Hickey: 7 takeaways from Big Ten Media Days in Indianapolis

INDIANAPOLIS — Save for the year of Penn State’s post-Paterno chaos, it’s possible there’s never been a Big Ten Media Days where so little of the focus was actually on football.

In a “normal” cycle, the big news would have been the introduction of new commissioner Tony Petitti. This is only the second time a new man has entered the office since 1989.

Petitti’s debut was just another brick in the wall here.

The continuing fallout of Northwestern’s hazing scandal grabbed most headlines. And once again, those headlines aren’t good. Interim coach David Braun, who has only worked at the school since January, remains Northwestern’s lone spokesperson on the matter.

Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh is expected to begin the season with a 4-game NCAA suspension, but still can’t say anything about the topic. For a team in the national championship hunt, that’s a pretty big deal.

Minnesota coach PJ Fleck and Gophers players issued denials rebutting a report of player mistreatment within the program.

Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz had to discuss an ongoing investigation into Iowa players placing sports bets, which could cost a handful of guys a handful of games.

Despite all that noise, there were plenty of other things to take away from the 2023 edition of Big Ten Media Days.

For me, these were 7 items that stood out.

1. Kirk Ferentz really is that old-fashioned

My eyes saw Kirk Ferentz’s mouth moving, but somehow the words came out in the voice of Grampa Simpson.

“I learned the importance of a great punter in 1981,” Grampa Ferentz said. “Reggie Roby’s leg was a big reason we were Big Ten champions and played in the Rose Bowl.”

I mean, it’s true. Roby is the best punter in Big Ten history. But one can’t make that statement without aging like Matt Damon at the end of Saving Private Ryan.

Ferentz sounded even older when he acknowledged remembering NBC announcer Todd Blackledge as a player. Blackledge’s Penn State career ended in 1982 and his NFL career ended in 1989.

But potentially nothing made Ferentz sound more like a product of yesteryear than his genuine shock over the pervasiveness of sports betting — and with that being the case, it’s no surprise a handful of Hawkeyes are being investigated for placing sports bets.

Kind of hard to educate your team about a problem you’re not aware of.

“I’m kind of naive, and I apologize for not watching ‘College GameDay,’ but I’ve got my middle son telling me the other day they cover lines on ‘College GameDay’ before games,” said a genuinely surprised Ferentz.

Ferentz admits he’s now more cognizant of sports betting’s growing presence — not just due to the Iowa investigation, but from watching TV.

“I was oblivious,” Ferentz said. “When I was a kid, it was cigarette commercials that were everywhere. Now it’s gambling commercials.”

In case you were wondering, the last cigarette commercial in the United States aired on Jan. 1, 1971.

2. Wisconsin really is going to be that different

Luke Fickell and the Badgers players in attendance made no bones about the fact that Wisconsin’s offense is going to be different than anything any of us have ever seen before.

“The only time you’ll see 8 or 9 men in the box against us will be at, like, the half-inch line,” noted quarterback Tanner Mordecai, who transferred from SMU’s high-octane offense.

Wisconsin isn’t even huddling anymore.

But that doesn’t mean the Badgers won’t still go back to their meat-and-potatoes.

“There’s a very strong misconception that [offensive coordinator] Phil Longo doesn’t want to run the ball. At North Carolina, he had 2 1,000-yard rushers his second year,” Mordecai said. “We’re going to run the ball. Our running back room with Chez Mellusi and Braelon Allen is definitely going to have their hands full with the ball.”

Mordecai describes Wisconsin’s offense with the following words: “Dynamic, fast, explosive. More balanced than people think. We’re going to take shots.”

So, what does program godfather Barry Alvarez make of all this?

Fickell chuckled when asked that question.

“I had dinner at Coach Alvarez’s house last Thursday night, and he never once brought it up,” Fickell said. “I’m sure he’s curious to watch it and see. There used to be a joke from afar with my buddies and I when someone new used to go in there — ‘I’m sure they told him the playbook’s underneath the desk. Just make sure you learn it.’

“But I guess that joke wasn’t true. There was no playbook underneath the desk. I’m sure he’ll have some opinions. But Coach [Alvarez] has been around long enough to know whatever works, works. And he’ll trust and believe intelligent people can find a way to be successful as well.”

3. Jim Harbaugh is still weird and (unintentionally?) hilarious

When a local reporter asked Harbaugh about his memories of playing in Indianapolis, where he revitalized his NFL career and became a member of the Colts Ring of Honor, Harbaugh answered in a way that no one on earth but Jim Harbaugh would.

“It warms the cockles of the heart, those memories,” Harbaugh said with an entirely straight face.

Harbaugh later went on an amusing tangent about pro wrestling legend Ric Flair when explaining why Michigan has added a “Beat Georgia” period to its practices in addition to the traditional “Beat Ohio” period.

“Like our good friend Ric Flair says — if you want to be the man, you have to beat the man,” Harbaugh said.

When asked if he could punctuate that with Flair’s trademark “Woo!,” Harbaugh demurred.

“That’s one thing I wish I was better at. There’s only one person that can give a ‘Woo.’ ”

Harbaugh later offered a unique analogy when talking about position battles. And admittedly, it makes complete sense.

“Nobody owns a position, including the quarterback,” Harbaugh said. “They’re leasing at best. You’ve got to pay the rent.”

4. Cheery Matt Rhule > Grumpy Scott Frost

Last year, Scott Frost used the excuse of Nebraska’s season opener in Ireland to be the first at the podium at Big Ten Media Days. It was just a ploy to get out of there as quickly as possible. And it showed.

Turns out it was a bit of foreshadowing for Frost, who also ended his season and career prematurely.

Matt Rhule’s approach in his first Big Ten Media Days couldn’t have been more different in tone. Rhule was enthusiastically selling Nebraska football even though the program has been a lemon for at least 6 years now.

