In one fell swoop of landing a transfer quarterback, did Wisconsin become the Big Ten favorite?

Some say yes. I say it certainly elevates Wisconsin's status.

Wisconsin got a commitment today from quarterback Russell Wilson, who had played three seasons at North Carolina State. I was blissfully unaware of Wilson's prowess, but here is the raw data:

8,545 passing yards and 76  touchdown passes, with just 26 interceptions.

Ricky Stanzi of Iowa had career stats of 56 TD passes and 31 interceptions for 7,377 yards.

Oh, Wilson also rushed for 17 TDs at N.C. State.

This, folks, is certainly a potential game-changer. There are no guarantees that Wilson will be a perfect fit in the Badgers' offense, or that he and his new teammates will mesh in the extremely short period of time they have to come together. But talent is talent, and this person was an All-ACC quarterback. Wilson is eligible to play right away because he is a college graduate, and will enter grad school at UW-Madison.

Who is a better Big Ten quarterback in 2011 than Wilson? OK, there's Denard Robinson of Michigan. And that Dan Persa fellow at Northwestern has skills. Kirk Cousins of Michigan State is very good. Others always emerge.

Iowa does not play Wisconsin this season.