Ohio State 27, Indiana 13
Iowa 19, Nebraska 16
Rutgers 21, Maryland 20
Penn State 35, Maryland 10
Penn State 39, Michigan 0
Northwestern 27, Michigan State 12
Wisconsin 25, Michigan State 12
Minnesota 20, Ohio State 17
Minnesota 35, Purdue 6
Purdue 33, Wisconsin 7

Standings
1. Penn State (12-0, 6-0)
2. Minnesota (10-1, 6-1)
3. Iowa (11-1, 5-1)
4. Ohio State (13-2, 5-2)
5. Nebraska (9-3, 4-2)
6. Illinois (9-3, 4-3)
6. Rutgers (12-5, 4-3)
8. Indiana (7-4, 3-4)
8. Maryland (8-9, 3-4)
10. Purdue (9-5, 2-4)
11. Michigan (5-5, 2-5)
12. Northwestern (3-6, 1-5)
13. Wisconsin (5-10, 1-6)
14. Michigan State (4-7, 0-6)

Next Nebraska Match - Sunday, February 16
Indiana at Nebraska (12:30 PM - BTN+)

Yesterday: I'm packing for my golf trip to Myrtle area and my grandson opened up my umbrella in the living room. My wife says, "that's bad luck, ya know."

This morning: Standing in line to check in at the airport and as I'm walking up to the counter I get a notice on my phone that my flight from Newark to Wilmington is canceled due to weather. Luckily I noticed the cancellation on my app because the counter did not show it being canceled on their end. That's the bad news...the good news is I got the notice before leaving on my connecting flight left to Denver so was able to cancel the whole trip and avoid going at all. I will reschedule.

In the long run this might be a blessing. Golf weather forecast in Myrtle is very nice tomorrow but then pretty chilly the following few days with good chances for rain. Plus, now I think my wife can go if I reschedule for early March.

February 17
#8 Ohio State 86, Iowa 78 (OT)
#21 Maryland 85, Michigan 77
Northwestern 69, Rutgers 59

Standings
1. USC (23-2, 13-1)
2. UCLA (24-1, 12-1)
3. Ohio State (22-3, 11-3)
4. Illinois (21-5, 11-4)
5. Maryland (20-6, 10-5)
6. Michigan State (19-6, 9-5)
7. Michigan (18-8, 9-6)
7. Oregon (18-8, 9-6)
9. Indiana (16-9, 8-6)
10. Nebraska (17-9, 8-7)
10. Iowa (18-8, 8-7)
12. Minnesota (19-8, 7-8)
13. Washington (14-12, 5-9)
14. Wisconsin (12-14, 3-12)
15. Northwestern (9-15, 2-11)
16. Purdue (9-16, 2-12)
17. Rutgers (10-16, 2-13)
18. Penn State (10-16, 1-14)

Games for Wednesday, February 19
Minnesota at Purdue (6:00 PM - BTN+)
Oregon at Nebraska (7:00 PM - BTN+)
#22 Michigan State at #4 USC (8:30 PM - Peacock)

Link: NFCA Division I Coaches Poll (2/18)

1. Texas (30) (11-0)
2. Oklahoma (1) (10-0)
3. Florida (13-1)
4. UCLA (9-1)
5. Tennessee (10-1)
6. LSU (10-0)
7. Texas A&M (9-1)
8. Florida State (8-1)
9. Georgia (9-0)
10. Arkansas (10-0)
11. Duke (7-3)
12. Texas Tech (8-3)
13. Arizona (10-1)
14. Oklahoma State (5-4)
15. Virginia Tech (8-2)
16. Nebraska (8-2)
17. Mississippi State (9-1)
18. Stanford (9-0)
19. Oregon (10-1)
20. Auburn (11-0)
21. South Carolina (10-0)
22. Missouri (6-5)
23. Alabama (5-6)
24. Kentucky (6-4)
25. San Diego State (8-2)

Others Receiving Votes
Florida Atlantic, Baylor, Liberty, Virginia, Northwestern, Nebraska-Omaha, Indiana, Grand Canyon, California, Clemson, Washington, BYU, Mississippi

AP Top 25 (2/17)
1. Auburn (59) (23-2)
2. Florida (1) (22-3)
3. Duke (22-3)
4. Alabama (21-4)
5. Houston (21-4)
6. Tennessee (21-5)
7. Texas A&M (20-5)
8. Iowa State (20-5)
9. Texas Tech (20-5)
10. St. John's (22-4)
11. Wisconsin (20-5)
12. Michigan (20-5)
13. Purdue (19-7)
14. Michigan State (20-5)
15. Missouri (19-6)
16. Marquette (19-6)
17. Kentucky (17-8)
18. Clemson (21-5)
19. Arizona (17-8)
20. Maryland (20-6)
21. Mississippi State (18-7)
22. Memphis (21-5)
23. Kansas (17-8)
24. Mississippi (19-7)
25. Louisville (20-6)

