ESPN College Football

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

First, let me apologize for the Shonn Greene-Daryll Clark error in the last post. I typed it up extremely fast in order to get the names to you ASAP. Greene was the one who won Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, of course.

There were clearly some tough choices with the All-Big Ten teams this season, as illustrated by only three unanimous first-team selections between the media and the coaches. I'll put out my own All-Big Ten team in the coming weeks, which will differ from the primer I posted last week.

For the most part, the voters got things right. Greene was the clear choice for Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year. Same goes for Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor as Big Ten Freshman of the Year. Penn State, which won the Big Ten's BCS tiebreaker, had 10 first-team all-league selections by the coaches and seven by the media. Ohio State and Iowa also were rewarded for strong seasons.

But there were several mistakes.

Let me preface this by saying all these guys are all excellent football players, but some were more deserving than others.

OK, here are my thoughts:

• James Laurinaitis is a future College Football Hall of Famer and a sure-fire first-round NFL draft pick. He's an excellent football player. He should not have been named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. That award should have gone to Penn State defensive end Aaron Maybin. No one else is really in the discussion. Maybin was flat-out dominant this season. I don't care if he's just a sophomore. Base the award on merit, not on reputation or name recognition or having a nice back story.
• I know I'll take a ton of heat for this, and I respect the man immensely, but Joe Paterno shouldn't have been named Big Ten Coach of the Year. If there was an award to give an entire coaching staff, than Penn State's staff should get it. But it's a single award, and one that should have gone to Michigan State's Mark Dantonio or Northwestern's Pat Fitzgerald. You can't tell me Paterno had as much influence in shaping his team as Dantonio or Fitzgerald. This vote was based on sentimentality, not by looking at what each man actually accomplished. Penn State overachieved. Michigan State and Northwestern really overachieved.
• Illinois wide receiver Arrelious Benn should have been a first-team selection on both teams, not just the media. Penn State's Derrick Williams had a nice second half, but Benn's numbers are too strong for the second team.
• I was a little surprised that Ohio State left tackle Alex Boone was a first-team selection by both the coaches and the media. Ohio State' offensive line was a mess for most of the season, and though Boone wasn't the main problem, he didn't have his best season. A second-team selection seemed right there.
• The defensive back selections for both the coaches and the media puzzled me. Ohio State safety Kurt Coleman should have made both teams. Same goes for Iowa's Amari Spievey. Northwestern safety Brad Phillips deserved better than honorable mention.
• Shonn Greene should have been a unanimous first-team selection for the coaches in addition to the media. The coach who didn't put Greene as a first teamer should be ashamed of himself.
• Northwestern's Fitzgerald must have known something earlier today when he described the Wildcats as being an All-Big Ten-quality team. Despite going 9-3, the Wildcats had only one player (Wootton) selected to the first or second team for either the coaches or the media. The Wildcats deserved at least one more selection, a defensive back. Michigan State also merited another first or second teamer after going 9-3.