B1G Ballers: Was C.J. Beathard the Best Player in 2015?

The Best Players in the Big Ten Conference (B1G Ballers) results are in (finally, I know...). Below you'll find a team by team summary of which players saw their names recognized in the weekly B1G Ballers. Before we go full statistical, let's give the Iowa fans something to crow about.

The B1G baller of 2016 was C.J. Beathard. He appeared in the Ballers ten times. Runners up were Justin Jackson and Aaron Burbridge with eight appearances each.

Now let's talk about some conference averages.

The average unique Ballers per team this year was 17.2. If your team had more, you were either PSU (homersota) or you had more standouts on your team than most. I also tracked both Seniors and Freshmen to see if there was a correlation between age and success.

Seniors, as a percentage of your Ballers, should indicate a team's maturity and therefore success. While it isn't perfect, a good example of this is Michigan. Harbaugh inherited a squad that had 13 seniors that appeared in Ballers. That's 8 more than the conference average. This Michigan team was loaded with experience, which contributed to their success.

On the other hand, Ohio State only had two seniors. They won because their players are just better than your team's.

I tracked freshmen Ballers to give us an inkling of good recruiting and future success. If your freshmen balled out during last year, that says good things about the future, right? The teams that led the conference in outstanding freshmen were Minnesota with five, Michigan State and Penn State with four each.

The average percentage of seniors making up a team's Ballers was 5.1 or 27% of the ballers playing. The average number of freshmen was 2.1 or 12% of your team's ballers. While a loaded senior class this year, probably means a big drop off next year (Lookin' at you, Michigan!), sometimes the stats predict the future in other ways.

For example, when I look at Ohio State, Nebraska, and Indiana, I see teams that were below average in both seniors and freshmen. That tells me sophomores and juniors  made up their ballers lists. Next year could be more successful, as those kids will be even more experienced. Except for the Buckeyes...whose entire team just went to  the NFL...

Just remember, these are cobbled together statistics of a completely biased set of observations by yours truly. It really doesn't mean shit...but it's the offseason. Time for wild ass guesses and crazy predictions!

On that sunny note, let's jump right in:

Illinois Fighting Illini -

Illinois
Ballers:	17
Seniors:	5
Seniors %:	29%
Freshmen:	2
Freshmen %:	12%

# of Weeks in Ballers	Name	Year
5	Geronimo Allison	Sr.
4	Wes Lunt	Jr.
3	Josh Ferguson	Sr.
3	Clayton Fejedlem	Sr.
3	Jihad Ward	Sr.
2	Taylor Barton	Jr.
2	Caleb Day	Jr.
2	Ryan Frain	Jr.
2	Dawuane Smoot	Jr.
2	Taylor Barton	Jr.
1	Murchie Murdock	So.
1	Tre Watson	Fr.
1	Carroll Phillips	Jr.
1	Malik Turner	So.
1	Ke'Shawn Vaughn	Fr.
1	Jevaris Little	Jr.
1	Mason Monheim	Sr.

The Illini hit the average for players in ballers. However, they were a little heavy in seniors and more important, those seniors contributed a whole lot during the year. Look at the top five players on that list and you see Illinois star power waving goodbye.

Indiana Hoosiers -

Indiana
Ballers:	18
Seniors:	4
Seniors %:	22%
Freshmen:	2
Freshmen %:	11%

# of Weeks in Ballers	Name	Year
5	Jordan Howard	Jr.
5	Nate Sudfeld	Sr.
4	Devine Redding	So.
3	Mitchell Paige	R-Jr.
2	Ricky Jones	R-Jr.
2	Zander Diamont	So.
2	Erich Toth	R-Sr.
2	Griffin Oakes	R-So.
1	Jameel Cook Jr	Fr.
1	Tony Fields	So.
1	Simmie Cobbs Jr	So.
1	Danny Cameron	R-Fr.
1	Jason Spriggs	Sr.
1	Jacob Bailey	R-Jr.
1	Jake Reed	R-Sr.
1	Dan Feeney	R-Jr.
1	Dimitric Camiel	R-Jr.
1	Tegray Scales	So.
5	Jordan Howard	Jr.

Indiana had more than the average ballers and fewer than the average seniors. Freshmen contribution was a little light, but Indiana can look forward to a lot of Devine Redding in the future. The biggest concern here is quarterback...but I'm sure we'll cover that somewhere else.

