and it is the same reason I think that a lot of those Big 12 teams would have a few more losses if playing up in Big 10 weather (not necessarily saying against Big 10 teams, just up in this weather). It is harder to throw and catch a ball in 20 degree snowy weather with a healthy dose of wind. Not impossible, just much harder.

Unfortunately, those pass happy attacks allow a team to exploit certain imbalances between teams much better in warmer weather, so I think a lot of these “big, slow Big 10 teams” don’t always adjust quite so well when the weather isn’t around to diminish those imbalances.

Another aspect that you didn’t really touch: if you are a speedy receiver, where are you going to want to go play? In warm weather where you will be utilized more AND have better conditions to perform in, or up in the snowy north?

I voted yes.

I think trying to make future schedules based on the current style that your team plays is a mistake. Who knows – two years from now, Devlin could get hurt & maybe we will be a run-only team.

my only reason to vote “no” would be so there would be more time for a playoff ;-)

I don’t think the “built for” aspect applies to the big ten, given other schools who play in poor weather have played more open offense for decades. The Big East plays in the same conditions (with the exception of syracuse) and Montana, Wyoming and many Big West (or whatever they are now) schools play in snowy weather starting in October.

I think the brand and the traditions of the big ten have more to do with the offenses that teams tended to play. Whether we like it or not, this conference has been dominated by OSU and Mich over the past 50 years, and they are the ones who dictated the style of play.

We’ve seen plenty of passing in the big ten since Tiller came to Purdue. In fact, you can probably make the argument that the most run heavy team over the past ten years (this season not withstanding) is the one who plays in a dome (MINN)

No poll is complete without it…

As for the cold weather, I believe improvements in technology and cycling warm footballs into play have significantly reduced the drawbacks to passing in cold weather. If anything, a 50 degree rain in the South may be more of a damper to passing offenses now than a 15 degree clear day.

The big issue is the wind, but that’s a geographical issue. Iowa, Nebraska, Illinois, Oklahoma will always have a few games where the wind is gusting whether it’s September or December. You can’t do much about that aside from build a dome.

But I don’t care about the weather issues. I think it kills us having our teams sit at home while the other top ten teams have an extra week against a major rival and a conference championship game to impress the voters. Nobody has ever jumped another team while sitting at home on their bye week. But teams on their bye week get jumped all the time. Sitting out the last two weeks while Texas, Oklahoma, USC, and Florida are racking up wins hurts us.

and I’d like to see more Southern Teams and Western Teams come play up north in the winter. If the Rose Bowl was played in State College or Columbus I’d bet Big 10 teams would have a decided advantage. Also, to the person that said it can be windy anywhere, that is true but not completely seeing the big picture. In Big 10 Country and the Upper Midwest, the meteorological shifts of fall are more noticeable than in the South and West. They do not see huge cold fronts coming through and gusting winds to 40 mph in late October and November very often. Also, the thought of seeing snow at an ACC or SEC game that doesn’t involve Boston College or Maryland makes me laugh. It takes one hell of a cold snap and hitting it just right to have snow at a Virginia or Virginia Tech game and any farther south is like 1 in a million.

because it’ll help us in the polls…keeps PSU fresh on voters minds. but i want to add Pitt instead of MSU being our last game. bring that back…or i agree by adding some SEC or Big12 team to the end of the season. let those pansies play in real football weather!!!