The 2013 college football season is a big year for the Big Ten conference. From a national perspective, the Big Ten is certainly not thought very highly of, with the exception of Ohio State. Outside of the Buckeyes, it looks like it’s a bunch of mediocre teams in the Big Ten this season, with no other national title contenders.
Ohio State can certainly help influence the national perception, but the Buckeyes schedule isn’t exactly strong and there is talk that the team will already go 12-0 and face the winner of the SEC in the championship game. History has shown that not to favor the Buckeyes very much. Below, we run down the Big Ten teams and give a brief overview of the season outlook, plus reveal the odds to win the conference and national championship.
There is a ton of hype coming out of Ohio State, especially after the undefeated season from a year ago. NCAA sanctions kept them out of the Big Ten championship game and beyond. There are 13 starters returning, though nine of those are on offense. That is led by quarterback Braxton Miller who is a Heisman Trophy favorite. The Buckeyes have to replace seven new starters on defense though. Looking at the schedule, it’s set up pretty easy for Ohio State to make a run.
Ohio State’s archrival Michigan is the next contender to the Buckeyes. Michigan brings back the fewest starters in the conference along with Illinois, with just 12. The boys in blue have a manageable schedule though, with the toughest game on paper obviously coming in the season finale against the Buckeyes. The Wolverines get Ohio State at home this season though.
Nebraska returns nine offensive starters, with quarterback Taylor Martinez topping the list. If the Cornhuskers are to make a run to the Big Ten conference this season, Martinez will have to have a good season. We know that Nebraska likes to run the ball, with Martinez a central factor in that. The Cornhuskers ranked 8th last season in rushing and that is expected once against this season. The defense will be the main question coming into this season, with just four guys with starting experience.
Penn State will continue to serve its suspension and NCAA sanctions, as this is the second year. The Nittany Lions will probably go with incoming freshman quarterback Christian Hackenberg. Hackenberg was the No.1 quarterback recruit this season, and didn’t waiver on his commitment to Penn State in spite of knowing that he won’t compete for a championship until his senior season if he stays. Hackenberg is expected to be the future of Penn State, and it should be fun to watch him this season.
Michigan State is a team that not many are talking about in the Big Ten, but anchor what might be the best defense in the conference. Seven starters are returning to the nation’s 9th-ranked scoring defense last season. The problem was that the team ranked 110th in scoring offense, at just 20 points per game. Quarterback Andrew Maxwell returns, and just won the starting position recently. He will be expected to progress forward though the loss of running back Le’Veon Bell could be big for the run game.
Wisconsin is of course without head coach Bret Bielema, who went to Arkansas this offseason. Now it’s the Gary Anderson era, and the Badgers have the opportunity to prove some doubters wrong this season. They bring back eight starters on offense and seven on defense, so there is no lack of experience on either side of the ball. A road trip to Ohio State in late September followed by a home game with Northwestern in the next game might be the determining factor on how this season turns out.
Northwestern comes into this season with bigger expectations than usual. They are ranked in the preseason, and predicted to be a team that challenges Ohio State atop the Big Ten. The Wildcats have 15 total starters returning, but the schedule could be the ultimate factor. There probably isn’t a tougher conference schedule than what Northwestern has. The face Ohio State, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Michigan, and Michigan State. One thing’s for sure and that is if the Wildcats make the Big Ten championship game, they will have earned it.
Iowa’s season will probably be determined beginning in October with a tough stretch. Like Northwestern, the Hawkeyes also have a difficult schedule. They must face every preseason ranked team from the conference, closing with Michigan and Nebraska. Iowas returns an even seven players on offense and seven players on defense. It was the offense that struggled big time last season, ranked over 100th in the nation in rushing, passing, and then of course scoring.
There isn’t a team in the country that returns more starters than the Indiana Hoosiers. This might be their only chance at competing in the Big Ten, and it’s still not really a good one. There are 10 returnees on offense and nine on defense. That defense though ranked 104th in the country in scoring last season, giving up 35.3 points per game. But the experience with the starters returning should definitely help this Indiana team. Road trips to Michigan, Michigan State, Wisconsin and Ohio State make things difficult though.
Minnesota has just about everyone back on offense, with 10 starters returning. The passing game will need to improve dramatically though, as it ranked 109th in the country last season. the Golden Gophers scored just 22 points per game while surrendering 24 points per game. The result was just two conference victories.
Purdue brings back five starters on offense and eight on defense. They didn’t really do anything particularly well or bad last season, it was all mediocre. This translated into a 3-5 record in the conference and no bowl game. The Boilermakers have an early matchup with Notre Dame before then beginning their conference schedule on the road against Wisconsin. The toughest stretch starts on October 12 though, with three games against Nebraska, Michigan State, and Ohio State.
Illinois’ problem last season was that they simply could score. The team ranked near last in offense at 16.7 points per game. That was good for 122nd in the country out of 125 FBS teams. They couldn’t run it, and they couldn’t pass it. To add insult to injury, they couldn’t stop anyone from scoring either, giving up 32 points per game. They won zero Big Ten games. Things can only go up in 2013. They return only 12 starters so there will be plenty of new players on the field.