Biggest BTN All-Decade Team Snubs: Lewis, Molk Make Their Case
Incredibly, for a rather bland decade for Michigan football - zero Big Ten titles - the Wolverines didn't do so bad in the Big Ten Network's reveal of the conference's All-Decade Team (2010-19), securing four players: tight end Jake Butt, offensive lineman Taylor Lewan, linebacker Devin Bush and all-purpose player Jabrill Peppers.
Ohio State led the way with eight selections followed by Wisconsin (six). Iowa and Michigan each had four.
While there have certainly been some outstanding performances by the Maize and Blue that go unrecognized - WR Jeremy Gallon, DT Maurice Hurst, OC Cesar Ruiz - it's hard to take issue with most because of the players chosen by the Big Ten panelists. However, CB Jourdan Lewis, OC David Molk and, to a certain extent, QB Denard Robinson have strong 'snub' cases.
Denard Robinson: Robinson is not getting it at quarterback, not over JT Barrett (though the pick should have been Dwayne Haskins). Barrett was a four-year starter for Ohio State, going 38-6 while setting Big Ten records for total offense (12,697 yards) and touchdowns responsible for (147), but BTN awarded two all-purpose spots, one for Peppers and the second for Buckeye Braxton Miller.
Robinson put up better numbers during his three seasons a starter (2010-12) than Miller did (2011-13) as both a passer and a rusher, and overall had more total offense (10,206 yards to 8,609) and was responsible for more touchdowns (91 to 85) than his Buckeye counterpart. Maybe Miller gets credit for moving to receiver as a fifth-year senior but he was hardly impactful, with 26 catches for 341 yards.
If the Big Ten wanted to recognize unique athletes, Robinson should have earned the nod ahead of Miller.
David Molk: The Big Ten unveiled an offensive line with actual positions (instead of just five OL), so two tackles, two guards and a center, and thus it comes down to Molk vs. Ohio State's Billy Price. They each:
• Won a Rimington Award as top center in college football
• Were named the Big Ten OL of the Year
• Were twice named to the Big Ten all-conference first team
• Both named consensus first-team All-Americans
• Started four seasons for their respective schools
I assume Price was picked instead of Molk for recency bias - he finished his career in 2017, Molk in 2011 - and because Ohio State has been a far better brand in this past decade than Michigan has.
Jourdan Lewis: The Big Ten's top picks at cornerback - Iowa's Desmond King and Michigan State's Darqueze Dennard - were both Thorpe Award winners as the top defensive back in college football, and Lewis was not so maybe it's that simple. It's hard to ague with their accolades, but for frame of reference, here's what Lewis accomplished at Michigan.
He was a consensus first-team All-American in 2016 and a consensus second-team selection in 2015, starting 30 of 48 career contests and setting the program record for career pass breakups (45). He also had a single-season record 22 PBU in 2015. He was the Big Ten's Defensive Back of the Year in 2016 and was a two-time All-Big Ten first-team performer.
Was he better than King or Dennard? The voting must have been close.
