Will Michigan defend their crown? Ohio State's high-powered offense will be too much for Michiganand then Wisconsin in the conference championship gameto contain. Please check your email for a confirmation. This marks the third straight season Penn State has opened a college football season on the road against a Big Ten opponent. Four-star running back Kaytron Allen (IMG Academy) also will be in the mix for carries. The defense improved last season and will have to continue that upward trajectory. Michigan 3. The home game with Iowa and battle at Minnesotaare two potential spots for wins if the Scarlet Knights out-execute the opposition. Credit: Quinn Harris-USA TODAY Sports. These are just some of the questions that will be asked as the Big Ten enters a new season. Starting off the New Years Day bowl lineup could be the Minnesota Golden Gophers, who are expected to have a solid season once again in the Big Ten West. A closer look at the Big Ten, with predictions, big games, Heisman contenders and more: Ohio State plays most of its tough Big Ten games in the comforts of home this season with Wisconsin, Iowa and Michigan all coming to Ohio Stadium (not to mention the non-con blockbuster with Notre Dame). Not to mention two elite defensive pieces in linebacker Harold Perkins and edge rusher Maason Smith, who will be back after his injury-shortened 2022 effort. That is what 247Sports has done with a spring edition of its way-too-early bowl projections for the 2023 season. Factor in Ryan Day's proven offensive system, and the Buckeyes seem destined for another powerful year. The word: The Hoosiers play eight straight games before their late-season open week prior to a home showdown with Penn State and by that time, they should be hovering near the .500 mark. The featured image in this article is the thumbnail of the embedded video. Well this would be a dream scenario for the Big Ten. The Wolverines do get Michigan State and Penn State at home, but Harbaugh is 3-4 against those schools at the Big House. They open with Notre Dame, play Wisconsin and Iowa, to go along with the rest of the schedule. Henderson grabbed national attention as a freshman with a 277-yard outburst against Tulsa last season, and he's yet another home-run hitter in Ohio State's loaded offense. Favorites. Penn State losing to Purdue is his upset pick of the year in the Big Ten. Credit: USA TODAY Sports. In our 2021 too-early power rankings, eventual Big Ten champion, the hometown Michigan Wolverines, were slated at No. It might be way too early for college football predictions, but before the rest of the country hits the field for spring ball, here are our early predictions for Power-5 You could use consensus thought, preseason polls and betting odds, but ESPN's Football Power Index giving the Buckeyes a 73.7 percent chance of winning the Big Ten is wild. Contact/Follow us@BuckeyesWireon Twitter, and like our page onFacebookto follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes and opinion. Quarterback Tanner Morgan and running back Mohamed Ibrahim are back in the Twin Cities as the offense will have familiar personnel. Jackson was a top-15 recruit in the 2021 class according to On3 Sports consensus. B/R's preview of the Big Ten includes star players, top storylines, key games and just about everything short of USC and UCLA. Penn State is 4-5 in Big Ten play each of the last two seasons. The metric recently predicted the outcome of the 2022 Big Ten season, and the rest of the Big Ten West expectations may surprise some Badger fans. Michigan is the lone, scary crossover from the East, but it hosts Oklahoma and opens the season in Ireland against Northwestern. Stroud will be near the top of preseason Heisman conversations, and despite losing star wide recievers Garrett Wilson and Chris Olave in the NFL draft, Jaxon Smith-Njigba is back to torture Big Ten defenses. However, realistically, the Scarlet Knights are probably still a year or so away from making a significant jump in results on the field. Quarterback Aidan OConnell is back in the fold as the Boilers try and fill holes at receiver. Singleton, a five-star running back from Governor Mifflin High School (Reading, Pa.), gives the Nittany Lions an exciting backup option for junior Keyvone Lee. Maryland does travel to Ann Arbor in Week 4, but it will face a rebuilding Michigan defense, which could help matters. The Boilermakers will have to find someone to replace the production of David Bell at the wide receiver position, and the defense has to get better, but this team will still make life difficult on the big boys of the conference and should be considered a dark horse for the West Division. PJ Mustipher made it clear who he things should be Penn State's next defensive line coach. The maize and blue will be relying heavily on the offense, which returns eight starters, including quarterback Cade McNamara. Luis Robert Jr., CF, White Sox. But the 2022 schedule sets up quite nicely, with three breezy nonconference games before opening up the conference slate with Maryland at home. Michigan and Iowa square off Saturday in a Big Ten confrontation that sets up as a defensive struggle if the Hawkeyes have it their way. Knowles will bring a more aggressive defense, and sophomores Jack Sawyer and J.T. The opener in Dublin is a huge tone-setter for both teams. 2022 College Football Game Result (Winner and Score) Predictions (RP predictor): - predictions of the winner, score, margin of victory, probability of victory of each game in the season. It's a new QB for Frost, and it might just work this time. That defense returns much of the same personnel and will once again be near the top of the Big Ten. Much of that will be due to a 4-1 start prior to wins over Minnesota and Iowa during the final month of the campaign. 