I spoke with Doug Dahms, the head coach at Chad Henne's old high school in West Lawn, Pa., Tuesday, and he's like me in believing that Henne is poised for a bounce-back year. Henne struggled at key times last year and was a big reason behind Michigan's mediocre season. He completed less than 50 percent of his passes in losses to Notre Dame, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Nebraska, and threw three interceptions in a 33-17 win over Northwestern.

"Everybody forgets that Jake Long was hurt and they lost (Mike) Hart," Dahms said. "You lose two guys like that and I think he tried to take on the role of the whole offense. He still had pretty good numbers, but everybody by Michigan standards, because they weren't winning, says Chad Henne, sophomore jinx."

Henne actually cut his interception rate in his second year as a starter, going from one every 33 attempts to one every 48, and threw for almost as many touchdowns and yards as he did his freshman year when he had Braylon Edwards to lean on. Assuming everyone stays healthy this year, Michigan's offense is almost on par with Ohio State's. Sure, Henne and Troy Smith are completely different quarterbacks, and Ted Ginn has turned into everything Steve Breaston is not, but the Wolverines will be one of the highest-scoring teams in the conference this year and Henne will be a big reason why.

"He's a tough kid to hold down," Dahms said. "He's a little bit stronger, he's a little bit slimmer. I think he's ready to go."

The season kicks off Thursday and I'll offer my Big Ten predictions then. But for now, here's a few more musings from around the league:

- Expect Purdue receiver Greg Orton to have a huge year. Coach Joe Tiller told the Lafayette Journal and Courier that "Orton had the best camp of any" Purdue receiver, which is saying a lot considering Dorien Bryant is still around. The 6-foot-4 Orton will supplant 6-9 Kyle Ingraham as Purdue's main red-zone threat.

- Michigan State fans can breath easy on field goals this year. Diminutive Brett Swenson (5-8, 151) has brought a big leg and big swagger to the Spartan kicking game. His laid-back personality is just what MSU needs after biffing on 11 of 16 kicks a year ago.

- Pat Fitzgerald is the right guy for the Northwestern job, but he's got his work cut out for him this year. He did the right thing in naming redshirt freshman Mike Kaftka starting quarterback, even if it increases the chance Northwestern starts 2-2 (non-conference games Thursday at Miami and Sept. 22 at Nevada could both be losses). The Wildcats will play hard and be competitive in the Big Ten, but they won't win a league game until they host Illinois in final week of the season if at all.