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Final Big Ten Football Release
Complete Release in PDF Format
Jan. 11, 2008
BIG TEN BOWL WRAPUP Carr Ends Michigan Career with Bowl Win: Michigan's Lloyd Carr wrapped up his coaching career with a victory over nationally-ranked Florida in the Capital One Bowl to improve to 122-40 in his 13 seasons leading the Wolverines. The Michigan mentor picked up his sixth bowl victory, the second-highest total among current Big Ten coaches, and ends his time in Ann Arbor as two of only 12 coaches with 100 or more triumphs at a conference institution. The unranked Wolverines rallied from a 35-31 deficit against the 12th-ranked Gators behind Capital One Bowl MVP Chad Henne, who tossed an 18-yard scoring strike with 4:12 on the clock to give UM a lead they would not relinquish and send Carr out victorious in his final game. Paterno Builds on NCAA Record for Bowl Wins: In his 500th game as a head coach and the 40th bowl game for the Nittany Lions, Penn State's Joe Paterno led his program past Texas A&M in the Valero Alamo Bowl to win his NCAA record 23rd bowl contest. The PSU mentor is now 23-10-1 in postseason games and has been victorious in three straight bowl trips to improve his bowl mark to 9-2 since joining the Big Ten. Running back Rodney Kinlaw posted 143 yards on the ground to collect Offensive MVP honors while linebacker Sean Lee collected a game-high 14 tackles to earn defensive accolades. Purdue Wins Shootout in Motor City Bowl: Purdue kicker Chris Summers connected on a 40-yard field goal with no time left to give the Boilermakers a 51-48 victory over Central Michigan in the Motor City Bowl. Purdue head coach Joe Tiller picked up his fourth bowl win in West Lafayette, equaling the school's total postseason wins prior to his arrival in 1997. Quarterback Curtis Painter set a school record with 546 passing yards, the third-highest total in Big Ten history, and three touchdowns. In addition, three different wideouts eclipsed the 100-yard receiving barrier, marking just the fourth time in Purdue history and the first time in a bowl game that three receivers surpassed 100 yards. Bowl Attendance: Four of the Big Ten's eight bowl games drew sellout crowds, including packed houses for the BCS National Championship Game and the Rose, Capital One and Valero Alamo Bowls. The conference's eight postseason games attracted 525,679 fans for an average of 65,710 per contest. The BCS National Championship Game was played in front of 79,651 fans, the largest crowd to see a football game in the history of the Superdome. The Valero Alamo Bowl attracted 66,166 people, making it the most attended sporting event in the history of the Alamodome, breaking the previous record of 65,875 patrons set during the 2006 event featuring Iowa and Texas. Big Ten Equals Conference Record with Eight Bowl Teams: The Big Ten's eight bowl berths this season matched the conference record set following the 2003 campaign. The conference's eight postseason participants included Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue and Wisconsin. In addition, 10 of the Big Ten's 11 programs reached bowl-eligible status for the first time in conference history. However, no bowl berths were available for Iowa and Northwestern, two teams that end the 2007 campaign at 6-6 overall. The Big Ten qualified seven schools for postseason play after the 1993, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2002, 2005 and 2006 seasons. The conference sent six or more teams to bowl games for the ninth straight year and 16th time overall. Conference programs have now made 67 bowl appearances over the last decade (1998-2007) and 234 appearances all-time. Buckeyes Return to National Championship Game: Ohio State battled LSU in the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) National Championship game, marking the Buckeyes' second straight appearance in the national title contest and third shot at the national crown in the last six years. After a 14-point loss to the Tigers, OSU is now 1-2 in title games, knocking off top-ranked Miami (Fla.) in the 2003 Fiesta Bowl and falling to Florida in the 2007 championship tilt. Rare Company: Ohio State joined Florida State (1999, 2000, 2001) and Oklahoma (2001, 2004, 2005) as just the third program in the 10-year history of the BCS to make three appearances in the national championship contest. OSU is also the fifth school to earn back-to-back berths in the