8: Ohio State at Michigan StateOct. Michigan won the league last year, but Ohio State enters the 2022 college football season as the overwhelming Big Ten favorite. That stretch included some truly awful offensive days, something that may appear occasionally again in 2022. Oct 30, 2021; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Rutgers Scarlet Knights head coach Greg Schiano in the first half against the Illinois Fighting Illini at Memorial Stadium. That means there are few Buckeyes who have actually experienced beating their rival on this 2022 team. Sign up for the Buckeyes Wire newsletter to get our top stories in your inbox every morning, Let's get ready to cheer on the Lady Bucks this weekend. They lost to both teams at home in 2021. However, it did well in a similar stretch in 2021, so dont count the Spartans out. Predicting every team's final record this far out is next to impossible, but peeking at matchups this early is whatevery staff does this time of year in prep for the new season. That weight is on the big stage, and Ohio State is all-but penciled in to get back to the CFP in 2022. The quarterback controversy will be a fascinating story to follow in the months leading up to the season. There probably isn't much resistance to labeling them all top-10 talents, which is genuinely absurd for a single offense. 2022 Summary Casey Thompson turned in a season-long performance worthy of mixed reviews. The Scarlet Knights will have to get through nonconference unscathed if it really wants to turn the corner, because the early conference schedule is no joke. But the offense generally hasnt been the issue for the Terps its been the defense. There is still news were waiting on with NFL decisions, transfers and all of that, but were taking a stab at what we believe the landscape of the conference will look like once all the games are gloriously shown on a television or streaming device near you next fall. He completed 63 percent of his passes in 10 games for 2,407 yards with 17 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Pretty much everywhere youll look, Ohio State will be atop the early power rankings. Luis Robert Jr., CF, White Sox. Iowa will be Iowa and beat teams it shouldnt, yet play with teams it should be better than. The first showdown on the listonly the seventh all-time meeting of Notre Dame and OSUdoubles as the best nonconference game of the 2022 season. Credit: Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports. Northwestern went 3-9 that season, then surged to 7-2 with a West Division crown in 2020. Iowa, Wisconsin and Northwestern are 0-8 in the Big Ten championship game since the conference switched to the East and West division setup. Akron Zips. What the Hoosiers get out of the quarterback position and how they develop a lot of the youth that will be stepping up for a veteran team last season will determine if this team can sniff a bowl appearance or not. Stroud finished fourth in Heisman Trophy voting and was a third-team AP All-America choice. If the third times the charm, then Michigan could be celebrating a national championship. Late Kick Live Ep. Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports. Iowa was ranked No.2 at some point in the season but finished with a 10-4 record. Maryland is coming off a bowl win in 2021, but the Terps are 4-21 against the Big Four in the division since joining the Big Ten in 2014. CLICK HERE to download the CBS Sports Mobile App and get the latest on your team today. Wins: Western Michigan, Akron, at Washington, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, at Illinois, Rutgers, Indiana. Itll have to show that it can win big games before we can place the Cornhuskers higher. And if these projections prove to be accurate, there will be a good number of Big Ten teams taking part in a bowl game next season, and it could be another year with two playoff bids. MORE: Futures odds and best bets for Big Ten. You bet. Last season was a dream campaign for Mel Tucker and Michigan State. Spring ball is kicking off for most teams, and if it hasnt already, its on the horizon. USA TODAY - Bryant Crews 1h. The Nittany Lions likely would have fared better overall had Sean Clifford not left the Iowa game with injury. The Buckeyes won the conference's only titles in the CFP era (2014) and BCS era (2002). The word: No team in the Big Ten faces a more brutal four-game stretch in November to close out the regular season than the Terrapins, who take on a likely nationally-ranked Wisconsin, Penn State and Ohio State over three consecutive weeks before the finale versus Rutgers. With the stroke of midnight and the calendar flipping over, the Buckeyes once-promising 2022 campaign ended instantly in 2023. Wins: Northwestern (Dublin, Ireland), North Dakota, Georgia Southern, Indiana, at Purdue, Illinois, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Losses: Oklahoma, at Rutgers, at Michigan,at Iowa. The season was one of chaos that no one predicted. Thats the question that holds they key to Iowas potential in 2022. The Big Ten added USC and UCLA from the Pac-12 starting in the 2024; a blockbuster realignment move that could lead to further expansion for the soon-to-be 16-team conference. There are still question marks at quarterback, the defense was less than stellar, the offense stagnant, and key pieces will need to be replaced. Projected Big Ten Champion: Ohio State Buckeyes. Florida was very lucrative to the Oklahoma Sooners in the class of 2023. Indiana severely underperformed in 2021 despite having a lot of key pieces back. Below is a look at the bowl projections and playoff picks before all the fun begins for the 2022 season. The lone remaining ranked team in the preseason AP poll, Michigan State is attempting to build on an impressive year. Ibrahim and Henderson will be sharing the spotlight with Wisconsin bruiser Braelon Allen, who powered his way to 1,268 yards and 12 scores in his first college season. Football. Minnesota should be competitive, but none of Purdue, Northwestern, Illinois and Nebraska are particularly inspiring. 7 of 14. The Huskers revamped the coaching staff this offseason, and the conference season kicks off Aug. 27 when Nebraska and Northwestern meet in Dublin, Ireland. Can either Padilla or Petras develop into a consistent starter this season? February 22, 2023 12:24 pm ET. Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports. Sept. 3: Notre Dame at Ohio StateSept. On the opposite side of the coin, Michigan redeemed themselves after a difficult 2020 season and outlasted Ohio State to take the Big Ten East crown. Sean Clifford returns for his fifth season in Happy Valley after he threw 21 touchdowns in 2021. If quarterback Sean Clifford remains healthy and can be the star he was at the beginning of the year, the rest of the roster is talented enough to surprise and contend for the Big Ten championship. Big Ten football predictions 2022: Conference standings, impact transfers, best games, Michigan restores rivalry with Ohio State with dominant win. 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