Tag: gerry dinardo

Big Ten Network providing on-site coverage of College Football Playoff National Championship

The Big Ten Network will be airing lots of coverage from the College Football Playoff.

In four days, Washington and Michigan will face each other in the College Football Playoff with a national championship on the line. With everyone in the college football world focused on NRG Stadium, the Big Ten Network will be airing on-site coverage.

As part of the festivities, Dave Revise, Jake Butt and Nicole Auerbach will be live from Houston. Rick Rizzo, Mike Hall, Gerry DiNardo, Anthony Herron will be providing analysis from Chicago.

The fun begins on Saturday at 10 a.m. with B1G Live: Michigan National Championship Media Day. Hall and Griffith will react to Michigan’s press conferences and preview Monday’s game on B1G Live at 11 a.m. ET. On-site coverage for Washington is set to begin at 11:30 a.m. ET.

 

Coverage is set to continue on Sunday with B1G Live: National Championship Head Coaches Press Conference starting at 10 a.m. ET. After a few hours of rest, coverage will resume at 10 p.m. ET.

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On Monday, Jan. 8, coverage returns at noon ET with two hours of B1G Today and continues with B1G Live: National Championship Pregame at 6:30 p.m. ET. Following the game, B1G Live: National Championship Postgame will air at 11 p.m. ET with continued analysis on The B1G Show at midnight ET.

Once the dust settles and the final whistle blows, the press conference of the newly crowned National Champion will be featured on B1G Live: National Champions Press Conference at 10 a.m. ET.

Big Ten Network’s Gerry DiNardo sees success already for Rutgers football: ‘this year is a significant year of progress’

Rutgers football has already accomplished a lot this season according to the Big Ten Network.

In some ways, Rutgers football is already playing with house money, having shown this year that they are a significantly upgraded program under head coach Greg Schiano. But that doesn’t mean that the expectations haven’t lessened for the Scarlet Knights.

Rutgers comes into Saturday’s game at Penn State off consecutive losses to Ohio State and Iowa for their first losing streak of the season. But at 6-4 (3-4 Big Ten), Rutgers can still prove plenty more.

This fourth season under head coach Greg Schiano has seen Rutgers turn from a rebuilding program into a built one. The program is competitive now against the best in the Big Ten and became bowl-eligible last month.

That alone is something that the Big Ten Network’s Gerry DiNardo said is quite an accomplishment

“They’ve already established that this year is a significant year of progress. They were bowl-eligible last week going into Iowa and I think that a lot of us thought this was a match-up opponent against Iowa. And Iowa is a traditional Big Ten, they’re probably going to go to Indianapolis,” DiNardo said on the Big Ten Network this week.

“To say that Greg Schiano is bowl-eligible going into this game last week…this is a little different though. Penn State is a really good team, they have the most talent. The issue with Penn State is if the loss to Michigan is a distraction.”

DiNardo, a former offensive lineman at Notre Dame, was a head coach at LSU and Indiana before transitioning into his role at the Big Ten Network.

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Against Penn State, one of the top defenses in not just the Big Ten but the entire country, Rutgers won’t have it easy. The offense has struggled over the past month and last week at Iowa, they had just 122 yards of total offense.

In the past four games, quarterback Gavin Wimsatt has seen his completion percentage drop in each game. DiNardo said that the offense can bounce back, but that Rutgers is going to try to control the clock in this game.

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“The issue is that they’re an option team, Wimsatt is OK in the pass game. He’s not great. I think one of the advantages you have if you’re an option team and people are moving around a lot on the front, you just give the ball to the fullback – there’s no fullback any longer – (but) give the ball to the running back and they’ll be a crease,” DiNardo said.

So I think you’ll see that from the Rutgers offense. I think you’ll see alot of triple options type of plays to try to slow down the Penn State defense. The Penn State defense is really good.”

 

What did the Big Ten Network say about Rutgers football after their annual visit?

Rutgers football was analyzed this week by the Big Ten Network during their annual training camp series visit.

The Big Ten Network was at the Rutgers football practice on Wednesday, providing the trio of Dave Revsine, Gerry DiNardo and Howard Griffith the chance to see the rebuilding of the program up close.

What the BTN crew saw, was a team on the rise but one with a thin margin for error. The visit was part of the network’s annual training camp tour of all 14 programs in the conference.

Rutgers was 4-8 last year, missing on outright bowl qualification for an eighth straight season. Saying that “a bowl game can be a realistic goal for this team, this year,” Revsine asked the duo of Griffith and Howard what Rutgers needs to do to get to the postseason.

Griffith, a former NFL fullback who starred at Illinois, underscored that the Scarlet Knights have a razor-thin margin this season.

