The Case For/Against Arby Fields

I recently got into a debate on the validity of whether RB Arby Fields should remain the "starting" running back for the 'Cats. As most of you may know, the two-deep going into this week's battle with Minnesota has Fields noticeably absent from the list. Instead, Trumpy and Schmidt get the nod for the opening carries of the game. There are some who believe that Arby just hasn't gotten a chance to prove himself. That said, I decided to look farther into the numbers that Fields has put up so far this season. Let's take a look inside, shall we?

Quick Hit: BR's Quarterback Rankings

Just picked up this nice little tidbit from The Bleacher Report on where they rate the Big Ten's starting quarterbacks after the nonconference season ended this past weekend. Check to see where our man Dan Persa ended up...

The Momentum Game, Week 5: Not Your Mother's Power Rankings

Welcome to the first edition of The Momentum Game, everyone! One of the things that I've noticed is that there are a ton of power rankings, power polls, whatever you want to call them. What I don't like about them, though, is that they seem to be extremely fixed based on a team's record, and not necessarily based on recent play. Example: Big Ten blogger for ESPN, Adam Rittenberg, had Iowa as his No. 2 team in his Big Ten Power Rankings going into Week 3. Somehow, after a weekend where Iowa drops a big game to Arizona, Adam's still got them ranked at #3 when most every other team took care of business that weekend.

To that I say, "not here." The Momentum Game isn't about how good your team is, it is about where your headed. There's a lot more fluidity, so to speak. With that said, here are the three rules that I will adhere to for The Momentum Game, after the jump:

Poll Watch: Why NU will not be ranked at 6-0

The newest AP and USA Today Coaches' Polls just came out this morning, and I was not too surprised at our standings right now. There was very little movement in the Big Ten, as the conference's schedule was, well, lousy. Here's the breakdown of where our Wildcats stand right now:

'Cats Make 4-0, Coaching Staff Not Quite on Heart Attack Watch

Whoo! I'll take the win today. Not quite the cardiac event that we usually expect, but a couple of bad plays made this one a lot closer than it probably should have been. For the betting types, Central Michigan covered the spread on their last TD drive, but didn't get another opportunity to score. Drake Dunsmore iced the game by recovering the onside kick before the ball cleared the 10-yard recovery threshold.  With apologies to Coach Dantonio at MSU, we did not quite create a cardiac situation today.

Team	1Q	2Q	3Q	4Q	Final
CMU	6	7	0	12	25
NU	6	7	10	7	30

Quick thoughts about the game after the jump:

Quick Hit: A Tackling Clinic

I'm getting geared up for kickoff here! In browsing for any last-minute Wildcat updates, I found myself at the MGoBlog, one of Michigan's most analytical football blogs out there. The share-worthy post is an analysis of Rufus, Ohio's mascot, and his technique in tackling Brutus Buckeye in last weekend's game. Hilarious.

The Ol' West: Why Wildcats Defeat the Chippewas

First gameday optimism post! I'm excited to try this out. Unfortunately, I will not be in attendance at Ryan Field tomorrow, but thanks to the lovely timing of Illinois having a "bye" week, I get to watch the game from the confines of my living room located in Champaign. Funny, no one's tried to heckle me on the days that I walk Illinois's campus with a purple shirt on...

This week's opponents victims are the Central Michigan Chippewas. Normally perennial favorites in the Mid-American Conference race, they've already sustained a close loss on the road to Temple. Of course, they also replaced record-setting QB Dan LeFevour and three-year coach Butch Jones. That said, I wish Butch had taken his winning ways with him to Cincinnati, because he sure doesn't have them right now.

More about Northwestern's imminent domination after the break:

Well, look what we have here...

This, my friend, is a new blog. Welcome to Bleed Wildcat Purple, yet another place to get a dose of Northwestern Wildcat glory, because there's no such thing as too much Wildcat consumption. (Note: This does not include anyone with tuberculosis. That is too much Wildcat consumption.)

What you're looking at right now is what will hopefully be a haven for Northwestern Wildcat fans, particularly in football and basketball. As this place gets booted up some more, I'll figure out some regular weekly postings, with names like "Week 4 Preview: Why Ohio State Sucks at Scheduling" or something like that. Eventually, if people actually start reading this thing, there might be a regular poll over by the upper-left hand corner... maybe call it the "Incredibly Useless Poll of the Week"? I'll figure it out as I go.

I also want to create a banner image at the top, because Blogger's templates aren't going to cut it, and I don't know enough coding to make it decent. If you have any ideas of what to include in the banner, let me know! Leave a comment below or send me an e-mail.

If you Bleed Wildcat Purple like Coach Fitz does, hopefully this will be the perfect place for you.