The 2008 Big 10 Football Season

The 2008 Big 10 Football Season has produced memorable games , players, teams, and moments. Here's a look at what happened this year.

Biggest Suprise: Minnesota-The Golden Gophers suffered a horrendous season last year going 1-11. An improvement was expected but expectations were held with caution. The Gophers started 7-1 including a signature win at Illinois and are going to the Insight Bowl to play Kansas. Retrurning quarterback Adam Weber and wide receiver Eric Decker formed a dynamic passing duo and the big recruiting class brought in by head coach Tim Brewster bolstered the defense. The Gophers lost their last four games including a 55-0 loss to rival Iowa but the improvements made should not not be forgotten. A win in the bowl would put a punctuation mark on the season.

Other surprises: Northwestern and Michigan State

Biggest Disappointment: Illinois-After winning a combined eight games in the four previous years Illinois won nine games last year and made an appearance in the Rose Bowl. While the losses of running back Rashard Mendenhall and linebacker J Leman were big, Illinois brought enough talent back to be as good as last year if not even better. The 2008 Illini failed however to put back to back consistent games together and the team went 5-7 and won't be playing in a bowl game. Turnovers were costly as quarterback Juice Williams threw nine interceptions in the last five games and an inexperienced defensive secondary was beaten time and time again. Illinois has the talent to climb back up the big ten standings next year but must learn from this years mistakes.

Other disappointments: Michigan and Wisconsin

Player of the Year: Iowa running back Shonn Greene-Greene's consistency has been remarkable. He's the only college football player with at least 100 rushing yards in every game. He finished with 1,729 yards on 278 carries which is good for a 6.2 yard average and 17 touchdowns. He won the Doak Walker Award as the nation's top running back and the Chicago Tribune Silver Football Award which is for the Big 10's best player as voted on by the conferences' coaches. Last year, Greene was taking classes at Kirkwood Community College in Iowa City and working in a furniture store for eight dollars an hour because if his poor grades. What a difference a year makes. Greene played a huge part in getting Iowa back to national relevance as they defeated No. 3 Penn Sate, ruining their national title hopes, and won their last three games to go 8-4. Greene, who is a junior, now faces the decision of whether to go on to the NFL, where is draft stock is fairly high, or return to Iowa for his senior year. The Hawkeyes will play South Carolina on January 1st in the Outback Bowl.

Other player of the year canidates: Penn State quarterback Darryl Clark, Ohio State linebacker James Laurinitis, Penn State wide receiver Derrick Williams, Michigan State running back Javon Ringer, and Illinois wide receiver Arrelious Benn

Game of the year: November 3rd - Iowa City - Iowa 24 Penn State 23 - All Penn State had to do was beat Iowa, Indiana, and Michigan State and they would have been in the national game. The Nittany Lions rolled into Iowa City with a flashy offense led by quarterback Darryl Clark, wide receiver Derrick Williams, and running back Evan Royster, a defense that had dominated most of it's previous opponents, and a 9-0 record which had them ranked number 3. Iowa was 5-4 and coming off a 27-24 loss to Illinois. Kevin Kelly's 3 field goals and a Derrick Williams 9 yard touchdown run late in the 3rd quarter had given Iowa a 23-14 lead. Iowa running back Shonn Greene ran in from six yards out with 9:20 left to make it a 23-21 game. Penn State tried to put the game away, but on 3rd and 24, with 3:50 to go, Darryl Clark overthrew his receiver over the middle at the 15 yard line and Iowa freshman defensive back Tyler Sash intercepted it. Iowa drove down the field and sophomore kicker Daniel Murray drilled a 31 yard field goal, into the wind, right down the middle with 1 second to go. Kinnick Stadium went into a frenzy and Penn State was thrown out of the national championship game. This started Iowa's late season push that has gotten them into the Outback Bowl on January 1st.

Other great games: October 25th - Colombus - Penn State 10 Ohio State 3 and November 1st - Minneapolis - Northwestern 24 Minnesota 17

Coach of the Year: Minnesota head coach Tim Brewster
He took last year's 1-11 Gopher team and turned them into this year's 7-5 bowl bound squad. Brewster hit the recruiting trails hard and came away with a top 25 recruiting class-that's hard to do with a 1-11 team. The recruits stepped in and mixed with the old players to form a solid offense led by Adam Weber and Eric Decker and a much improved defense. With a new stadium coming and many of the key players returning, next years team should be just as good, if not better.

Other coach of the year canidates: Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald, Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio, Penn State head coach Joe Paterno, and Ohio State head coach Jim Tressell