national title contest, joining the Seminoles (three straight appearances from 1999-2001), the Sooners (2004-05), Miami (2002-03) and USC (2005-06). On the Road Again: Five of the Big Ten's eight bowl matchups were virtual road games, with conference teams facing schools from the state in which the bowl was played. The Big Ten's "road" bowl contests included Purdue against Central Michigan in the Motor City Bowl (Detroit, Mich.), Penn State versus Texas A&M in the Valero Alamo Bowl (San Antonio, Texas), Michigan against Florida in the Capital One Bowl (Orlando, Fla.), Illinois versus Southern California in the Rose Bowl (Pasadena, Calif.) and Ohio State against Louisiana State in the BCS National Championship game (New Orleans, La.). The Big Ten leads all conferences with nine "road" bowl games over the last three seasons. Over that same time span, the ACC and Big 12 rank second with four "road" bowl games, followed by the Big East (3), Pac-10 (1) and SEC (1). Following the 2006 campaign, the Wolverines faced USC in the Rose Bowl while Iowa battled Texas in the Alamo Bowl. In 2005, the Hawkeyes took on Florida in the Outback Bowl while the Nittany Lions squared off against Florida State in the Orange Bowl. Big Ten BCS Duos: The Big Ten sent two schools to BCS games for the seventh time in the 10-year history of the system and the fifth time in the last six seasons. Since the inception of the BCS in 1998, the Big Ten has qualified 17 teams for BCS bowls, more than any other conference. The SEC ranks second with 15 BCS appearances followed by the Big 12 (14), Pac-10 (12), ACC (10) and Big East (10). The Big Ten also sent a pair of squads to BCS games after the following seasons - 1998 (Ohio State, Wisconsin), 1999 (Michigan, Wisconsin), 2002 (Iowa, Ohio State), 2003 (Michigan, Ohio State), 2005 (Ohio State, Penn State) and 2006 (Michigan, Ohio State). BCS Depth: Seven different Big Ten schools have qualified to play in a BCS game, including both Illinois and Ohio State this season. The conference's previous BCS-bowl participants include Iowa, Michigan, Penn State, Purdue and Wisconsin. The Big Ten's seven-team BCS contingent is tied for the lead among all conferences along with the Big 12 and Pac-10, followed by the SEC (six different teams), ACC (five teams) and Big East (four teams). BCS Success: Only 10 schools have produced multiple wins in BCS games and the Big Ten boasts two of those programs in Ohio State and Wisconsin. The Buckeyes now have a 4-2 record in BCS action, tied for the second-most wins in BCS games with LSU behind only the five triumphs for USC. OSU has posted three triumphs in the Fiesta Bowl (2002, 2003, 2005) and a Sugar Bowl win (1998). The Badgers are 2-0 in BCS matchups with back-to-back Rose Bowl victories following the 1998 and 1999 seasons. Illinois appeared in its second BCS contest after playing in the 2002 Sugar Bowl. The Illini are one of 17 schools to appear in multiple BCS games, a group that includes the Big Ten's Michigan, Ohio State and Wisconsin. Buckeyes Earn Automatic BCS Bid: Ohio State collected the Big Ten's automatic BCS berth for the second straight year and the third time since the system's inception in 1998. The Buckeyes also earned the automatic bid in 2002 and 2006 while posting perfect regular-season marks, winning the national championship with an undefeated record in 2002. OSU also nabbed an at-large spot in a BCS game in 1998, 2003 and 2005. OSU is one of six Big Ten schools in the 10 years of the BCS to gain automatic qualification joining Illinois (2001), Michigan (2003, 2004), Penn State (2005), Purdue (2000), and Wisconsin (1998, 1999). Bowl Coaching Breakdown: The eight Big Ten coaches that reached bowl games this season now sport a combined record of 39-34-1 (.527) in bowl games as collegiate head coaches and a mark of 24-22 (.522) since they joined the conference. Penn State's Joe Paterno holds the NCAA record with 23 bowl wins, including a 9-2 mark since joining the Big Ten. Michigan's Lloyd Carr wrapped up his coaching career ranked second with six wins, followed by Ohio State's Jim Tressel (four wins) and Purdue's Joe Tiller (four wins). Bowl Veterans: The Big Ten boasts three of the 11 programs with 38 or more bowl appearances in Penn State (8th - 40), Michigan (T9th - 39) and Ohio State (T9th - 39). The Nittany Lions rank third all-time with 26 bowl triumphs, the Wolverines are tied for 12th with 19 victories while the Buckeyes are knotted