By: Brent Foster (USAToday.com) –

Conference profile: Big Ten

The Big Ten hasn’t looked so big the last few seasons. The conference is just 9-20 in bowl games since 2005 and has lost four consecutive BCS Bowls. On top of that, the Big 10 hasn’t won a Rose Bowl since Wisconsin beat Stanford in 2000. But with a new season comes renewed hope. Ohio State and Penn State are each expected to be in the top-10 when the season opens. Here is a quick team-by-team breakdown of the Big 10.

•Illinois: In his final season as Illini quarterback, senior Juice Williams will have to break in a new offensive coordinator. Former offensive coordinator Mike Locksley took the head coaching job at New Mexico. Mike Schultz takes over the offense after spending the last 11 seasons at TCU. The Illini ranked 19th nationally in total offense last season, averaging more than 430 yards a game, but struggled to a 5-7 record.

•Iowa: The Hawkeyes will be looking to find a replacement for RB Shonn Greene who rushed for 1,850 yards and 20 TD last season. One candidate to replace Greene, sophomore Jewel Hampton, suffered a knee injury in early July. He will not require surgery and will be ready for the opener Sept. 5 against Northern Iowa, according to the Des Moines Register. Hampton rushed for 463 yards as a freshman.

•Indiana: The dismissal of senior Kellen Lewis leaves a gaping hole in the Hoosier offense. Lewis, who owns 16 IU quarterback records while also splitting time at wide receiver the last three seasons, was dismissed from the team in April for a violation of team rules. He was slated to move to wide receiver full time in the fall. Junior Ben Chappell is expected to be the starting quarterback this fall. Last season he started three games and threw four touchdown passes. He led Indiana to its biggest victory of the season, a 31-24 upset of Northwestern.

•Michigan State: If there was ever a chance to make a Rose Bowl Run, this could be it. The Spartans get the benefit of the Big Ten rotating schedule by not playing Ohio State and getting Penn State at home to end the regular season. The Spartans will have to overcome the loss of running back Javon Ringer, who accounted for more than 96% of Michigan State’s rushing yards in 2008.

•Michigan: If there is any consolation for Michigan fans, it’s that things can’t get any worse than last season. Coming off their worst season in the school’s 129-year history, Rich Rodriguez continues to recruit players who fit the spread offense. True freshman Tate Forcier could see time at quarterback this season. But the question is how many more 3-9 seasons coupled with blow out losses to Michigan State and Ohio State will fans put up with?

•Purdue: There is a new sense of hope at Purdue. Danny Hope takes over for Joe Tiller, who retired after 12 seasons in West Lafayette. If Purdue wants to betterits 4-8 record from last season, the run defense must improve. The Boilermakers allowed 173 yards a game on the ground, worst in the Big Ten.

•Wisconsin: The Badgers led the Big Ten in rushing last season, but the key this year could be their quarterback play. Dustin Sherer is first on the depth chart this season after splitting time with Allan Evridge a year ago when the Badgers ranked 84th nationally in passing yards a game. Wisconsin will also want to avoid the four-game midseason losing streak that sent it spiraling out of the top-10 last season.

•Northwestern: Just like Michigan State, Northwestern benefits from the Big Ten schedule by not having to play Ohio State. The Wildcats could be 6-0 before heading to East Lansing Oct. 17. Their success will depend on finding a replacement for quarterback C.J. Bacher. Senior Mike Kafka is set to replace Bacher, who threw for more than 2,400 yards last season. Kafka started two games when Bacher went down with an injury. He completed 32-of-46 passes for 330 yards and two touchdowns.

•Ohio State: Despite at least a share of four consecutive Big Ten titles, the Buckeyes are feeling the pressure after dropping three consecutive BCS bowls. Sophomore Terrelle Pryor returns for his first full season as starting quarterback, but the Buckeyes’ chances of winning the league may hinge on finding a replacement for Chris “Beanie” Wells. Wells rushed for more than 1,000 yards in 10 games last season. Sophomore Dan Herron could see the majority of carries this season. He rushed for 439 yards and six touchdowns in limited action last season.