“I think they need the turnover margin needs to be positive, the defense needs to be able to take the football away. Offensively, they need to be able to run,” Griffith said.

“As they talk about throughout the practice, they need to strain. It’ ‘s the little things; they can not afford to beat themselves. If they don’t do that, there is no reason they shouldn’t be able to be in a bowl game.”

DiNardo, a former head coach at Vanderbilt, LSU and Indiana, is usually upbeat and positive about Rutgers during these annual trips to Piscataway. He provided some more sobering analysis this time around.

The path toward bowl eligibility, the pragmatic DiNardo said, lies on the defensive side of the ball.

“You continue to lean on the defense, you possess the ball. You don’t turn it over. Those to me are the big keys to get this team to six. I don’t know how much they can throw the ball,” DiNardo said.

“I think that if they don’t have a really good run game, they don’t get to six. If they try to be balanced, I’m not sure that’s what they can do. Their strength is their defense. I think you play to the defense totally.”

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Griffith ended things in a more upbeat fashion, providing his view from 10,000 feet rather than just in this moment.

“When I watch this team practice, they’re heading in the right direction. When I think about wins and losses, it’s all about the little things,” Griffith said. “The little things are what’s important.”

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Big Ten Network’s Nicole Auerbach throws out first pitch for the Somerset Patriots

A Big Ten Network personality, Nicole Auerbach threw out the first pitch for the Somerset Patriots on Wednesday night.

Nicole Auerbach tapped into her New Jersey roots on Thursday, throwing out the first pitch for the Somerset Patriots. Time for Rutgers baseball head coach Steve Owens to check out her film?

An affiliate of the New York Yankees,  the Patriots are a Double-A team in the Eastern League. Their top prospect this season is Jasson Dominguez, a centerfielder who has earned some rave reviews.

A columnist for The Athletic and a contributor to the Big Ten Network, Auerbach is a highly-regarded journalist. During the fall, she appears on the Big Ten Network’s multiple platforms where she provides analysis.

Auerbach seemed to inspire the Patriots. After falling on July 4, the Patriots rebounded for a 7-3 win over the Reading Fightin’ Phils.

 

Perhaps when the Big Ten Network returns with live programming in August, [autotag]Gerry DiNardo[/autotag] can analyze her throwing motion. Or perhaps we can get BTN’s baseball analyst [autotag]Michael Huff[/autotag], who played for seven years in the Major Leagues and is currently part of the Chicago White Sox organization, to do a deep dive on her potential as a pitcher.

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Big Ten Network’s Gerry DiNardo breaks down Rutgers football at Minnesota: ‘it’s a toss-up.”

Big Ten Network’s Gerry DiNardo breaks down Rutgers football at Minnesota.

Gerry DiNardo didn’t see this one coming in the preseason. He didn’t see it coming a month ago. But the Big Ten Network analyst thinks that Rutgers at Minnesota on Saturday has the potential to be an intriguing game.

One that the former Notre Dame standout and college head coach believes is anyone’s games.

Both teams come into this game with a very different feel. Off a bye two weeks ago, Rutgers (4-3, 1-3 Big Ten) beat Indiana 24-17 on Saturday. Minnesota (4-3, 1-3 Big Ten) struggled a bit last weekend in a 45-17 loss at a very good Penn State team.  The Golden Gophers have now lost three straight games, tumbling out of the polls.

Playing at home and with their backs against the wall, Minnesota should come out of the tunnel on Saturday afternoon fired up and looking to make a point.

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For DiNardo, it is important to look at where these teams were in August and where they are now to assess this game.

“So let’s go back to the bus tour. We go to both those schools, obviously. Minnesota looks like one of the best teams we’ve seen. They’re going to be in the Western Division hunt. Rutgers is making steady progress,” DiNardo said on the Big Ten Network.

“Let’s go back three weeks ago, four weeks ago, Minnesota is the second, the third best team in the conference. And now you have Rutgers who is in the bottom of the East, playing a team that a couple of weeks ago was in the top of the West.

“That’s a good chance to bash East and West but I’m not going to do that. But it does show shows that we’re not in balanced conferences, our divisions are unbalanced.”

As for the game itself, one of the intriguing storylines is Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano against Minnesota head coach P.J. Fleck.

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In 2011, Fleck was a wide receivers coach at Rutgers under Schiano. He then followed Schiano to the NFL where he was on his staff while with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

“But you know, this looks very good for Rutgers. Now, remember – Greg Schiano was one of PJs Fleck’s mentor so there’s going to be emotion; there is going to be the teacher playing the student. And I don’t think a lot of teachers like losing to their students.