at 15th with 18 wins. Wolverines' Bowl Streak: Michigan's current streak of 33 consecutive bowls is the longest active streak in the nation. BIG TEN BOWL TOP PERFORMERS OFFENSE DEFENSE SPECIAL TEAMS 2007 SEASON IN REVIEW Big Ten Ties for Conference Lead With Five Ranked Teams: When the final national rankings were released following bowl play, the Big Ten tied the Big 12 and SEC for the conference lead with five teams appearing among the top 25 of either the Associated Press (AP) or USA Today coaches polls. The Big Ten's nationally-ranked contingent included Ohio State (No. 5 AP/No. 4 USA Today), Michigan (No. 18/19), Illinois (No. 20/18), Wisconsin (No. 24/21) and Penn State (No. -/25). The Big 12 and SEC also boasted five Top 25 teams in the final polls, followed by the Pac-10 (4), ACC (3) and Big East (2). Illinois, Michigan and Ohio State Earn National Coaching Accolades: Three Big Ten mentors were honored for their efforts this season as Illinois head coach Ron Zook was tabbed as the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year, Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr was named the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year and Ohio State defensive coordinator Jim Heacock was honored with the Frank Broyles Award, given to the nation's top assistant coach. Zook led the Fighting Illini to the best turnaround in college football this season and a berth in the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1984. The 2007 Big Ten Coach of the Year guided Illinois to a 9-4 record, surpassing the team's win total from the past four seasons. The program's turnaround also marked the biggest in school history from one season to another, improving by seven wins over the 2006 total. Carr received the Dodd Award, which honors the head coach whose program represents quality on and off the field and stresses the importance of academic excellence and sense of duty to return something to the community. Carr is the second Michigan coach to win the Dodd Award, joining 1977 winner Bo Schembechler, and the second Big Ten mentor to be honored in the last three years along with Penn State's Joe Paterno, who won the award in 2005. Heacock led an Ohio State defense which topped the country in scoring, total and passing defense during the regular season to help the Buckeyes earn their third straight Big Ten title and return to the BCS National Championship Game. The last Big Ten mentor to take home the Broyles Award was Michigan's Jim Hermmann in 1997. Big Ten Standouts Claim National Honors: The Big Ten collected two individual awards this season, including accolades for a pair of linebackers. Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year James Laurinaitis of Ohio State became the eighth conference standout to win the Butkus Award, given to the nation's top linebacker and named after former Illinois All-American Dick Butkus. Laurinaitis is only the second Buckeye in school history to win the Butkus Award along with Andy Katzenmoyer, who was honored in 1997. The last Big Ten standout to take home the Butkus Award was Penn State's Paul Posluszny in 2005. Fellow PSU linebacker Dan Connor earned the Bednarik Award as the nation's top defensive player. Connor gives the Nittany Lions the last three Bednarik Awards after Posluszny was honored following the 2005 and 2006 campaigns, becoming only the second two-time winner of the award along with current Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald (1995 and 1996). The Big Ten has now claimed the Bednarik Award on seven occasions overall. More All-Americans Than Any Other Conference: The Big Ten topped all conferences with 18 players named to the All-America first or second teams as chosen by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), Associated Press (AP), Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), Walter Camp Football Foundation and Sporting News. The Pac-10 ranked second to the Big Ten with 15 All-Americans on those five first or second teams, followed by the ACC (13), Big 12 (13), SEC (13) and Big East (9). Seven Big Ten schools were represented on those five All-America squads, a total that tied for second with the Big 12, behind only the ACC (9 teams) and ahead of the Pac-10 (6), Big East (5) and SEC (5). Everybody's All-American: The Big Ten's group of 18 All-Americans chosen by the AFCA, AP, FWAA, Walter Camp and Sporting News included two standouts named to all five first teams -- Michigan offensive lineman Jake Long and Ohio State linebacker James Laurinaitis. The Big Ten boasted four consensus All-Americans, including Long, Laurinaitis, Illinois linebacker J Leman and Penn State linebacker Dan Connor. Other first-team honorees were Illini offensive lineman Martin O'Donnell (AP), Indiana defensive lineman Greg Middleton (Sporting News), OSU offensive lineman Kirk Barton (AFCA) and the Wisconsin duo of tight end Travis Beckum (Walter Camp) and kicker Taylor Mehlhaff (AFCA). Second-team selections included the Hoosiers pair of wideout James Hardy and kicker Austin Starr, the Wolverines trio of linebacker Shawn Crable, running back Mike Hart and wide receiver Mario Manningham, Michigan State defensive lineman Jonal Saint-Dic and the Buckeyes threesome of defensive lineman Vernon Gholston, defensive back Malcolm Jenkins and running back Chris Wells. Repeat the Feat: Long and Laurinaitis were joined by Arkansas' Darren McFadden as the three players to repeat as consensus All-Americans. Long is the first Wolverine to earn back-to-back consensus nods since strong safety Tripp Welborne was honored in 1989 and 1990. The last UM offensive lineman to repeat as a consensus All-American was guard Mark Donahue in 1976 and 1977. Laurinaitis gives the Buckeyes a consensus All-American at linebacker for the for the fourth straight season after A.J. Hawk was honored in consecutive seasons in 2004 and 2005. Smart Players: The Big Ten led all conferences with eight student-athletes named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America football teams. Six of the Big Ten's eight honorees were chosen for the first team, which also topped all conferences. The Big 12 ranked second with four first-team selections. The Academic All-America first-team honorees from the Big Ten included Illinois' Ryan McDonald, Indiana's Austin Starr, Iowa's Mike Klinkenborg and Adam Shada, Ohio State's Brian Robiskie and Penn State's Gerald Cadogan. Second team honors went to Illinois' J Leman and Purdue's Jared Armstrong. Klinkenborg and Shada earned their second consecutive first-team accolades after being honored last season. To be eligible for Academic All-America honors, a student-athlete must be in at least his second year of athletic eligibility, be a first team or key performer and carry a cumulative 3.20 grade point average. Ten Big Ten Teams Finish .500 or Better: An unprecedented 10 of the 11 Big Ten programs concluded the 2007 campaign at .500 or better. A conference-record eight teams took part in postseason play -- Ohio State (11-2), Illinois (9-4), Michigan (9-4), Penn State (9-4), Wisconsin (9-4), Purdue (8-5), Indiana (7-6) and Michigan State (7-6) -- while Iowa and Northwestern wrapped up their seasons with identical 6-6 marks. Prior to this season, the Big Ten had never produced 10 teams with records of .500 or better in a single year. The conference has ended a season with nine teams at or above .500 on four occasions -- 1904, 1903, 1901 and 1900. The last season that eight Big Ten teams finished at .500 or better was in 1999, the first time that feat had been accomplished since the 1960 campaign. Five Big Ten Teams with Nine or More Wins for Fourth Time in History: For just the fourth time in Big Ten annals, five different conference teams compiled nine or victories. With postseason play complete, Ohio State (11-2), Illinois (9-4), Michigan (9-4), Penn State (9-4) and Wisconsin (9-4) all hit or surpassed the nine-win barrier. The last time the Big Ten produced five teams with nine or more wins was during the 2003 campaign, a feat accomplished on only two other occasions -- in 1998 and 1903. Big Ten Sets Record with Eight Teams Boasting Seven or More Wins: For the first time in Big Ten history, eight different conference teams have produced seven or more victories. The conference has boasted seven schools with seven or more victories on multiple occasions, most recently in 2005 when seven teams reached that plateau after bowl competition. Record Non-Conference Success: With bowl play now complete, the Big Ten equaled the modern era record with 38 non-conference wins while also establishing a new Big Ten mark with 35 non-conference wins prior to postseason action. The Big Ten ended the year with a record of 38-14 (.731) outside of the conference to win more than 70 percent of its matchups for just the third time in the last eight seasons. The Big Ten's 38 victories equals the modern era