Off Tackle Empire Podcast

This is our last episode on the Vox network, so we're looking at the future of Big Ten football, starting with the distant future but also with a focus on the near future. Are we as inevitable as Brian Ferentz? Apparently not! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We have a lot of catching up to do! The audio is fixed, and a lot has happened in the Big Ten. But because this podcast is going away next week, we have to not only talk about what's happened, but preview the Big Ten and NCAA Tournaments as well as the future beyond. With so many games left to play And things to be found I'm sure that you'll all miss us so It's the final Chargecast! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Come for our outdated takes on the Purdue coaching search, stay for some bowl previews that all amount to "depends on who opts out" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Four different time slots, ten different games, what demands your attention? Listen and find out! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

There's so much news to cover, we'll start with the two coaching hires of Matt Rhule at Nebraska and Luke Fickell at WIsconsin and then discuss the rivalry week games. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We're here to walk you through how the most inevitable outcome of all time occurs and nothing fundamentally changes as Kirk Ferentz wins the Big Ten West again. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Order prevails in the Big Ten West title race as Purdue clears Iowa's road to Indy by ripping the heart out of Illinois. Meanwhile, Ohio State and Michigan jog in place at the traffic light to keep their heart rate up. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Our weekly recap talks about Ohio State's worst performance of the year, a number of wind-assisted debacles and the state of the Big Ten West race Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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We're previewing Ohio State vs Penn State and Michigan vs Michigan State, but also taking a look back at the NFL vs College All Star game's history and demise Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Another weekend, another perfect outing for the Big Ten East. Iowa, Minnesota and Northwestern all fell to teams in the eastern half of the B14, while Purdue ceded sole possession of first place by digging themselves a big hole. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Okay, I suppose we should first talk about Michigan because that's what everyone wants to hear. They're officially Good, having played a challenging opponent and prevailed convincingly. But you know who else is good? The Illinois Fighting Illini. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Michigan plays Penn State, but we're here for Illinois vs Minnesota as the best division-race-defining game of the weekend. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Iowa contributor Creighton joins us to talk about Iowa's loss to Illinois and what, if anything, can be done to change the trajectory of Hawkeye football. Plus we discuss the Purdue/Maryland shootout and what Wisconsin's huge win means for Jim Leonhard. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Two top 5 teams look to sufficiently demoralize the Old Brass Spitoon combatants! Four games that look close on paper! In three of those games, at least one team should be embarrassed that it looks close! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Holy balls! Wisconsin fired Paul Chryst! That's the second Big Ten West coach to be fired and October just now rolled around! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Yep, you're damn right, the most interesting games of the Big Ten slate this week involve Maryland, Indiana and Illinois! The Hoosiers and Terps ought to win against disoriented opponents, while the Illini merely have a puncher's chance, but that's all more interesting than a conference game with a 41 point spread, or a rematch of a 39-point decision from last year. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Northwestern is in shambles. Iowa has no offense. Wisconsin's offense is struggling and their defense can be had through the air. Purdue is volatile. Illinois already dropped a conference game and is Illinois. Nebraska...hoo boy, Nebraska. Is there any reason Minnesota won't win the West this year? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What a strange slate of games. Ohio State is probably going to thump Wisconsin, Illinois could be in trouble in a Thursday night FCS game, nobody knows what will happen between Michigan State and Minnesota, Maryland's early-season fun is nearly at an end and hoo boy is Iowa-Rutgers a thing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Some teams are 3-0 through dominating lesser opponents. Others are 3-0 by sheer dumb luck. Better than being 1-2 though! We discuss the Nebraska coaching vacancy and the state of the Big Ten West meta game. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hello listener. My filenames have dates in them. I mistakenly uploaded the 9/16/21 podcast instead of the 9/16/22 podcast. Let's try this again. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Okay fine, we'll talk about El Assico. But there are a LOT of tomato cans lined up for our conference this week! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A full week of Big Ten football is in the works! -The Big Ten went undefeated against non-conference foes! Some were impressive, others not so much -Purdue coached itself out of a win as Sean Clifford beat the fraud charges again -Illinois choked in September again! -Michigan is dicking around with quarterbacks! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What happened to Nebraska besides Scott Frost? Is Illinois an actual Big Ten team now? Can Purdue make a statement by knocking off a weird imitation of themselves? DOES THE ROAD TO DETROIT RUN THROUGH BLOOMINGTON? All this and more! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Big Ten Football is officially back! We talk for longer than we need to about what's sure to be a dull Illinois-Wyoming affair before revisiting the entire premise of Scott Frost's Nebraska Cornhuskers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Yep, it's Iowa time. What back will be stuck behind a less productive back on the depth chart? Who will the large man at quarterback be overthrowing on 10 yard routes? What linebacker will come out of nowhere to set the world on fire? We know the parts, we know the plot, we just need to see the cast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For once we're talking about a non-championship edition of Ohio State football. What happened last year, and where does Ohio State stand in the superpower heirarchy? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's Michigan State week! Did ANYONE see their 2021 football season coming? Is there any way they can recapture that magic this year? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Two Minnesotans join us for a discussion of boats and rowing Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

WIsconsin Week came a little earlier than usual. That's because we bucked the trend and had Ohio State take a year off from pummelling Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game. Nevertheless, Wisconsin has their next star back and is ready to do Big Ten West things! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What just happened and what does it mean for us and the larger world of college athletics? We're gonna try and make some sense out of all this. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's Purdue Week! CHOO CHOOOOOOO! Purdue? With a defense? It's more likely than you think. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

That is the question we must ask ourselves every year, and this year is no different. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

That is indeed the question, is it not? Mike Locksley has gotten some high end talent to Maryland, but not evenly across the whole roster. What possible paths forward exist for the Terps? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

TURN DOWN FOR WHATGERS Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Let's talk about Bret Bielema, what his program is and what it has yet to become. The early returns are fine, but not enough to guarantee future success. Are the ingredients there to take another step, or are we marking time? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We welcome Nebraska correspondent Jesse Collins to the show to discuss Scott Frost's last stand, whether or not Nebraska has run out of ways to lose, where the fans are with Scott Frost and why Nebrasketball deserves better. Listen as Jesse does his best to resist Andrew's assertion that Nebraska should be able to win the division! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's time to talk about the 'Cats, baby. Is there a new hope after a coordinator shuffle under Pat Fitzgerald? What of Chris Collins? It was said that he would bring the Nerncats into a new age, but is he not the chosen one? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Esteemed Indiana expert BuffKomodo joins us to break down what happened to the Hoosiers in 2021, how long of a leash Tom Allen has, how the offense might be fixed and what to expect from Indiana as they look to rebound from an absolute disaster of a season. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Another Elite Eight arrived with no Big Ten teams. So what happened? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nine Big Ten teams entered. Two made it through the first weekend. So...what happened? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nine Big Ten teams made the Big Dance! Who has the best draw, who has the worst, and how are we feeling about everyone's chances? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A robust debate on Rutgers' status with respect to the tournament, and what Penn State's path to the NIT is, as well as where the conference tournament is actually likely to go Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Since we last convened, Purdue lost two heartbreakers, Ohio State slipped, Iowa got hot, Nebraska started winning and Indiana let it slip away Oh, also, Illinois and Wisconsin shared the Big Ten title after WIsconsin lost to Nebraska at home :) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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As February rolls around, we have to talk about the 5-horse race for the conference title and how much of it is going to be decided this week. Who's your pick for Big Ten Coach of the Year so far? Why do statistical models love Iowa so much? Will Nebraska ever get a win? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices