Dissecting the preseason Big Ten picks

So the media picked Ohio State to win the Big Ten again, and Terrelle Pryor and Greg Jones as the league’s offensive and defensive players of the year. At the risk of offending my sportswriting brethren, big whoop.

You know how often the media’s nailed its picks this decade? Never. Last year, sports writers picked Ohio State to win the league followed by Wisconsin and Illinois. The Buckeyes lived up to their billing, but the Badgers and Illini both finished 3-5. In 2007, Michigan was the choice, then went out and lost to Appalachian State.

Since 2000, the media’s nailed No. 1 just four times and has batted even worse when it comes to picking players of the year. Running backs Beanie Wells and Mike Hart were the offensive picks the last two years, and didn’t even wind up the best backs in the conference. Iowa’s Shonn Greene and Illinois' Rashard Mendenhall won POY honors.

So don't count out Juice Williams and Darryl Clark or Penn State and Iowa just yet. The media has a tendency to be wrong.