record set during the 2002 season (38-15). In regular-season play only, Big Ten programs produced a record of 35-9 in non-conference outings. The previous conference record for out-of-conference wins was 33 triumphs set prior to postseason play last season (33-12) and in 2002 (33-13). The Big Ten's all-time record for non-conference triumphs occurred when the conference built a 57-3-1 out-of-conference mark in 1905, the sixth straight year with 40 or more non-conference triumphs. Rodriguez Named Michigan Head Coach: On Dec. 17, 2007, Rich Rodriguez was announced as the 18th head coach in Michigan football history. Rodriguez comes to Michigan after spending seven years as head coach at his alma mater, West Virginia, where he led the Mountaineers to a 60-26 record, four Big East titles and six consecutive bowl game bids. Following a 10-2 season when his team won the Big East title and a Bowl Championship Series berth, he was a finalist for the 2007 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award, which honors the college football coaches who best exemplify responsibility and excellence on and off the field. Rodriguez was the 2003 and 2005 Big East Coach of the Year. Under his guidance, WVU has claimed four of the last five Big East championships and recorded three consecutive seasons (2005-07) of double-digit victories for the first time in school history. Prior to accepting the West Virginia job in 2000, Rodriguez served as offensive coordinator and associate head coach for Tommy Bowden at Clemson in 1999 and 2000. He spent the previous two years as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for Bowden at Tulane. A member of West Virginia's 1981-84 teams, Rodriguez was a three-year letterwinner (1982-84) as a defensive back for coach Don Nehlen, who served as an assistant coach at Michigan for Bo Schembechler from 1977-79. Ohio State Claims Third Straight Big Ten Championship: Ohio State became the first conference team in more than a decade to claim three straight titles by picking up a road win over Michigan to earn the 2007 Big Ten Championship and the conference's automatic berth into the Bowl Championship Series. The Buckeyes clinched three consecutive crowns for the first time since posting six straight titles from 1972-77. OSU is also the first conference program to accomplish the feat since the Wolverines won at least a share of five consecutive championships from 1988-92. Ohio State claimed back-to-back outright titles for the first time since the 1954 and 1955 campaigns, the first conference school to win two straight outright crowns since Michigan in 1991 and 1992. OSU now has 32 Big Ten Championships, which ranks second only to the 42 titles earned by the Wolverines. The Buckeyes have won four conference titles in head coach Jim Tressel's seven years at the helm and five crowns in the last decade, splitting the title in 1998, 2002 and 2005. Michigan ranks second to Ohio State with four championships in the last 10 years (1998, 2000, 2003, 2004), followed by a pair of first-place finishes for Iowa (2002, 2004) and Wisconsin (1998, 1999) and one title for Northwestern (2000). Tressel Joins Rare Coaching Fraternity: After claiming the 2007 Big Ten Championship, Ohio State's Jim Tressel became the first Buckeyes mentor and just the seventh coach in conference annals to produce four titles in their first seven years on campus. The only other Big Ten head coaches to win at least four Big Ten titles in their first seven years include Illinois' Bob Zuppke (four from 1913-19), Michigan's Harry Kipke (four from 1929-35), Bo Schembechler (five from 1969-75) and Fielding Yost (five from 1901-07) and Minnesota's Bernie Bierman (five from 1932-38) and Henry Williams (four from 1900-06). Tressel is also the first coach to lead a team to three straight Big Ten titles since Michigan's Gary Moeller accomplished the feat in his first three seasons from 1990-92. He is only the second Buckeyes' mentor to win three straight titles along with the legendary Woody Hayes, who produced three straight crowns from 1968-70 before winning at least a share of six straight titles from 1972-77. Tressel rates second among active conference coaches with four Big Ten Championships behind only Michigan's Lloyd Carr, who has claimed five titles in his 13 years in Ann Arbor. Special Seasons Across the Big Ten: In addition to Ohio State winning the Big Ten Championship and a record 10 conference teams becoming