Big Ten Daily (Aug. 19): Urban Meyer's Biggest Question for Big Ten's New Teams
The battles along the offensive and defensive lines are traditionally where football games are won and lost, especially in the Big Ten. As Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington join the conference, former Florida and Ohio State coach Urban Meyer has some questions about whether or not the former Pac-12 schools will be up for that challenge.
Meyer recently joined The Herd with Colin Cowherd and talked about the biggest change for the four new schools entering the Big Ten.
"The Big Ten, and certainly the top half of the league, had better offensive and defensive linemen than I saw in the Pac-12," Meyer said. "As far as skill, quarterback play, skilled athletes on defense, I think certainly the four teams coming into the Big Ten, they have that skill.
"But the question I have is will they have the guys up front to compete at the highest level, because they're going to jump right in and be one of the top half of the Big Ten, but those teams at the top of the Big Ten, the offensive and defensive lines are pretty rugged."
Meyer knows a thing or two about winning in the Big Ten. During his seven-year run at Ohio State, he led the Buckeyes to an 83-9 record, a 54-4 mark in conference play, three league titles and a national championship.
Ohio State enjoyed a lot of success because of the work done in the trenches. Can the four newcomers fortify their lines enough to compete in the conference?
Washington, Oregon and USC have all enjoyed their fair share of success in recent seasons. UCLA has had some bumpy years, but still has plenty of brand recognition. But those schools found success in the Pac-12 — a league that ditched the smash-mouth style of football long ago.
How prepared are those four schools when it comes to the battles up front? We're going to find out in just a few weeks.
Maryland extends Damon Evans
The University of Maryland and athletic director Damon Evans have agreed to a contract extension. A deal was announced last week, keeping Evans in College Park through the 2028-29 academic year.
Evans has been the athletic director at Maryland since June 2018. He will receive a pay increase, earning an annual salary of $1 million and an annual supplemental income of $280,000, per ESPN.
"In a transformative time in the collegiate landscape, Damon has proved to be an extremely effective leader in guiding our athletic department to championship heights, both on and off the playing fields," university president Darryll Pines said in a statement. "He has positioned our Terrapins for long-term success on the national stage and I couldn't be more pleased to have him leading the department for years to come."
Maryland is scheduled to open the 2024 college football seasonon Saturday, Aug. 31 against UConn.
Connor Stalions lands high school coaching job
Former Michigan staffer Connor Stalions has a new job. The alleged culprit behind the Wolverines' sign-stealing scandal is now a defensive coordinator at Mumford High School in Detroit.
Coach William McMichael confirmed the news to multiple outlets. Stalions is serving as a volunteer on the staff.
McMichael says he's not really worried about the controversy regarding Stalions. He says players at Mumford get along well with the new defensive coordinator and that the sign-stealing scandal has no impact at the high school level.
“They had already gotten to know him as a person, so they love him,” McMichael said, per The Detroit News. “The running joke is they call him ‘Five Star Stalions.’”
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DUSTIN SCHUTTE