“So there’s a little bit of psychology there. But we never thought this game at the beginning of the year was gonna be a toss-up, although I don’t think that people have set the odds think it’s a toss-up. But I think we think it’s a toss-up and everyone that follows the game closely.”

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Big Ten Network says Rutgers is improved, Gerry DiNardo calls Ohio State the best team in the conference

The Big Ten Network sees Ohio State as the best team in the Big Ten and Rutgers as improved.

Following Ohio State’s win over Rutgers on Saturday, the Big Ten Network’s Gerry DiNardo proclaimed that the Buckeyes are the best team in the Big Ten. Not Michigan.

It is Ohio State.

The Buckeyes certainly have looked the part in their two Big Ten games so far this season. The 49-10 win over Rutgers (3-2, 0-2 Big Ten) sees No. 3 Ohio State improve to 5-0 (2-0 Big Ten). They’ve beaten Wisconsin and now Rutgers in a rather convincing fashion the past two weeks.

A former head coach at LSU and Indiana, DiNardo said the biggest thing that sticks out about this game is the Ohio State defense. Rutgers was limited to 12 first downs.

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“I think it completes Ohio State. If you’d asked me who was the best team in the conference three weeks ago – maybe this was because of the schedule, I’d have said Michigan,” DiNardo said.

“I think Ohio State is the best team in the conference right now because the defense has caught up to the offense and they’re a complete team.”

But in the loss, the Big Ten Network crew saw improvement from Rutgers. In starting their out-of-conference schedule with three wins, Rutgers is halfway towards bowl eligibility.

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Host Dave Revsine notes that the Rutgers schedule eases up just a bit over the next three weeks and gives them a chance to stack a couple of wins.

“Rutgers meanwhile, still yet to beat a ranked team as a Big Ten member but tell you what, they have some opportunities coming up here. This clearly is an improved Rutgers team,” Revsine said.

“They have Nebraska at home coming up on Friday, they got a bye game. Then they get Indiana. You got to feel like those next two opportunities there are possible for Rutgers to pick up some wins and perhaps gain a little bit of momentum.”

“No doubt,” DiNardo said.

Make sure to check out Buckeyes Wire for continued coverage of the Rutgers at Ohio State game:

Here are the best photos from Saturday’s Ohio State versus Rutgers game

Watch Ryan Day’s post-game press conference

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Gerry DiNardo on how Rutgers can stay in at Ohio State in Big Ten match-up

Ohio State will be a tough task for Rutgers football this weekend.

Gerry DiNardo knows that Rutgers football’s game against Ohio State this weekend will be an uphill task. This is Ohio State he’s talking about, after all.

THE. Ohio State. Sorry about that, Buckeyes fans.

Ohio State has certainly backed up the preseason hype that this is a true national championship contender. Ohio State’s offense, always prolific, is humming along as expected. And the defense, under Jim Knowles, has taken the next step and is playing at an elite level.

Consider that Ohio State is balanced and playing complementary football, as the Buckeyes did in their 52-21 win over Wisconsin this past weekend, and the proposition of playing this team is scary.

No. 3 Ohio State (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) hosts Rutgers (3-1, 0-1 Big Ten) on Saturday afternoon (3:00 P.M. ET, BTN).

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A former LSU and Indiana head coach, DiNardo said that Rutgers has to keep it simple and stick to their DNA if they want to hang in there at Ohio State.

“Well they’re an option team. In theory, the option helps a team with lesser talent. You block one less defender, because you double-team somebody and read another person so you run the option,” DiNardo said on the Big Ten Network.

“You certainly don’t go fast, you go slow. You do some things in the special teams which Greg Schiano is known for a lot. You just try to slow the game down. You’re probably a bit more conservative on defense to stop the big plays. You try to keep it close and then try to win it in the end.”

Wisconsin managed just 11 first downs in their loss at Ohio State.

Rutgers is coming off a tough 27-10 loss to Iowa last week. At a sold-out SHI Stadium, Rutgers allowed Iowa to score two defensive touchdowns in the first half to effectively close out the game.

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DiNardo was surprised by not just how Rutgers lost to Iowa, but the fact that they lost.

“I was surprised at that. I actually thought that Rutgers had a really good chance of winning it going into the game,” DiNardo said.

“If I had looked back, we don’t pick the games but I might have picked Rutgers. I thought it was that tight of a thing. Then again, it’s just like Saturday at noon, this Iowa team, they keep better and better, a little bit at a time.”

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Big Ten Network’s Gerry DiNardo: Ohio State’s defense has them atop the Big Ten, not Michigan

Gerry DiNardo has some strong opinions on what the Ohio State defense means for the rest of the Big Ten.

