Off Tackle Empire
The quintessential Big Ten smoking room.
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Sunday Morning Coming Down // Destiny Fulfilled
Ten Fourteen Eighteen B1G Things The Rundown Washington rides the ponies! And then Demond threatens to transfer, remembers —or was reminded— that he signed a contract, and decides to come back. Oregon gets the Penn State treatment Beat a G5 team? Check. Beat a Big 12 team? Check. Lose in the semis? Check. The difference […]
The Kyle Whittingham Era Begins at Michigan
With Monday’s College Football Playoff championship game in the rearview mirror and Indiana having completed the most unlikely of turnarounds, the eyes of the college football world turn to next season. Hope springs eternal, it’s been said, and that’s certainly true for college football fans, who begin each new year with a blank slate and […]
I Tried To Warn You About Indiana Football Months Ago
This is not a victory lap. I was not rooting for Indiana, but to root against them is futile. No, this is instead a response to the assorted “CAN YOU BELIEVE WHAT HAS JUST HAPPENED?” reactions to Indiana winning the national title in football. My answer to that question is: Yes I can. Why? Three […]
Rapid Reaction: Indiana holds off Miami, wins national championship
The Hoosiers have gone 16-0 and stormed the college football castle. Build the statue of Curt Cignetti and throw in one of Fernando Mendoza on 4th and 5, because the Indiana Hoosiers are your college football national champions. (1) Indiana Hoosiers 27, (10) Miami Hurricanes 21 Indiana scored on a fullback dive, blocked a punt […]
Indiana-Miami: National Championship Game Predictions, Picks
Hoosiers! Hurricanes! Who wins the College Football National Championship? The Vitals (1) Indiana Hoosiers vs. (10) Miami-Fluoride HurricanesMonday, Jan. 19 | Hard Rock Stadium (Miami Gardens, FL)Indiana -8.5 | O/U 47.5 The TV Situation: The Picks BRT: Indiana 42, Miami 17 Let’s do the thing, Hoosiers! This is a big score, but so far, Indiana […]
Week Two On The Mat: Big Ten Wrestling
Week One of B1G dual season is in the books and were on to Week Two! Week One Recap Michigan demolished little brother 43-3. It was ugly. Northwestern dispatched the Terps 27-12. The match of note was a nice 4-2 upset win for the Wildcats #23 ranked 133# Sean Spidle over #12 Braxton Brown. Iowa […]
A Brief History Of The Illinois At Northwestern Game
The #13 Illinois Fighting Illini travel to unranked Northwestern for the next chapter in a pretty major non-rivalry. The Illini are 144-46 against the ‘Cats all time and are all but certain to end this season ahead of Northwestern in the league standings. A peculiar pattern has emerged specific to the Illini game at Northwestern […]
Mailbag Call: So…Indiana?
Is this the new normal? The new Bloomington? The new Big Ten? Good afternoon, and happy Monday. Three-quarters of the MNW household are struggling with some form or residuals of the flu, and the other one is me. That, of course, has led to no resentment of the fact that I am healthy other than […]
Welcome to Big Ten Wrestling Season!
B1G Wrestling Season!! This weekend is the opening weekend of the B1G rasslin season and we’re back to preview things and give you the hot takes you never knew you wanted and probably actually don’t want. January 9th 6:00 PM CST Ann Arbor, MI The B1G dual season kicks off with some intra-state hate in […]
Indiana-Oregon CFP Semifinal Picks, Predictions, Thread
Who ya got? (AND WHY?) WSR: Go Ducks. Please. Don’t make me cheer for Miami like I’m 10 again. Thumpasaurus: Do I need a reason to claim Indiana is winning? It doesn’t particularly matter who they’re against. This is the best college football team I’ve ever seen. I don’t see anything special enough about Oregon […]
The Slow-Motion Collapse: How Rutgers Basketball Went From Tournament Team to Cautionary Tale
Remember when Rutgers basketball was relevant? When Geo Baker and Ron Harper Jr. were leading the Scarlet Knights to consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time since 1976? When Steve Pikiell looked like a genius who’d finally cracked the code at a program where basketball coaches go to have their careers questioned? That was […]
BRT Watches Nebrasketball! And Some Other Dumb Teams
Hey ho, it’s me, BRT, writer of volleyball, football, and now, apparently, a tiny bit of basketball. This is a little less onerous than it usually would be as a Nebrasketball fan though, because this year… they are actually good? I’ve been following (I use the term somewhat loosely) Big Ten basketball for about 13 […]
Dénouement: It’s not just a river in Africa