“There was a time when Nebraska was feared, and I want to get back to that,” Rhule said. “I want people to respect when they see the white helmet with the red N on it.”

No sense of entitlement in that statement. Pure hunger. I’m buying.

Rhule also handled the most bizarre question of Big Ten Media Days with far more aplomb than Frost would have — or probably anyone else.

Q. When you’re a Cornhusker, it means a little bit more. Couple of years ago, Nebraska lost at Wisconsin, guys were praying on the 50-yard line after the game. Less than 24 hours, the Waukesha parade tragedy occurred where many lives were lost. We give a lot of credit at Wisconsin just seeing your guys there on the field praying less than 24 hours before that happened. As a coach, how are you going to continue to build that culture and that climate that I think your team is really known for throughout the Big Ten?

This melding of completely unrelated events and a very strange timeline should have warranted a “huh?” or “could you repeat that?”

But Rhule handled it deftly.

“My purpose for taking this job and being in college football is so that young people, when they’re 25, 30, 35, 40, they say, ‘You know what, my life is better because I went to Nebraska.’

“People might scoff at that, but that’s why we do what we do. So, we try to attack each and every day [with] every single player in terms of who they are as football players but who they are as students and also as people, young people in our society.

“There’s never been a time where there’s been more peril towards our younger generations. Coming out of COVID they’re way less resilient, way less connections.

“Whereas, when I grew up, my connections were the Boy Scouts and the high school and the local church, all these things. Kids nowadays are suffering from stress and anxiety and depression, and a lot of it people believe is because they don’t have those connections. A lot of kids are just connected to their phones.”

Rhule brought up a few specifics about Nebraska’s program before circling back to the obvious religious overtones raised by the questioner.

“We have players that are Christian, Muslim, players that maybe don’t believe in anything. Whatever their worldview is, we’re there to walk them through that. We’re there to be there for them. Because who they are as people is way more important than who they are as players.

“That might not be popular, and we all want to talk about transfer portals and NIL and all that stuff, that’s cool. This group of kids is going to wake up in 10 years, and all that will be gone, and who they are as people will matter.

“That’s kind of our purpose, and I appreciate the question.”

With an answer like that, Rhule looks capable of joining Tom Osborne in the Memorial Stadium-to-Congress pipeline one day.

5. Maryland is ready to take the next step

A year ago, there was some buzz around Maryland. The Terrapins looked capable of finishing in the Top 25 for the first time since joining the Big Ten.

Maryland finished 7-5 in the regular season, bedeviled by narrow losses to Michigan (34-27), Purdue (31-29) and Ohio State (43-30).

This season will be a disappointment if Maryland doesn’t end the year ranked for the first time since firing Ralph Friedgen in 2010.

“Our program is at a point finally we can say we’re here to compete for Big Ten championships,” said coach Mike Locksley. “You haven’t heard me say that in the previous 4 times I’ve been in front of you guys, but I think now is the time.”

Taulia Tagovailoa turned down a reported 7-figure NIL deal to transfer to an SEC school for the chance to do something special at Maryland.

“Any time people talk about him, he’s ‘Tua’s brother.’ I think being the younger brother, he has that chip on his shoulder,” Locksley said. “I’m definitely banging the drums on believing we have a very talented quarterback who has a chance to be one of the best in the country.”

The buzz over the 2023 Terps has certainly permeated into the locker room.

“I definitely feel we can be that group [that finishes ranked],” said cornerback Tarheeb Still. “And compete for a conference championship, actually. Everyone believes we can do it now. Now it’s a matter of going out and doing it.”

6. I’m still not sold on Ryan Walters

Ryan Walters was unquestionably the best defensive coordinator in college football last season, molding a cast of Lovie Smith recruits into the nation’s top statistical defense.

But I thought he was a curious fit for Purdue when he was hired, and nothing that happened at Media Days altered that perception for me.

It’s not just that The Cradle of Quarterbacks is a strange place for a defensive-minded coach to land. Walters at least recognizes where he’s at, which is why he hired Graham Harrell as offensive coordinator and wooed quarterback Hudson Card in the transfer portal.

But a rookie head coach needs to gain his sea legs. That’s more easily done at the Group of 5 level, as demonstrated by current Big Ten coaches PJ Fleck and Luke Fickell.

For instance, you might learn not to make terribly corny quotes right off the bat.

https://twitter.com/VernFunquist/status/1684603785744613384?s=20

Generally speaking, you could tell that public speaking is not Walters’ jam. He ranked a solid 14th among B1G coaches in energy behind the microphone this week.

And no, that doesn’t have bearing on how sharp Walters is with X’s and O’s. But I was at least hoping to see why he knocked Purdue’s socks off in his interview. I did not.

But maybe we’ll see it where it matters — on the field.

7. The B1G is about to take over the sports media landscape

The Big Ten Network has been the face of Big Ten coverage since its inception in 2007. For the first time, BTN felt like it was playing second fiddle at Big Ten Media Days.

That may sound ridiculous given that the BTN set was sitting on the Lucas Oil Stadium 30-yard line. But on Day 1 of Media Days, the conference’s new partners from CBS and NBC were displayed front and center along with FOX holdover Joel Klatt.

The Big Ten’s new commissioner is bullish on the power of network TV. As Petitti noted, 27 of the top 30 college football broadcasts last season were on network TV rather than cable. And he’s right — with more people cutting cords, traditional broadcast TV with a mix of streaming is the way to go.

Every network now airing Big Ten games also airs NFL games, which means we’ll see plenty of cross promotion moving forward. Jim Nantz will be inviting friends to catch Iowa at Nebraska next week, among other matchups.

By the end of the 2020s, the B1G will be the biggest brand name in college sports.