Gerry DiNardo thinks that Ohio State football might finally have found the missing pieces that eluded them last year. And in doing so, the Big Ten Network analyst and former college coach believes that Ohio State is now the best team in the Big Ten.

This Ohio State defense is greatly improved under defensive coordinator Jim Knowles. Last week in their Big Ten opener, a 52-21 win over Wisconsin, Ohio State limited their Big Ten rival to 296 yards of total offense and just 11 first downs.

No. 3 Ohio State (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) hosts Rutgers football (3-1, 0-1 Big Ten) on Saturday (3:00 PM ET, BTN).

“Well it took me a little bit of time to learn it, I watched them against Wisconsin, and I think they’re so much improved and this is where the schedule has really helped Ohio State whereas the schedule has hurt Michigan. When I was comparing those two teams, who was the best in the conference, I thought it was Michigan,” DiNardo said on the Big Ten Network.

“Now I think it is Ohio State because of the defense.”

The addition of Knowles this offseason has been instrumental in Ohio State’s emergence this season as a true national championship contender. Knowles comes from Oklahoma State where he had one of the best and most consistent defenses in the nation over the past four seasons.

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“It looks like coach Knowles knows his personnel now, so he is playing to his personnel. Looks like the personnel knows his defense. The strides they’ve taken from spring ball to the opening game to now is significant. This is the missing piece to the puzzle,” DiNardo said.

“They’re running the ball better and now it looks like the right defense for them.”

A former standout at Notre Dame, DiNardo was a former head coach at LSU and Indiana among other stops. At LSU, he won two SEC West division titles.

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Big Ten analyst Gerry DiNardo explains why he’s so high on Michigan football

He really, really likes #Michigan right now. #GoBlue

After visiting Ann Arbor for practice on Wednesday, Big Ten Network analyst Gerry DiNardo tweeted high praise for the Michigan Wolverines. On Friday, now that he’s seen all 14 teams in the Big Ten, he’s not backing down.

DiNardo is emphatic Michigan football is not only a threat in the Big Ten East, but it’s also the most balanced team in the division — more so than Ohio State.

In breaking down the division, he reiterated that he doesn’t see either the Wolverines or Buckeyes dominating the other in the foreseeable future, while noting OSU has some defensive work to do this year.

“Michigan, to me, is the story of the East,” DiNardo said. “Ohio State, probably still the most talent, but not by much, but they have problems on defense that they have to solve. I think Michigan is probably the more balanced team offensively and defensively, even though they’ve had some changes in coordinators. But the team is so well-built. We all know the domination of Ohio State until last year, but I’m predicting there won’t be domination by either one of those teams. I think it’ll be back to what I always referred to as the 10-year war, Michigan was 5-4-1 from 69-78 if I’m not mistaken. I see these two teams back in that type of competition.”

Of course, Michigan’s schedule is favorable this year, but it plays OSU on the road in Columbus, where it hasn’t played since 2018.

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BTN analyst insists Michigan football has a ‘championship caliber team — again’

#Michigan haters aren’t going to like hearing this! #GoBlue

For a team that went to the College Football Playoff last year after winning the Big Ten, you will not hear many pick the Michigan Wolverines to repeat in 2022.

No, that honor has gone to the Ohio State Buckeyes, who are ranked No. 2 in the nation by both the AP Top 25 and the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll. OSU also cleaned up in the annual Cleveland.com media poll, with the Buckeyes getting picked unanimously to win the conference.

But one prominent college football analyst who covers the Big Ten says ‘not so fast!’ (And, no, it wasn’t Lee Corso.)

The Big Ten Network made its way to Ann Arbor on Wednesday as part of its annual fall camp tour around the conference. With the whole gang in tow — Joshua Perry, Dave Revsine, Howard Griffith and Gerry DiNardo — the latter had some salient thoughts about the state of the team after having watched Michigan football practice.

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What’s more, DiNardo insists the days of Ohio State running roughshod over the Wolverines are over. For now, despite the perceived talent gap in Columbus, he thinks this will be a much more even matchup, as it was between Bo Schembechler and Woody Hayes.

Keeping in mind that DiNardo has seen Ohio State practice, albeit a week ago. Though there’s a lot of faith that the Buckeyes will dominate defensively with new defensive coordinator Jim Knowles leading the charge, when DiNardo saw them in action, he said it may take awhile for that to happen.

Of course, Ohio State will have time to configure, considering The Game doesn’t take place until the last Saturday in November.

For now, fans can eagerly anticipate the other 11 games, with the 2022 season kicking off on Sept. 3 at The Big House as Michigan football hosts Colorado State.

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