My friends, this has been the week from hell at work and the week from a very busy but not-at-all hellish place outside of work. I haven’t had time to consider what opening topic to bore you with, let alone write it, and for that I apologize. I know y’all expect 5-6 out of 10 on the effort/quality front from me in these pieces, but I can only give you like 3 out of 10 currently. I promise to step it up.

In the meantime, if you have a few moments, go look at the box scores from the B1G this past weekend. Wisconsin won 49-11 and there was nary an individual performance in that game worth mentioning. Same goes for the non-special teams portions of Nebrasa-Penn State. How do you accumulate 500+ yards on offense and not have a player really worth mentioning? Apparently you play for Coach Franklin. Not even Ohio State, the team that’s absolutely loaded with talent and that has 3-5 good-plus individual performances per week had a player worth mentioning over this past weekend.

The point is it’s rough out there, I’m plum (plumb?) out of ideas for these columns, and I’d love to write about whatever you, the loyal commentor() wants to read about. Okay bye. Oh one more thing, please be safe, wear a mask, avoid people when you can, and stay home if you feel bad. It’s been very weird to watch sports without fans in attendance. Almost to the point that I don’t enjoy watching. So please, for the sake of my enjoyment of fans attending sporting events I watch on t.v., do your miniscule part, or at the very least don’t dump on people for doing their miniscule part.

OTE’s Offensive Player of Week 4

Ty Fryfogle - WR - Indiana Hoosiers

11 recs, 200 yards, 2 TDs

Another week, another Indiana player as OTE’s Offensive POTW. Fryfogle had a huge game last week as well, but this week he stepped it up enough to win this award without somehow having his QB get an eye-popping stat line. Word on the street/in OTE Slack was that Fryfogle could have had really as many yards as he wanted on Saturday, with about 180 yards before half, but Indiana opted not to keep airing it out to him once they had a big enough (read: 1 point) lead on Michigan State.

Not for nothing, but Fryfogle is having quite the year so far. He leads the conference in receiving yards, is tied for 3rd in receptions, is tied for 2nd in TDs, and is 6th in yards per catch. We rightfully hear a lot about Rashod Bateman in the B1G, but Fryfogle is right there or better, than Bateman in a bunch of categories and is doing with with a legit #1 WR in Whop Phylor eating up receptions as well. (Yes we’re ignoring Autman-Bell for purposes of this brag).

Ty Fryfogle: Catch the fever.

Honorable Mentions for OTE Offensive POTW

Ramaud Chiaokhiao-Bowman - WR - NW; 8/86/3
Just an elite level fantasy football performance. And also an extremely good and efficient real world football performance.

Isaiah Williams - QB - Ill; 7/18 104; 31 car, 192 yds, 1 TD
Had to give you the QB “performance” cuz he’s a QB, but he’s really here for the rushing day. I don’t know if he got sacked at all but let’s assume he did and be even more impressed with his rushing total.

Tyler Goodson - RB - Iowa; 20/142/2 TD
In his last two games, Goodson has 34 carries for 255 yards (a Jonathan Taylor- and Melvin Gordon-esque 7.5 yards per carry) and 4 TDs. Mohammed Ibrahim is way ahead on of the rest of the conference in attempts, yards, and TDs, but Goodson has been unstoppable lately.

OTE’s Defensive Player of Week 4

Deontai Williams - Safety - Nebraska Cornhuskers

3 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble, 2 fumble recoveries, 1 fumble-six TD

From last weeks’ POTW column:

OTE’s Player of the Week doesn’t have a ton of hard-and-fast rules. In fact, we purposely avoid too many rules because then I can let my personal biases influence the winners and HonMens without worrying too much. For DPOTW and STPOTW, though, we have a long standing, clear rule: If you return something for a touchdown, you win (or tie if there are multiples).

This week’s winner, of course, is Deontai Williams. Williams’s fumble six come up hilariously huge in a game that Penn State somehow hilariously lost to Nebraska. Nebraska! I said during the picks last week that PSU would win but it’d be hilarious if Nebraska won, and it was.

Williams put together a nice little stat line for a safety, coming up with two turnovers-ish and getting himself a sack. While he surely wouldn’t have won the award without the fumble six, he had a notable day even without it. And again, Nebraska somehow beat PSU. And, apparently, somehow, Williams and the rest of the Nebraska defense are “turning the corner.”

Honorable Mentions for OTE Defensive POTW

It’s turnover/turnover recovery week here at OTE. There were some great LB performances beyond Fisher’s, but Derrick Barnes and Jake Hansen just couldn’t make the cut without the Dumb Turnover Sideline Prize plays these guys had.

Taiwan Mullen - DB - Ind; 3 tack, 2 int
Efficent. Very, very efficient.

Shakur Brown - CB - MSU; 6 tack, 2 INT
Penix got stung twice by Brown, who is apparently one of the lone bright spots for MSU over the past weekend.

Paddy Fisher - LB - NW; 5 tack, 0.5 tfl, 2 fum rec
Great name, good player, nice stat line

OTE’s Special Teams Player of Week 4

Jake Pinegar - K - Penn State Nittany Lions

3/3 FGs, 50 long; 2/2 XPs

In the truest possible Big Ten letdown, there was not a lot of noteworthy special teams play this past weekend. Thankfully Pinegar met the kicker qualifications (100% accuracy, made at least 3 FGs) and did just enough to edge out Connor Culp (see below), although Pinegar did have to go home sad instead of the other emotion, which Culp probably felt.

Please, please, PLEASE get it together, B1G Special Teamers. Particularly you punters. Blake Hayes and Adam Korsak are back, of course, but we’re just not seeing the eye-popping punting you need if you’re going to thrive be mediocre in the B1G.

Honorable Mentions for OTE’s Special Teams POTW

Don’t worry y’all, we still love punters more than anything.

Adam Korsak - P - Rutgers
5 punts, 46.6 avg, 1 inside the 20, 66 long
I don’t understand how Korsak and Hayes are still in the conference, but they are, and Korsak continues to be great.

Blake Hayes - P - Illinois
4 punts, 46.0 avg, 3 inside the 20, 59 long
Hayes, as usual, had a very good day.

Connor Culp - K - Nebraska
3/3 FGs, 30 long, 3/3 XP
Culp had the better day and won the game, but we here at OTE value length above all else, so Pinegar gets it. Also we hated awarding Iowa 2 of 3 awards last week and are loathe to do it again with Nebraska.