I WILL DEFEAT YOU, CAMPUS IT An installed toilet! A baby who’s still sick! A delicious mushroom soup! Toilet: I Am A Genius He-Man When last we spoke, I was uninstalling, cleaning up after, purchasing, and installing a new toilet, because…well, I have been advised by counsel—WHO IS DEFINITELY NOT LOOKING OVER MY SHOULDER, I […]
FCS Championship Game: Montana State-Illinois State Open Thread
By way of a story, of course. Happy 2026 to you and yours. Stress eating an entire bag of harvest cheddar Sun chips and drinking a Cherry Coke-style Poppi in the parking lot of my local Aldi, in case you would like a window into where I’m at. This article ends with a preview of […]
One Day More: Your Last Bowl Game Open Thread
Soak it in—when the clock strikes midnight, it’s just College Football Playoff talkers from here on out. Armed Forces Bowl Rice Owls (5-7) vs. Texas State Bobcats (6-6)12pm | ESPN | TXSt -18.5 | O/U 55.5 | at Amon G. Carter Stadium (Fort Worth, TX) The first of two 5-7 teams to play today, as […]
THE AGENDA, BOWL SEASON EDITION: Big Ten Football vs The World
This is a column to check in on the rest of the football world, but since it’s 2025 in America I will beat you over the head with The Agenda, which in case you’ve forgotten is “Big Ten Superiority Unless It’s Funny.” You may have noticed that I haven’t really used the “Unless It’s Funny” […]
Reaction: Indiana thumps Alabama, advances to College Football Playoff Semifinals
Indiana Hoosiers 38, Alabama Crimson Tide 3 RUReady4Brazil: Can you believe how far we’ve come from Indinia? BuffKomodo: My son was born in December, 2020. Indiana football would go on to lose in the Outback Bowl to an Ole Miss team with a losing record during a strange time in our culture. From there, Indiana […]
College Football Playoff Open Thread: L. M. A. O.
First, a brief recap: ReliaQuest Bowl: Iowa 34, Vanderbilt 27 Las Vegas Bowl: Utah 44, Nebraska 22 Citrus Bowl: Texas 41, Michigan 27 Brian Gillis: Michigan played hard in a back-and-forth affair against Texas, but a couple of late Bryce Underwood interceptions paved the way for a disappointing 14-point loss to the Longhorns. A fitting end, you […]
The Las Vegas Bowl Preview: Let’s Get This Over With
Well, it’s safe to say that this game isn’t the headline news for either team or fanbase right now, as both programs are facing big changes that are dominating attention and storylines. For Nebraska, that’s probably just as well, because honestly, I don’t see this one going particularly well for the Huskers. The Bigger Storylines […]
New Year’s Eve Bowl Games Open Thread
FOR ALL THE SUN, CITRUS, AND COTTON! Mortgages and Vegas, too. Seems legit. It’s Iowa-Vanderbilt and a wholesome, Devils-do-care Sun Bowl—then terrible storylines the rest of the night. Would you like previews and a place to talk about those games? HERE YOU GO! ReliaQuest Bowl #23 Iowa Hawkeyes vs. #14 Vanderbilt Commodores11am | ESPN | […]
ReliaQuest Bowl Preview: An Outsider Considers…Why?
Iowa! Vanderbilt! A game…we actually want to see? It gives me the vapours just thinking about it, but we are about to watch ranked Iowa take on ranked Vanderbilt in the Tampa…and actually be a little excited about it? ReliaQuest Bowl The Facts, Ma’am #23 Iowa Hawkeyes (8-4) vs. #14 Vanderbilt Commodores (10-2)11am | ESPN […]
Citrus Bowl Preview: Michigan vs Texas
Given everything that’s unfolded in Ann Arbor over the past few weeks, you’d be forgiven for forgetting that Michigan’s season isn’t over and that the Wolverines still have a bowl game to play. With so much off-the-field news, the Citrus Bowl has become somewhat of an afterthought. Which is a bit ironic, given the matchup. […]
Tuesday Bowl, Basketball Open Thread
Illinois in the Music City Bowl, USC in the Alamo Bowl, some hoops on—what more do you need in life? Good morning, good afternoon—wherever you are, I hope you’re doing well. Bowl Games Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl Coastal Carolina Chanticleers vs. Louisiana Tech Bulldogs1pm | ESPN | LaTech -10 | O/U 50.5 | at Independence […]
Northwestern football hires Chip Kelly as offensive coordinator
Northwestern football does something legitimately exciting.Good morning or afternoon, wherever you are. One bit of news, then off to the open thread. You’re not drunk, I’m not drunk, that’s a real NCAA football headline in the year of our Lord 2025. The last time I can count being legitimately excited when Northwestern’s offense got the […]
Alamo Bowl Preview: USC vs TCU
When USC takes the field against TCU in tonight’s Alamo Bowl, the Trojans will look like a very different team than the one that won nine games and finished tied with Michigan for fourth place in the Big Ten this season. The Trojans will be led by junior quarterback Jordan Maiava (who led all Big […]
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