Others Receiving Votes
New Mexico, St. Mary's, UCLA, Creighton, Illinois, Connecticut, George Mason, Gonzaga, High Point

================================

Coaches Top 25 (2/17)
1. Auburn (31) (23-2)
2. Florida (22-3)
3. Duke (22-3)
4. Alabama (21-4)
5. Houston (21-4)
6. Tennessee (21-5)
7. Texas A&M (20-5)
8. Iowa State (20-5)
9. St. John's (22-4)
10. Texas Tech (20-5)
11. Wisconsin (20-5)
12. Michigan (20-5)
13. Michigan State (20-5)
14. Purdue (19-7)
15. Marquette (19-6)
16. Missouri (19-6)
17. Clemson (21-5)
18. Arizona (17-8)
19. Memphis (21-5)
20. Maryland (20-6)
21. Kentucky (17-8)
22. Louisville (20-6)
23. Mississippi State (18-7)
24. St. Mary's (23-4)
25. Kansas (17-8)

Others Receiving Votes
Mississippi, UCLA, New Mexico, Creighton, Gonzaga, Connecticut, Illinois, UC-San Diego, Virginia Commonwealth, George Mason

===================================

NCAA NET (2/17)
1. Auburn
2. Duke
3. Houston
4. Florida
5. Tennessee
6. Alabama
7. Texas Tech
8. Iowa State
9. Arizona
10. Gonzaga
11. Texas A&M
12. Wisconsin
13. Purdue
14. Maryland
15. Kansas
16. Missouri
17. Kentucky
18. Illinois
19. Michigan
20. St. Mary's
21. Michigan State
22. St. John's
23. UCLA
24. Marquette
25. Mississippi
---------------------------
30. Ohio State
32. Oregon
46. Nebraska
57. Indiana
61. Northwestern
64. Iowa
66. USC
78. Penn State
80. Rutgers
93. Washington
94. Minnesota

Would you like to see further expansion if the right teams were added?

Let's say for a minute that the B1G added:

Florida State, Miami, North Carolina, Virginia, Stanford and Notre Dame to expand to 24.

How could a 24 conference work?

I kind of like the idea of having three common opponents for 4 years (some permanent (such as Iowa) and some that may be our common opponent for four years (like Miami for 4 years, and Florida State for 4 years), that could all be worked out.

With a 24 team conference, you could play ALL teams at least once in a 4 year period. Using the 9 game conference model, it could look like this for Nebraska

(Common Opponents: Miami, Wisconsin, and Iowa)

YEAR 1:
@ Miami, USC, @ Virginia, Ohio State, @ Wisconsin, Illinois, @ Maryland, Iowa, Flex Game

YEAR 2:
Miami, @ UCLA, Florida State, @ Purdue, Wisconsin, @ Indiana, Notre Dame, @ Iowa, Flex Game

YEAR 3:
@ Miami, Oregon, @ Stanford, Penn State, @ Wisconsin, Northwestern, @ Michigan State, Iowa, Flex Game

YEAR 4:
Miami, @ Washington, North Carolina, @ Michigan, Wisconsin, @ Rutgers, Minnesota, @ Iowa, Flex Game

Flex Game would be set up so that the top 4 teams would meet in semi-finals, and the top 2 teams from those games would meet in conference championship
The rest of the 20 teams would be matched based on teams they didn't play during the regular season that are evenly matched

Who knows what will happen with the ACC and if conference expansion happens or not.... It could lead to some very interesting scheduling.

I think with conference expansion, you'll also see a league like the Big Ten getting 5 or more automatic qualifiers for an expanded playoff field.

Whatever happens, I expect to see more change over the next few years.

Taking a long weekend trip there…
Best restaurant and live music recommendations appreciated… staying downtown.
Was thinking of visiting the Grand Old Opry and the country music hall of fame and museum for day time activities…
Want to check out the live music at night

Just got the release from Nebraska Athletics:

Ekeler to Lead Husker Special Teams

Veteran college assistant coach and Nebraska native Mike Ekeler has been named as the Huskers’ special teams coordinator, joining Head Coach Matt Rhule’s Nebraska staff.

Ekeler brings an impressive coaching background to the Husker staff after spending the past four seasons at the University of Tennessee. He served as the Volunteers’ special teams coordinator and outside linebackers coach, helping UT to the College Football Playoff in 2024. Overall, Ekeler brings more than two decades of college coaching experience to Rhule’s staff.

