Blogpoll Preseason Poll Roundtable

A pretty simple one this week: according to the preseason poll, who is overrated and who is underrated?

First, a note about the Badgers: they're fine at #9. A little lower than I voted them (fifth; my ballot can be seen here), but just fine for the time being. They've definitely got top ten talent and top-notch coaching; the question is whether a first-year starter at quarterback is going to be a recipe for disaster. (Camp Lambeau thinks we're in for a year of underthrows, picks, and batted balls) ... I'm not as pessimistic but he's got some pretty solid arguments to back up his thoughts.)

Who's Overrated?

#3 Michigan. I voted them sixth and will be moving them down in this week's poll. Their white-hot offense will be a boon early on in games, but Lloyd Carr's deep-seated conservatism will shelve everything but running up the gut every time the Wolverines have a double-digit lead sometime late in the third quarter. Expect losses to Ohio State (for the fourth straight year) and in their bowl game (for the fifth), plus a loss at Camp Randall. Michigan finishes the season with three losses again. Mark it.

#10 Louisville. Yeah, they won their BCS Bowl last year. (They played Wake Forest, and someone had to win.) Brian Brohm and his offense is going to put up points, but every game will be a footrace as their defense is going to be atrocious. Look for these guys to drop a couple games, but those losses may not come until season's end -- their three November games are at West Virginia, at South Florida, and vs. Rutgers, and all three are potential losses.

#18 Florida State. Last I checked, these guys still had Drew Weatherford starting at quarterback, a guy whose resume conists of cringe-inducing losses. Maybe Bobby Bowden's new brain trust can get the house in order but until I have proof of that I'm not voting for the Seminoles.

Who's Underrated?

#16 UCLA. Their out-of-conference games (at Utah, BYU and Notre Dame at home) keep the Bruins relatively close to home all season long, and each will provide an above-average challenge, keeping them ready to play all season long. If UCLA can get past Cal, that season-ending date against USC might become the PAC-10 title game. I don't really have strong feelings about other teams; UCLA is the only one that stands out as egregiously underrated to me.

LOCK IT: Wisconsin to beat Michigan

So says Colin Cowherd (link via Mgoblog). As The Diag puts it:

Wisconsin over Michigan. Wow, thanks for going out on a limb there Colin. The #7 team in the country over the #5 team in the country, at home, at night, in November? How could anyone ever predict an upset of such Biblical proportions?

Indeed. The funny thing is that both teams have major stumbling blocks on their schedules prior to this date; UW visits OSU and Penn State, and Michigan hosts Oregon and Notre Dame. Should the Badgers clear their hurdles and the Wolverines pick up a couple losses, it will be amusing to watch as #3 Wisconsin upsets #20 Michigan.

Thursday Badger Bullets

Four quick ones:

* I was contacted by the Big Ten Network to interview its president, Mark Silverman, but I declined. I honestly couldn't formulate any intelligent questions at all (I know what the programming's going to be, I'm very much in favor of being able to watch the station, and they don't have a deal with Charter yet, which pretty much makes up the entire spectrum of my concerns.) However, Brian of the oft-linked Mgoblog did, and flaunts his acumen here. Very much worth a read, including a list of stations that charge a whole lot more per subscriber than the Big Ten Network does (BTN is looking for $1.10 per customer, which was deemed ludicrous by some, including myself ... but then, I didn't know that Comcast Sports Chicago pulls an amazing $3.75 per!) And of course, your headquarters for this type of knowledge has always been the Hoosier Report, which, given the state of Indiana athletics, has managed to avoid the seemingly-inevitable hydrocodone addiction such fanship would bring by instead focusing on media matters.

* Bret Bielema does some good, promoting the Restoring Hope Transplant House in a new PSA. His personal experience with the importance of organ donation adds an incredible amount to this message. We're proud of you, Coach.

* Wisconsin has picked up a wide receiver transfer, but it's not something to get overly excited about yet: Chris Maragos is transferring from Western Michigan, where he walked on. He is leaving because he did not receive a scholarship from the Broncos. Who knows, maybe he'll be the next Jim Leonhard-esque story of triumph for the Badgers. Here's hoping.

* The predictions continue to pour in; this one, from the Prognostication Station, sees the Badgers finishing third in the Big Ten -- tied with Michigan. They believe Penn State and Ohio State will be co-champs, citing Michigan's weak run defense and an overwhelming road schedule for the Badgers. For what it's worth, they predict an undefeated home slate for UW, which means a win over the Wolverines, but I don't know how much weight I'd give a prediction that predicts a conference title for Penn State based on its favorable home schedule and one for Ohio State by virtue of the fact that "Tressel owns Carr."