Big Ten Harvest: Impressive Debuts for Several Quarterbacks

Ohio State junior quarterback Terrelle Pryor entered the month as either the Heisman favorite or No. 2 candidate on just about every list out there. Pryor, the Buckeyes' leading rusher (and, of course, passer) a year ago did just fine in the Buckeyes' 45-7 defeat of Marshall. He threw the longest touchdown pass (65 yards, to Dane Sanzenbacher) of the week in the Big Ten and completed 17 of 25 passes for 247 yards and three touchdowns.

Still, at least on the season's opening weekend, a few Big Ten quarterbacks who were making their first starts were more impressive. Michigan's Denard Robinson was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week after rushing for a school-record (for a QB) 197 yards and completing 19 of 22 passes for 186 yards. Northwestern's Dan Persa had an even higher completion percentage, hitting on 19 of 21 (90.5%) and throwing three touchdown passes as the Wildcats outlasted Vanderbilt in the SAT Bowl in Nashville. Persa, like Robinson, led his team in rushing with 82 yards.

And then there was Purdue's Robert Marve. While his numbers at Notre Dame were not as impressive (32 of 41 for 220 yards, with two interceptions), Marve warmed up in the second half. The Miami transfer, who sat out last season, showed off his cannon arm, twice launching catchable 55-plus yard missiles (if Golden Tate were his receiver, at least one of them would've been caught). He also scored the Boilermakers' only touchdown, keeping the ball on a 4th-and-1 read option and going 23 yards untouched into the end zone.

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Alas, as Marve crossed the plane of the goal line, he did a somersault, which prompted a flag and a 15-yard penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct (such a play next season will nullify the TD). As Al Lesar of the South Bend Tribune noted, "You can take the guy out of 'The U,' but you can't take 'The U' out of the guy."

It's only the first week and besides, schools such as Ohio State and Penn State that have huge games coming up this weekend had little use for showing their hands against pedestrian opponents. Still, it's always worth noting the teams -- and individuals -- that open a season with momentum. Robinson and Persa certainly did that.

Stock Up: Michigan and Michigan State. Purdue defensive end Ryan Kerrigan. Minnesota's and Wisconsin's offensive line. Iowa running back Adam Robinson.

Stock Down: Penn State. Ron Zook's longevity.

Quick Hitters

Illinois: Illini lose sixth straight to "Arch" rivals Missouri in final game of season-opening series. Next up: Southern Illinois, Sat.

Indiana: Hoosiers hang 51 points on Towson without their most potent offensive weapon, wide receiver Tandon Doss, who missed the game due to injury. Next up: at Western Kentucky Sept. 18.

Iowa: After needing to block two field goals in final seconds to preserve a win against FCS foe Northern Iowa in last season's opener, the Hawkeyes race to a 21-0 first quarter lead against Eastern Illinois. Next up: Iowa State, Sat.

Michigan: QB Denard Robinson outshines Terrelle Pryor, if not everyone in the nation, with 383 yards of total offense in a 30-10 Wolverine win (but RichRod is playing with fire if he allows DR 29 carries per game in future). Next up: at Notre Dame, Sat.

Michigan State: True freshman tailback Le'Veon Bell, third-string on depth chart, rushes for a Spartan frosh record of 141 yards on just 10 carries in a 38-14 win. Next up: Florida Atlantic, in Detroit, Sat.

Minnesota: Even without suspended left tackle Dom Alford, the Golden Gophers rush the ball 67 times in a 24-17 win at Middle Tennessee State. Next up: South Dakota, Sat.

Northwestern: QB Dan Persa completes 19 of 21 passes, throws for three touchdowns, and leads the Wildcats in rushing with 82 yards in a 23-21 win at Vandy. Next up: Illinois State, Sat.

Ohio State: The Senator tests true frosh kicker Drew Basil by making his first collegiate attempt a 52-yarder with the Buckeyes up 14-0 in the first quarter. The kick gets blocked and returned for TD. In the fourth quarter Devin Barclay, not Basil, kicks lone the Ohio State FG. Next up: Miami, Sat.

Penn State: The Nittany Lions trailed FCS Youngstown State 7-6 at home at the 2:00 mark of first half. Don't let that 44-14 final score fool you. Next up: at defending national champion Alabama, Sat..

Purdue: Defensive end Ryan Kerrigan had 2.5 tackles for loss, one for a safety, plus one sack in a 23-12 loss at Notre Dame. Greg Jones has a challenger for conference Defensive Player of the Year. Next up: Western Illinois, Sat.

Wisconsin: At halftime, the Badgers had outgained UNLV 279 yards to 12, but only led 17-14. Next up: San Jose State, Sat.

Between the Quote Marks

"Denard Robinson's going to make people look bad." -- Randy Edsall, Connecticut coach, on the Michigan QB who rushed for 197 yards and threw for 186 in the Wolverines' victory.

"There are days I come off the field not knowing who I wanted to play." -- Penn State coach Joe Paterno, on which of his three quarterbacks he prefers to start.

"It's a relief that we can finally talk about Miami." -- Ohio State wideout Dane Sanzenbacher after Ohio State dispatched of Marshall in its opener.

"Why? Is there a reason to?" -- Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez, when asked on Monday if he had spoken to third-string sophomore QB Tate Forcier (who started all 12 games last season).

Numbers

• More fans watched Michigan play at the Big(ger) House (113,090, the most to ever see any football game live) than saw Indiana, Northwestern and Wisconsin (103,559) combined. You also could have subbed in Minnesota (25,908, at MTSU) for any of those three.

• Wisconsin had the most prolific single quarter, outscoring UNLV 24-0 in the third quarter, in a game played in 90-degree heat in the desert despite the 8 p.m. kickoff.

• Illinois kicker Derek Dimke converted a career-long 52-yard field goal in the Illini's loss to Missouri.

• He wasn't quite Oregon's Kenjon Barner, but Iowa running back Adam Robinson had 109 yards and three touchdowns in the first half of the Hawkeyes' 37-7 win.

• Making his first start in front of more than 101,000 fans at Beaver Stadium, Youngstown State's Kurt Hess still completed 21 of 25 passes for two touchdowns and no interceptions. That's bad news for Penn State fans as the Nittany Lions head south to face the Crimson Tide.

• Keith Smith of Purdue had 12 receptions at Notre Dame.

• Chris Colasanti of Penn State finished with 13 tackles.

• Minnesota controlled the ball for more than 45 minutes in its ground-oriented defeat of MTSU. Duane Bennett rushed for 187 yards, becoming the first Golden Gopher to have a 100-yard game since 2008.

On the Horizon

Get past the directional Illinois games and you've got three classic contests this Saturday. Penn State visits Alabama in a rematch of the 1979 Sugar Bowl and Ohio State plays host to Miami in a meeting of the 2002 Fiesta Bowl participants (both games decided the national championship). ESPN's College GameDay will be in Tuscaloosa because: 1. The network's ongoing crush on Nick Saban; 2. Bobby Bowden will be on hand, so there's the octogenarian angle; and 3. Alabama, after all, is the defending national champion.

Miami and Ohio State is the better matchup in terms of talent and competitiveness. Still, in terms of which game should provide the most breathless fourth quarter, I'm thinking South Bend is the place to be. The two schools with the best winning percentages in college football history both had encouraging opening wins after a couple of down years. Just last Saturday ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit lamented that the Fighting Irish had no "athletes" on defense. They better find some quick if they are going to contain Denard Robinson, who will be making his first road start.

The line on Michigan-Notre Dame opened at five points (the Irish are the favorites), but it says here that it'll be down to three or 2 1/2 by Saturday.