Iowa Hawkeyes -

Iowa
Ballers:	21
Seniors:	7
Seniors %:	33%
Freshmen:	2
Freshmen %:	10%

# of Weeks in Ballers	Name	Year
10	C.J. Beathard	Jr.
5	Jordan Canzeri	Sr.
4	LeShun Daniels Jr.	Jr.
4	Desmond King	Jr.
2	Cole Fisher	Sr.
2	Jordan Lomax	Sr.
2	Akrum Wadley	So.
2	Josey Jewell	So.
1	Drew Ott	Sr.
1	Matt VandeBerg	Jr.
1	Bo Bower	So.
1	Cole Croston	Jr.
1	Sean Welsh	So.
1	Austin Blythe	Sr.
1	Jordan Walsh	Sr.
1	James Daniels	Fr.
1	Jaleel Johnson	Jr.
1	Nathan Bazata	So.
1	Nate Meier	Sr.
1	Greg Mabin	Jr.
1	Parker Hesse	Fr.

Iowa had more than its fair share of seniors. It will be interesting to see if they can repeat their success in 2016. If anything, Beathard will have a strong cast of experience with him. Return of the undefeated Hawks anyone?

Michigan Wolverines -

Michigan
Ballers:	20
Seniors:	13
Seniors %:	65%
Freshmen:	0
Freshmen %:	0%

# of Weeks in Ballers	Name	Year
6	Amara Darboh	Sr.
6	Jake Rudock	Sr.
6	Jehu Chesson	Sr.
5	Jake Butt	Jr.
2	De'Veon Smith	Jr.
2	Jeremy Clark	Sr.
2	Taco Charlton	Jr.
2	Desmond Morgan	Sr.
2	Jabrill Peppers	So.
2	James Ross III	Sr.
2	Jarrod Wilson	Sr.
2	Willie Henry	Sr.
1	Ty Isaac	Jr.
1	Channing Stribling	Jr.
1	Maurice Hurst	Jr.
1	Mario Ojemudia	Sr.
1	Joe Bolden	Sr.
1	Sione Houma	Sr.
1	Blake O'neill	Sr.
1	Chris Wormley	Sr.

As I said earlier, this team was top heavy in the extreme. It had the most seniors by a long shot. If they can't reload, we could see Coach Tantrum's team regress in 2016. Look at the list below. What I see is a complete reload at all the skill positions.

Michigan State Spartans -

Michigan State
Ballers:	23
Seniors:	9
Seniors %:	39%
Freshmen:	4
Freshmen %:	17%

# of Weeks in Ballers	Name	Year
8	Aaron Burbridge	Sr.
7	Connor Cook	Sr.
5	Riley Bullough	Jr.
4	Shilique Calhoun	Sr.
3	Arjen Colquhoun	Sr.
3	Malik McDowell	So.
2	Montae Nicholson	So.
2	R.J. Williamson	Sr.
2	Macgarrett Kings Jr.	Sr.
2	L.J. Scott	Fr.
2	Demetrius Cox	Jr.
2	Gerald Holmes	So.
1	Madre London	Fr.
1	Joel Heath	Sr.
1	Jon Reschke	So.
1	Darien Harris	Sr.
1	Trevon Pendleton	Sr.
1	Jalen Watts-Jackson	So.
1	Shane Jones	So.
1	Grayson Miller	Fr.
1	Michael Geiger	Jr.
1	Craig Evans	Fr.
1	Tyler O'Connor	Jr.

This was a really great team, from a Ballers prospective. Sparty had more seniors than most teams and they played well. Plus they had more freshment contributing than most teams. Like Michigan, this team will have to replace some key contributors.

Maryland Terrapins -

Maryland
Ballers:	16
Seniors:	2
Seniors %:	13%
Freshmen:	2
Freshmen %:	13%

# of Weeks in Ballers	Name	Year
4	Brandon Ross	Sr.
3	Quinton Jefferson	Jr.
3	Will Likely	Jr.
2	Sean Davis	Sr.
2	Jalen Brooks	So.
2	Perry Hills	Jr.
2	Yannick Ngakoue	Jr.
1	Taivon Jacobs	So.
1	Levern Jacobs	Jr.
1	Brett Zanotto	Fr.
1	Kinglsey Opara	So.
1	Jesse Aniebonam	So.
1	Caleb Rowe	Jr.
1	Malcolm Culmer	Jr.
1	Kenneth Goins Jr.	Jr.
1	Ty Johnson	Fr.

The good news is this Maryland team only loses two seniors. The bad news is that they only won one conference game last year. We'll see what happens when this crop of juniors all become seniors next year. I predict Maryland doubles its conference wins in 2016.

