Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule is new to the Big Ten. But even though the West is set to be dissolved after this season, he seems to understand what makes the product so endearing.
Rhule took a question about the Big Ten West division, I assume, in a press conference this week. His subsequent explanation of how Wisconsin vs Iowa was actually beautiful football is a thought that needs to be shared by everybody — Yes, even though the Badgers lost the football game.
“People watch the Iowa-Wisconsin game and say it’s a bad football game, or it’s another football game. I think it’s a beautiful defensive football game,” Rhule said. “I see a lot of teams that scored a lot of points early in the season, in games this weekend not score quite as many points as the year gets on and people catch up and it gets a little colder. So Iowa is on its way to having another great year, and people are making a big deal about how many points they score. They’ve scored one more than their opponent most games.”
— Connor Happer (@ConnorHapper) October 16, 2023
Rhule continued by discussing his feel for the division that will no longer exist after this season: “I don’t know anything about the Big Ten West other than facing everyone each year. After the year I’ll probably have a better feel for who everyone is, and then we’ll shuffle it up and we’ll be going out to the west coast. I’ll do my best to figure that out.”
Listen, I know Wisconsin lost to Iowa 15-6 and it likely derailed the team’s season. But stepping back for a minute, it’s hard to not appreciate the beauty that remains in Big Ten West football.
The total Iowa vs Minnesota is at 31.5 this weekend. And it’ll probably go under by two touchdowns. Enjoy this while it still lasts.