushing with 559 yards and a 7.6 average yards per carry.  Add in another 4 TD on the ground and you can tell why Michigan has played so well this season.

Written by Jason Madson @isbnJMAD on Twitter