Purdue Boilermakers -

Purdue
Ballers:	11
Seniors:	3
Seniors %:	27%
Freshmen:	3
Freshmen %:	27%

# of Weeks in Ballers	Name	Year
6	None
3	Austin Appleby	Jr.
3	Markell Jones	Fr.
3	David Blough	Fr.
2	Anthony Brown	Sr.
2	Frankie Williams	Sr.
2	Danny Anthrop	Sr.
2	DeAngelo Yancey	So.
1	Robert Gregory	Jr.
1	Gelen Robinson	So.
1	Domonique Young	Jr.
1	Brandon Roberts	Fr.

I'm sorry to pile on Boilers, but the fact that you had six weeks of no ballers cracked me up. The bright spot in this line up are those freshmen, Markell Jones and David Blough. Some bright futures there. I hope you guys can get it together in 2016.

Penn State Nittany Lions -

Penn State
Ballers:	21
Seniors:	4
Seniors %:	19%
Freshmen:	4
Freshmen %:	19%

# of Weeks in Ballers	Name	Year
6	Saquon Barkley	Fr.
5	Christian Hackenberg	Jr.
4	Carl Nassib	Sr.
4	Chris Godwin	So.
2	John Reid	Fr.
2	Grant Haley	So.
2	Daesean Hamilton	So.
2	Brandon Bell	Jr.
1	Akeel Lynch	Jr.
1	Saeed Blacknall	So.
1	Kyle Carter	Sr.
1	Austin Johnson	Jr.
1	Trevor Williams	Sr.
1	Malik Golden	Jr.
1	Nick Scott	Fr.
1	Anthony Zettel	Sr.
1	Mark Allen	Fr.
1	Troy Reeder	So.
1	Curtis Cothran	So.
1	Parker Cothren	So.
1	Geno Lewis	Jr.

This was a young football team. There was a decided lack of star power on the offensive line. The departing senior list is short, but critical with two decorated stars from the defensive line graduating. That said, Saquon Barkley was a freshman! Woo Hoo!

Barkley for Heisman!

Too soon?

Minnesota Golden Gophers -

Minnesota
Ballers:	19
Seniors:	4
Seniors %:	21%
Freshmen:	5
Freshmen %:	26%

# of Weeks in Ballers	Name	Year
5	Mitch Leidner	Jr.
5	Shannon Brooks	Fr.
2	Rodney Smith	Fr.
2	Drew Wolitarsky	Jr.
2	Steven Richardson	So.
2	Rodney Smith	Fr.
2	Brandon Lingen	So.
1	Eric Murray	Sr.
1	Cody Poock	So.
1	Peter Mortell	Sr.
1	Craig James	So.
1	Jalen Myrick	Jr.
1	De'Vondre Campbell	Sr.
1	Rashad Still	Fr.
1	Ryan Santoso	So.
1	jack Lynn	Jr.
1	KJ Maye	Sr.
1	KiAnte Hardin	Fr.
1	Briean Boddy-Calhoun	Sr.

Just looking through this list gives me chills. There's a whole lot of talent coming back...Brooks, Smith, Richardson. Holy hell...You guys could be 8 - 1 going into Lincoln in November. You shouldn't have more than 3 losses in that first nine game stretch.

Nebraska Cornhuskers -

Nebraska
Ballers:	17
Seniors:	3
Seniors %:	18%
Freshmen:	1
Freshmen %:	6%

# of Weeks in Ballers	Name	Year
6	Tommy Armstrong	Jr.
4	None
3	Jordan Westerkamp	Jr.
3	Nate Gerry	Jr.
2	Terrell Newby	Jr.
2	Alonzo Moore	Jr.
2	Brandon Reilly	Jr.
1	Kevin Maurice	Jr.
1	Andy Janovich	Sr.
1	Freedom Akinmoladun	Fr.
1	Drew Brown	So.
1	Joshua Kalu	So.
1	Ross Dzuris	Jr.
1	Sam Folz	Jr.
1	Ryker Fyfe	Jr.
1	Imani Cross	Sr.
1	Jonathan Rose	Sr.
1	Cethan Carter	Jr.

This is another team that could be really good in 2016. Just look at all those juniors contributing. Oh and then there were those three weeks (and the bye) where this team laid an egg. Consistency needs to improve and Nebraska is a force to be reckoned with next year.

Northwestern Wildcats -

Northwestern
Ballers:	14
Seniors:	5
Seniors %:	36%
Freshmen:	1
Freshmen %:	7%

# of Weeks in Ballers	Name	Year
8	Justin Jackson	So.
4	Clayton Thorson	Fr.
3	Anthony Walker	So.
3	Dan Vitale	Sr.
3	None
2	Matthew Harris	Jr.
2	Dean Lowry	Sr.
2	Nick VanHoose	Sr.
1	Ifeadi Odenigbo	Jr.
1	Traveon Henry	Sr.
1	Solomon Vault	So.
1	Jack Mitchell	Jr.
1	Warren Long	Jr.
1	Drew Smith	Sr.
1	Austin Carr	Jr.

Northwestern had more than the average seniors on this squad, but look at the first three Ballers...they are coming back. And while I don't think they make a run at the West championship, they will be spoilers again. The road to the CCG probably runs through Evanston...since both Nebraska and Wisconsin have to play there. That said, Iowa gets Northwestern at home.

I think Northwestern will be a quality opponent in 2016...so be prepared.

Rutgers Scarlet Knights -

Rutgers
Ballers:	14
Seniors:	4
Seniors %:	29%
Freshmen:	2
Freshmen %:	14%

# of Weeks in Ballers	Name	Year
5	Leonte Carroo	Sr.
4	Chris Laviano	So.
3	Quentin Gause	Sr.
3	Janarion Grant	Jr.
3	Robert Martin	So.
2	Kemoko Turay	So.
2	Paul James	Sr.
1	Jimmy Hogan	Fr.
1	Andre Hunt	So.
1	Josh Hicks	So.
1	Steve Longa	Jr.
1	Carlton Agudosi	Jr.
1	Blessuan Austin	Fr.
1	Kalwan Lewis	Sr.

So, I watched this team a lot last year. Without Carroo, it was a bad football team. And now it's permanently without Carroo. I'm concerned that the East Coast Bro's are going to be bad again.

Laviano is back and Grant too. That will be the pair to watch...but you've got to find some more talent. Being one dimensional with a terrible defense doesn't work in the B1G. One conference win sucks. It's hard to talk shit with confidence when you are sitting eyeball to eyeball with Purdue and Maryland.

Wisconsin Badgers -

Wisconsin
Ballers:	16
Seniors:	7
Seniors %:	44%
Freshmen:	1
Freshmen %:	6%

# of Weeks in Ballers	Name	Year
5	Dare Ogunbowale	Jr.
5	Tanner McEvoy	Sr.
5	Joe Schobert	Sr.
4	Joel Stave	Sr.
4	Alex Erickson	Sr.
2	Bart Houston	Jr.
2	Vince Biegel	Jr.
2	Taiwan Deal	Fr.
1	Austin Traylor	Sr.
1	Alec Ingold	Fr.
1	Robert Wheelwright	Jr.
1	Micheal Caputo	Sr.
1	Corey Clement	Jr.
1	Natrell Jamerson	So.
1	Jazz Peavy	So.
1	Drew Meyer	Sr.

Ouch, that's a lot of star power heading out the door. This senior class was loaded with talent. The good news is that Clement should be back, Ogunbowale is great, and Taiwan Deal could be a star in the making. Wisconsin is reloading for 2016. Iowa fans should break out the crying towels now...the West could have a new champ next year.

Ohio State Buckeyes -

Ohio State
Ballers:	17
Seniors:	2
Seniors %:	12%
Freshmen:	1
Freshmen %:	6%

# of Weeks in Ballers	Name	Year
7	J.T. Barrett	So.
5	Ezekiel Elliott	Jr.
4	Braxton Miller	Sr.
3	Joey Bosa	Jr.
2	Cardale Jones	Jr.
1	Vonn Bell	Jr.
1	Cameron Johnston	Jr.
1	Curtis Samuel	So.
1	Darron Lee	So.
1	Eli Apple	So.
1	Tyvis Powell	Jr.
1	Sam Hubbard	Fr.
1	Adolphus Washington	Sr.
1	Gareon Conley	So.
1	Raeqwon McMillan	So.
1	Jalin Marshall	So.
1	Michael Thomas	Jr.

The single hardest thing about coaching a college football team well is the ability to reload each year. Urban Meyer is as efficient at that as O'Hare airport is at shuffling planes. The OSU ballers list had 2 seniors, seven juniors, seven sophomores, and one freshman. That's insanely balanced and speaks volumes about Meyer's ability to recruit great athletes. Not to mention coaching them up.

I know that OSU's departing talent could beat the Cleveland Browns, but don't count out the Buckeyes in 2016. J.T. Barrett is back and he's got some insane young talent to work with. Ugh.

I hated to have to write that.

There you have it folks...a data-heavy summary of the Big Ten Conference's Ballers for 2016. Now I have to go do some real work. Feel free to make up your own conclusions in the comments below.

Your Friend,

Townie.