"Mike Ekeler brings a history of special teams excellence to Nebraska,” Rhule said. “His work with Tennessee’s special teams has been elite. Regardless of what statistics you look at over the past four years, Tennessee’s special teams have been at or near the top in the nation. Mike’s energy and true passion for special teams carries over to the players on his units and that will have a positive impact on our program.”

Ekeler is a graduate of Blair (Neb.) High School and Kansas State University and previously coached for three years at Nebraska from 2008 to 2010, helping Nebraska to a pair of Big 12 Championship game appearances.

“I am unbelievability excited to have the opportunity to come back to Nebraska and join Coach Rhule’s staff,” Ekeler said. “I love what Coach Rhule is building at Nebraska, his hard-nosed approach and his vision for making Nebraska’s special teams the best in the nation.

“I was born and raised in Nebraska, my parents live in Fremont, so this is home. I grew up in Memorial Stadium watching my uncle, All-American Bob Martin, play for the Huskers. One of the highlights of my coaching career was being at Nebraska from 2008 to 2010. Each stop in my career since then has molded me into a better coach and I appreciate everyone who has impacted me and prepared me for this opportunity to come back to Nebraska and help get this program back to the top of college football.”

During Ekeler’s four seasons at Tennessee, the Vols won 37 games, including a 10-3 record and trip to the CFP in 2024, and an 11-2 record and Orange Bowl victory in 2022. Tennessee ranked either first or second in the SEC in punt return average in all four seasons under Ekeler, averaging better than 15 yards per return in both 2024 (15.7 ypr) and 2022 (16.5 ypr). Over the past four seasons, Tennessee’s cumulative average of 13.9 yards per punt return led the nation.

Individually, Tennessee produced the SEC punt return average champion in three of the past four years, including 2021 SEC Special Teams Player of the Year Velus Jones Jr, Dee Williams in 2022 and Boo Carter in 2024. Jones and Williams are two of four Ekeler proteges who were starting punt returners in the NFL in 2024.

Tennessee also led the nation in percentage of punts downed inside the 10 over the past four years. Since the start of the 2021 season, 19.4 percent of the Vols’ punts pinned the opponent inside the 10-yard line, including 28.3 percent in 2024. Over the past two seasons, Tennessee ranked second in the SEC and seventh in the nation in touchback percentage on kickoffs (77.5 percent), and during Ekeler’s tenure the Vols blocked eight punts and gave up a total of 138 punt return yards.

Ekeler also coached a first-team All-SEC outside linebacker in each of his final three seasons in Knoxville.

Ekeler has spent a total of 20 seasons as a coach at Power Four schools, including six seasons at current Big Ten schools, and has eight seasons of experience as a special teams’ coordinator.

During his first stint in Lincoln from 2008 to 2010, Ekeler coached the Husker linebackers and was part of Nebraska teams that won 29 games, captured two Big 12 North crowns and played in two Holiday Bowls and the Gator Bowl. The Husker defense was among the nation’s best in 2009 and 2010. The 2009 defense led the nation in scoring defense and pass efficiency defense while ranking in the top 10 in total defense and rushing defense.

In 2010, Ekeler coached Lavonte David who set the Nebraska single season record with 152 tackles and earned All-America honors. Ekeler also coached future NFL linebackers Cody Glenn, Phillip Dillard, Will Compton and Eric Martin during his three seasons with the Blackshirt defense.

Ekeler spent two seasons as the co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Indiana in 2011 and 2012, then spent the 2013 season coaching linebackers at USC. His first role as special teams’ coordinator came at Georgia in 2014 and 2015, when he also coached the Bulldogs inside linebackers. Following his time at Georgia, Ekeler had stints at North Texas (2016 and 2020), North Carolina (2017-18) and Kansas (2019), before moving to Knoxville under Coach Josh Heupel in 2021.

A native of David City, Neb., Ekeler began his coaching career in Nebraska as a volunteer coach at Omaha Skutt High School. He then served as an assistant at Manhattan (Kan.) High School, before working as a defensive graduate assistant at Oklahoma (2003-04) and LSU (2005-07).

Ekeler was a linebacker and special teams stalwart for Coach Bill Snyder’s Kansas State teams from 1991 to 1994.

Wow! What an effort - down by 20 - what a comeback!

Go Big Red!