•Minnesota: The Golden Gophers have to find a way to recover from last season’s collapse, which included five consecutive losses down the stretch, one of which was 55-0 to Iowa in their final game at the Metrodome. The key to a turnaround will be shoring up a defense that allowed more than 380 passing yards a game and 185 points during their season-ending losing streak.

•Penn State: Daryll Clark returns to State College for his senior season, but if he wants to get the Nittany Lions back to Pasadena, he will have to do it with a new supporting cast. Penn State loses two All-Big 10 lineman and three starting wide receivers. Junior Stefen Wisniewski moves from right guard to center to help anchor the line.

Stadium upgrades:

Minnesota is moving from the Metrodome to its new open air on-campus stadium. The Gophers will open 50,000-seat TCF Bank Stadium Sept. 12 against Air Force. Construction on Memorial Stadium at Indiana is nearing completion and should be ready for the Hoosiers opener Sept. 3 against Eastern Kentucky.

Mark your calendars:

Week three moves into full swing when Boise State visits Fresno State on Friday Sept. 18. This could be a trap game for Boise State who finished No. 9 in last season’s final BCS poll. The game is set for 9 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Vols hurt:

The Tennessee Volunteers are in a heap of trouble at wide receiver. Austin Rodgers will miss the 2009 season with a torn knee ligament. Rogers tore his ACL last Friday and will have surgery in the coming weeks. He had his best season in 2007 when he caught 56 passes for 624 yards and four touchdowns. Roger’s production dropped off last season when he caught just 14 passes for 180 yards. Junior receiver Denarius Moore could miss up to 10 weeks with a broken foot. He underwent surgery Wednesday. According to The Knoxville News-Sentinel, junior receiver Gerald Jones will be limited during fall camp as he recovers from wrist surgery.

Bowden win watch:

Florida State’s Bobby Bowden continues to hold out hope that he will stay in the running to be major college football’s all-time winningest coach. The Seminoles are appealing an NCAA ruling that would take away 14 of Bowden’s victories stemming from an academic cheating scandal. Currently, Penn State coach Joe Paterno leads Bowden by one victory. Paterno has said he does not think it is fair to take wins away from Bowden.

Tommy Bowden speaks out:

Former Clemson head coach Tommy Bowden spoke out Wednesday about losing his job, nine months after resigning. Bowden resigned six games into his 10th season and now says it was not his choice to leave the program.

Bowden said he arrived at work on Oct. 13, not anticipating a coaching change. But he met with Athletic Director Terry Don Phillips that morning in a meeting that would ultimately end Bowden’s time at Clemson.

“I just signed a seven-year contract and never quit or resigned in my life,” Bowden said. “I went to work that morning fully anticipating coaching that day and that night. (Phillips) came to my office. It was a little after 6, and then the discussions started.”

Phillips said he has nothing more to say about Bowden, or what happened that day.

Bowden said he has not ruled out a return to coaching. “I’m 55, I’m in good shape. It’s not like we didn’t accomplish some good things that other people would be interested in.”

Clemson started 2008 ranked No. 9, but lost to then-unranked Alabama in the opener, and started 3-3. Bowden was 75-42 at Clemson, and never finished with a losing record.

Preseason All-SEC:

SEC football coaches released their preseason all-conference team Thursday. To nobody’s surprise, the Florida Gators led the charge.

The defending national champions placed 16 memebers on the squad, including eight on the first team.

Alabama and Georgia each had nine players selected. The Crimson Tide placed six on the first team.

Florida quarterback Tim Tebow was selected for the first team, but was not a unanimous selection. The only unanimous selections were Alabama sophomore wide receiver Julio Jones, LSU senior offensive lineman Ciron Black and Tennessee junior defensive back Eric Berry.

Each SEC school has at least two players represented.