clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

It's Not Plagiarism If You Link To It: Big Ten Talkin' Football Playoffs, Playoffs?

By PlannedSickDays

The last two years the football off-season was full of conference realignment talk and program investigations. Perhaps this year the talk will be about the future of the BCS and maybe, wait for it, a playoff. The Big Ten was the first to kick off the discussion. Jim Delany, Big Ten Commissioner, has a proposal that if anything, may get the idea of a playoff rolling.

The Big Ten's proposal is to place the top four teams in the BCS into a playoff bracket and have the two semifinal games played on the home turf of the higher seed. The championship game would then be available for bid, similar to the NFL's Superbowl. This idea could raise criticism from fans from the South because of the possibility of inclement weather in the Northern states. States where Big Ten teams are located.

Adam Rittenberg, of ESPN.com, points out that bowl games are essentially a road game for Big Ten teams.

With this new proposal Delany says he'll will fight to protect the Rose Bowl and it's Big Ten tie-in, just as they did with the current BCS system.

There's a new era coming, and in the discussion is not just a playoff but a requirement of seven wins to become bowl eligible. There's a possibility that new win requirements could eliminate a handful of bowl games. See, seven is the new six.

For the record, Iowa has never finished in the Top four of the BCS (they were #5 in 2002). The last Big Ten team to qualify in this new proposal was Ohio State in 2007.

Want a little more information about a couple of new Hawkeyes? The Quad-Cities Online has this story about Mitch Keppy and Reid Sealby. The future teammates are not friends yet. That's because Keppy and Sealby are heavy weight wrestlers and Sealby is ranked #1, Keppy #2.

It's still not clear if David Raih has been promoted from grad assistant to Iowa's coaching staff. FootballScoop.com reported yesterday that fellow GA Charlie Bullen has moved on to join the Dolphins. If you want to know more about Raih then this is a must read. I hope he gets the gig, his salesmanship and energy could work wonders on the recruiting trail. Ferentz may announce Raih as a new addition at his press conference Wednesday at 4 PM (CT).

Ken O'Keefe spent 13 years as Iowa's offensive coordinator. Now he is saying goodbye to Iowa City. As you can imagine, O'Keefe recalled memories and was thankful for his experiences at Iowa. He told Marc Morehouse,

"It's just a unique opportunity right now. I'm so grateful for the time Kirk Ferentz gave us here at Iowa. It's an unbelievable place."

Why the sudden departure, the big life change?

"It's a unique opportunity," O'Keefe said. "I've known Joe since he was 17-years-old. It's hard to walk away from this because of [Iowa head coach] Kirk [Ferentz] and the kids, obviously, and the community of Iowa City, which has been so good to us, as well. It is a little unique because of our relationship, and the timing just happens to be right."

After the jump, more links.

Other links:

More From Black Heart Gold Pants