February 14
Washington 9, Kansas State 2
Michigan 5, #2 Virginia 4 (11 inn)
Kennesaw State 5, Rutgers 3
Rutgers 3, Kennesaw State 1
Abilene Christian 10, Illinois 9 (10 inn)
Purdue 4, Stephen F. Austin 1
Purdue 4, Stephen F. Austin 2
UC-Irvine 10, #24 Nebraska 5
Penn State 10, Missouri 0
Maryland 6, Alabama-Birmingham 3
Michigan State 2, Western Michigan 0
Michigan State 6, Western Michigan 3
South Florida 5, Iowa 4
UNLV 4, Indiana 2
#12 Oregon 9, Toledo 2
Minnesota 14, Houston 3
UCLA 3, Cal Poly 2
Arizona State 9, Ohio State 8

Late
Northwestern at Long Beach State
USC vs. George Washington

Standings
Michigan State (2-0)
Purdue (2-0)
Maryland (1-0)
Michigan (1-0)
Minnesota (1-0)
Oregon (1-0)
Penn State (1-0)
UCLA (1-0)
Washington (1-0)
Rutgers (1-1)
Northwestern (0-0)
USC (0-0)
Nebraska (0-1)
Illinois (0-1)
Indiana (0-1)
Iowa (0-1)
Ohio State (0-1)

Games for Saturday, February 15
Illinois vs. Abilene Christian (at Corpus Christi, TX)
Indiana vs. Xavier (at Surprise, AZ)
Iowa at South Florida
Maryland vs. Ball State (at Charleston, SC)
Michigan vs. Rice (at Puerto Rico)
Michigan State vs. Monmouth (at Cary, NC) (DH)
Minnesota at Houston
#24 Nebraska vs. #16 Vanderbilt (at Phoenix) (7:00 PM - MLB Network)
Northwestern at Long Beach State
Ohio State at Arizona State
Toledo at #12 Oregon (DH)
Penn State vs. Stetson (at Puerto Rico)
Purdue vs. Stephen F. Austin (at Sugar Land, TX)
Cal Poly at UCLA
USC vs. George Washington (at Irvine, CA)
Washington vs. St. Joseph's (at Conway, SC)

Our guys are bigger, faster, stronger, better. All moving around well. GBR!!
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February 17
Washington 12, St. Joseph's 9
Michigan 6, Stetson 1
UNLV 13, Indiana 12 (10 inn)
Grand Canyon 3, #23 Nebraska 1

Standings
Michigan (4-0)
Michigan State (4-0)
Purdue (4-0)
UCLA (3-0)
USC (3-0)
Oregon (3-1)
Illinois (2-1)
Maryland (2-1)
Northwestern (2-1)
Penn State (2-1)
Rutgers (2-1)
Nebraska (2-2)
Washington (2-2)
Iowa (1-2)
Minnesota (1-2)
Ohio State (0-3)
Indiana (0-4)

Games for Tuesday, February 18
Delaware at Maryland
Loras at Iowa
BYU at UCLA
USC at UC-Irvine

Next Nebraska Game - Friday, February 21
Nebraska at Louisiana-Lafayette (6:00 PM - ESPN+)

What do you think about the new NFL rules for the Dynamic Kickoff Formation, the Hip-Drop tackle ban, and monitoring player movement? These will be enforced again during the game Sunday. Amazon Web Services (AWS) will also be tracking player movement with sensors in the shoulder pads and sensors in the football.

A look across the conference here:

February 7
#7 Purdue 90, USC 72

Standings
1. Purdue (19-5, 11-2)
2. Michigan (17-5, 9-2)
2. Michigan State (18-4, 9-2)
4. UCLA (17-6, 8-4)
4. Wisconsin (18-5, 8-4)
6. Maryland (17-6, 7-5)
7. Illinois (15-8, 7-6)
8. Ohio State (14-9, 6-6)
9. Nebraska (15-8, 5-7)
9. Indiana (14-9, 5-7)
9. Oregon (16-7, 5-7)
9. Rutgers (12-11, 5-7)
9. USC (13-10, 5-7)
14. Iowa (13-9, 4-7)
15. Minnesota (12-11, 4-8)
15. Northwestern (13-10, 4-8)
17. Penn State (13-10, 3-9)
18. Washington (11-11, 2-9)

Games for Saturday, February 8
Oregon at #9 Michigan State (11:00 AM - FOX)
#21 Wisconsin at Iowa (12:00 PM - NBC)
#24 Michigan at Indiana (12:00 PM - CBS)
Penn State at UCLA (3:00 PM - BTN)
#23 Illinois at Minnesota (5:00 PM - BTN)
Northwestern at Washington (9:30 PM - BTN)

Next Nebraska Game - Sunday, February 9
Ohio State at Nebraska (1:00 PM - BTN)