bowl-eligible, a number of Big Ten programs produced impressive seasons. Below is a breakdown of accomplishments from the Big Ten's eight bowl participants: Michigan's Carr Announces Retirement: Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr announced his retirement from coaching after 28 seasons with the Wolverine program. Carr is second to only Bennie Oosterbaan (31 years; 20 years as an assistant and 11 years as head coach) in years of service in Ann Arbor. He coached his 162nd and final game as head coach by leading the Wolverines past Florida in the Capital One Bowl and will now stay on with the Michigan athletic department as an associate athletics director. As head coach, Carr compiled a 122-40 overall record and ends his career ranked sixth among all coaches in Big Ten history with a .753 winning percentage, trailing only Fielding Yost (.833) and Bo Schembechler (.796) of Michigan, Henry Williams (.786) of Minnesota, Fritz Crisler (.769) of both Minnesota and Michigan and Woody Hayes (.761) of Ohio State. Carr has led the Wolverines to six 10-win seasons and trails only Yost (165-29-10) and Schembechler (194-48-5) in career victories at Michigan. Carr is just the eighth coach in conference history to claim five or more championships. He has been a part of 13 Big Ten Championship teams during his tenure, eight as an assistant and five as head coach (1997, 1998, 2000, 2003 and 2004). Carr led the Wolverines to the 1997 national championship, the school's first title in 49 years, with a 21-16 victory over Washington State in the 1998 Rose Bowl. Five Million Fan March: For the third straight season and just the fifth time in Big Ten history, the conference surpassed the five million mark in overall attendance with a total of 5,408,019 fans attending 76 contests this year. The Big Ten's attendance in all games ranks as the second-highest total in conference annals behind only the 2002 campaign, when 5,499,439 patrons passed through the turnstiles. Conference schools averaged 71,158 fans per home contest this season, the second-highest average trailing only the 2005 season (72,566 per game). The Big Ten also broke the three-million barrier in conference games only with 3,143,908 fans attending 44 contests on the year, an average of 71,452 patrons per outing -- the second-highest total and average attendance numbers in Big Ten history behind only the 2005 numbers (3,175,427 total; 72,169 average). Michigan packed 111,941 fans into Michigan Stadium in their regular-season finale on Nov. 17, the second-best attendance in school history behind only the 112,118 patrons who attended the 2003 Ohio State matchup. Most Packed Houses Ever: After producing three more full houses in the final weekend of regular-season action, the Big Ten set a new conference record with 42 sellouts this season. Big Ten schools ended the year with 42 packed houses in 76 games, breaking the previous high of 39 sellouts established in 2004. Indiana produced its first sellout on the year in the regular-season finale against Purdue, which means nine of the conference's 11 schools have now featured at least one packed house this season. Iowa and Michigan also filled their stadiums during the final weekend of regular-season play and sold out every home game during the 2007 campaign, a feat also accomplished by Ohio State, Penn State and Wisconsin. Nation's Best Fans: Three Big Ten teams stand atop the NCAA rankings for average attendance while six conference programs rate among the top 22 in the country overall, which ranks second to the SEC (7 of top 22) for the national lead. Michigan, Penn State and Ohio State rank first, second and third, respectively, in both total and average attendance. The Wolverines set an NCAA record for single-season attendance with 882,115 fans showing up for eight home outings this year for an average of 110,264 patrons per game. The Nittany Lions ranked second with 762,419 fans in seven home contests (108,917 avg.) while the Buckeyes rated third by welcoming 735,773 patrons for seven outings (105,110 avg.). Other Big Ten schools to appear among the top 22 in average attendance are Wisconsin (15th at 81,747), Iowa (21st at 70,585) and Michigan State (22nd at 70,540). Only 22 schools broke the 70,000 barrier in average attendance this season. Three Big Ten Standouts Hit Single-Season Records: Iowa punter Ryan Donahue, Michigan State kick returner Devin Thomas and Purdue quarterback Curtis Painter all