A recent article from the Grand Rapids press discussed that the columnist, based on his assessment that Michigan was not ranked in the preseason top three and that former conference doormats Illinois and Michigan State are picked to finish pretty high in the league is a sure sign that Big Ten football stinks. Citing the conference’s less than stellar showing in bowl games as well, he makes this brazen statement with the utmost confidence, placing the league behind the ACC, Big 12, Big East, Pac 10, and SEC conferences.

While I won’t argue that the conference certainly has its overall issues with Michigan being down a bit, I think it totally smacks against the success that the Illini and Spartans should have–because of how talented they are–not because the rest of the league sucks. Mark Dantonio is a good coach and his recruiting is really starting to take off–he should give Wolverines coach Rich Rodriguez a run for the in-state recruits for the next several years. Ron Zook has not only made great inroads on the field, he continues to be a master recruiter, having just nailed one of 2009’s top high school QBs in Nathan Scheelhaase as well as other quality recruits that should have the Illini looking good well into the next several years.

To say that the football just plain stinks is a bit harsh to say the least. Being that this guy is from Michigan, I would love to be immature about this and say that he’s just jealous because of the fact that his precious Wolverines are not adorning the high spots in the top 25, so because they’re down, the league is down, right? Again, I am not arguing that there are conferences that have some great talent out there, but I would never–even though I can be one of the most critical people of the league from time to time–say that the football stinks. It could be better, sure, I’d love to see the league have a huge year in the bowls, but that is going to ultimately depend on the matchups. I would think that a writer down in Florida or sitting in New York or even in California making statements like this, but not in our backyard. If the league has another 3-5 year in the bowls, come back here and say I told you so and I will at least listen to what you have to say…but I have a feeling many are going to be surprised.