set or equaled Big Ten single-season records with their performances in 2007. Donahue recorded 86 punts to break the single-season record of 85 boots shared by Illinois' Terry Masar (1971) and the Hawkeyes' Dave Holsclaw (1978). Thomas ended the year with 1,135 kickoff return yards after racking up 178 yards in the Champs Sports Bowl. He surpassed the Boilermakers' Dorien Bryant, who became the first Big Ten player to surpass the 1,000-yard mark in kickoff return yardage just two days earlier when he produced 66 yards in the Motor City Bowl to end his final season with 1,007 yards. The previous Big Ten record holder was Iowa's Earl Douthitt, who collected 994 kickoff return yards in 1973. Also in the Motor City Bowl, Painter threw 54 passes to boost his season total to 569 attempts, equalling the Big Ten single-season mark set by fellow-Boilermaker Drew Brees in 1998. Standing Among the Big Ten's Best: Four Big Ten student-athletes wrapped up their college careers among the conference's top 10 career leaders in various statistical categories. Michigan quarterback Chad Henne completed his collegiate career by completing 25-of-39 passes for 373 yards and three touchdowns in the Capital One Bowl victory over Florida and appears in six different areas. He ranks among the top five in career touchdown passes (2nd with 87), completions (3rd with 828), attempts (3rd with 1,387) and yards (5th with 9,715) and among the top 10 in total offensive plays (6th with 1,567) and yards (6th with 9,400). Joining Henne in the Wolverines backfield for the last four seasons was running back Mike Hart, who posted 129 yards on 32 carries in the Capital One Bowl to become just the fourth player in Big Ten annals to surpass 5,000 rushing yards and 1,000 rushing attempts. Hart ends his college career with 5,040 yards, to rank behind only Wisconsin Heisman Trophy winner Ron Dayne (7,125 yards from 1996-99), Ohio State two-time Heisman Trophy winner Archie Griffin (5,589 from 1972-75) and Indiana's Anthony Thompson (5,299 from 1986-89). Hart also collected 1,015 attempts to rate behind Dayne (1,220 attempts), Thompson (1,161) and Michigan State's Lorenzo White (1,082 from 1984-87). Two wideouts wrapped up their college careers among the Big Ten career receiving leaders in Purdue's Dorien Bryant and Indiana's James Hardy. Bryant ends his four-year stint in West Lafayette rated second with 292 career receptions, trailing only fellow Boilermaker Taylor Stubblefield (325 from 2001-04), and also became only the fourth pass catcher in Big Ten annals to surpass 3,500 receiving yards. Bryant's final total of 3,544 yards through the air ranks third in conference annals among a group that includes Purdue's John Standeford (3,788 from 2000-03), Stubblefield (3,629 from 2001-04) and Michigan's Braylon Edwards (3,541 from 2001-04). In only three seasons in Bloomington, Hardy hauled in 36 career touchdown passes to rank third behind only the Michigan duo of Edwards (39 from 2001-04) and Anthony Carter (37 from 1979-82). Painter Ready to Chase Records in 2008: In addition to the standouts noted above, Purdue signal caller Curtis Painter cracked the top 10 in two more areas following an outstanding bowl performance and will enter his senior season among the top 10 in four offensive categories. Painter completed 35-of-54 passes for a career-high and school record 546 yards, the third-highest total in Big Ten history, and three touchdowns to lead the Boilermakers to a Motor City Bowl victory. The junior's 546-yard effort trails only the performances by Illinois' Dave Wilson (621 yards at Ohio State in 1980) and Iowa's Chuck Hartlieb (558 yards at Indiana in 1988) in conference annals and broke the school record of 522 yards shared by Drew Brees (1998 vs. Minnesota) and Kyle Orton (2004 vs. Indiana), which now ranks fourth overall. Painter, who entered bowl season already ranked among the Big Ten's top 10 career leaders in passing attempts and completions, cracked the conference's top 10 in passing yards and total offensive yards. The Boilermakers quarterback will enter his senior season with 8,763 passing yards (9th in Big Ten history), 1,269 attempts (7th), 760 completions (9th) and 9,137 total offensive yards (7th). He is also near the top 10 with 1,421 total offensive plays and 54 touchdown passes. Paterno and Carr in Big Ten Century Club: Penn State's Joe Paterno and Michigan's Lloyd Carr both picked up bowl wins this season and remain two of only 12 coaches with 100 or more wins at a Big Ten school. Both coaches collected nine wins this season to move past current Wisconsin Director of Athletics Barry Alvarez, who wrapped up his 16-year coaching tenure in Madison following the 2005 campaign with a record of 118-73-4. Paterno has built a mark of 125-58 since the Nittany Lions joined the conference in 1993 to rank eighth, just six wins shy of Illinois' Robert Zuppke (131-81-13) for seventh place. Carr rates just below Paterno with a record of 122-40 in his 13 seasons in Ann Arbor. Big Ten Individual Leaders . . . : The conference crowned new statistical champions for conference games only in all categories appearing in the records book. Michigan State and Ohio State led the way with a pair of statistical champions. For the Spartans, wide receiver Devin Thomas topped the Big Ten with 7.38 receptions per game while running back Jehuu Caulcrick led the conference with 11.2 points per outing. Thomas hauled in 7.38 passes per game to become the first MSU wideout to rank first in catches per contests since 1978, when Kirk Gibson stood atop the charts with 3.8 receptions per game. Caulcrick tallied 15 touchdowns in eight conference games for an average of 11.2 points per contest. He is the first Spartan to lead the Big Ten in scoring since kicker Dave Rayner rated first with 10.4 points per outing in 2004 and the first non-kicker from MSU to lead the conference in points since running back Sedrick Irvin topped all players with 11.3 points per game in 1996. For the Buckeyes, running back Chris Wells produced a conference-best 140.2 rushing yards per outing while quarterback Todd Boeckman ranked first with a 143.0 pass efficiency rating in Big Ten games only. Wells is the first OSU standout to lead the conference in rushing since Keith Byars topped the charts in back-to-back seasons from 1983-84. Ohio State produced the Big Ten's most efficient passer for the third straight year after Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith stood atop the charts at the end of the 2005 and 2006 campaigns. Northwestern quarterback C.J. Bachér led the Big Ten with 302.2 yards of total offense per contest, the second Wildcat signal caller to rank first in the last three years along with Brett Basanez, who appeared first in 2005. Michigan wide receiver Mario Manningham topped the conference with 109.8 receiving yards per game, the first Wolverine to rate first in that category since Braylon Edwards in 2004. Minnesota punter Justin Kucek averaged a conference-high 43.6 yards per punt to become the first Gopher to lead the way in punting since Adam Kelly in 1984. . . . and Team Leaders: In the team statistics, Big Ten Champion Ohio State dominated the defensive side of the ball by leading the conference in all four major statistical categories -- total, scoring, rushing and passing defense. The Buckeyes topped the Big Ten by allowing only 236.1 total yards, 12.9 points, 66.8 rushing yards and 169.4 passing yards per outing this season. OSU has now led the conference in all four major defensive categories twice in the last three years after accomplishing the feat in 2005. Prior to the last three seasons, the last Big Ten team to rank first in all four areas was Michigan in 2001. Ohio State has now led the Big Ten in scoring defense for three straight years and the sixth time in the last eight seasons. OSU also continued its dominance in the category of total defense, leading the way for a third straight season and a sixth time in the last eight campaigns. By only allowing 236.1 yards of total offense per game, the Buckeyes boasted the stingiest defense since the 1997 Michigan team limited offenses to 193.0 yards per contest on the way to an undefeated season and the national championship. OSU also ranked first in rushing and passing defense for the second time in the last three seasons. On the offensive side of the ball, Michigan State led the Big Ten with 34.8 points and 431.1 yards of total offense per game this season. The last time the Spartans topped the conference in both categories was following the 2004 campaign. On the ground, Illinois ranked first with 262.0 rushing yards per game to lead the Big Ten in that category for the first time since 1953. Through the air, Northwestern stood atop the Big Ten charts with 310.6 passing yards per contest to rank first for the second time in three seasons.
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