BIG TEN FOOTBALL 2018 PREVIEW

BREAKOUT STARS, BIGGEST GAMES, PREDICTIONS

The Big Ten has some of the best talent college football has to offer, and the 2018 season should be full of excitement and surprises.

The college football season is upon us, as games will kick off later this week. When it comes to the entire college football landscape, there are few conferences with as much history and success as the Big Ten.

From Ohio State to Michigan to Penn State to Michigan State and Wisconsin, the conference is home to five teams who have legit aspirations of not only winning the conference championship but of making the College Football Playoff too.

Before the season even started, fans have seen plenty of drama in the conference with Urban Meyer and DJ Durkin placed on administrative leave that threaten to put a major wrench in the plans of Ohio State and Maryland.

HERE IS MY BIG TEN PREVIEW FOR THE UPCOMING FOOTBALL SEASON.

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: WISCONSIN RB JONATHAN TAYLOR

Last season, the Wisconsin Badgers rolled through the Big Ten West Division, going a perfect 9-0 under head coach Paul Chryst. One huge factor for the team was a freshman running back named Jonathan Taylor, who took the entire conference by storm in year one.

Overall, Taylor showed an incredible blend of speed and power, rushing so well that he was named a First-Team selection within the conference. Taylor rushed for nearly 2,000 yards in 2017, finding the end zone 13 times, and tied the FBS record for fastest to get to 1,000 yards on a season, doing it in seven games.

Heading into 2018, the offense is going to be based around Taylor again, and you have to think the running back is up for the challenge. He has had the same impact as Saquon Barkley had at Penn State in the Big Ten, and this fall, it would not be surprising if he not only rushed for over 2,000 yards, but was hoisting the Heisman Trophy when it is all said and done.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: OHIO STATE DE NICK BOSA

A lot of the talk in recent weeks regarding the Big Ten Conference has been focused around Ohio State, where head coach Urban Meyer is on administrative leave. Since coming to Ohio State, Meyer has led the Buckeyes to an incredible 73-8 record, and has either won, or tied for first in the division every year.

Outside of the coaching questions, another member of Buckeye Nation who is getting a ton of talk is defensive end Nick Bosa. The brother of Ohio State legend Joey, the younger Bosa has been a beast ever since starting for the Buckeyes as a freshman, and he is now the sole leader of this defense moving forward.

After being named an ESPN Freshman All-American back in 2016, Bosa took his game to the next level last season. Not only did he help the Buckeyes to a Big Ten Championship, but he was named a First-Team Big Ten selection, while winning the conference’s Defensive Lineman of the Year Award.

In 2018, Bosa will look to take the next step in his career, and while another Big Ten title is a goal, he has to be thinking national championship. This Buckeyes team has so much talent on both sides of the ball, but on the defense, it is going to begin, and end with their talented junior coming off the end.

Bosa is likely done after this season, as many feel he is going to be an early pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. The Ohio State Buckeyes have an opportunity to do something special this season, and in Bosa, they may have the best edge rusher in all of college football.

FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: PENN STATE LB MICAH PARSONS

The Penn State Nittany Lions have made a triumphant return back to the top of the college football landscape, which is pretty impressive, considering the program was left for dead after the Jerry Sandusky scandal. It took a lot to turn this program around, and one big reason for it was Saquon Barkley, who burst onto the scene as a freshman in Happy Valley, and never looked back.

With Barkley gone, as he was selected No. 2 overall in the 2018 NFL Draft, it is time for a new freshman to step up and lead this team over the next few seasons. While Barkley was a running back, the Nittany Lions’ next great freshman will come from the defensive side of the ball, and that man is linebacker Micah Parsons.

Arguably the best defensive player in the country during his high school days, Parsons was recruited by every major school in college football, but being from Harrisburg, PA, he decided to stay close to home. Parsons graduated early from Harrisburg High School so he could enroll in Penn State early, getting a quick start to his college football career.

A defensive end in high school, Parsons is making the move to linebacker this fall, where he is certain to be a starter for head coach James Franklin. He has had some ups and downs since arriving at Penn State, but has kept his nose clean, and is in for a monster season in year one.

Penn State has to replace a lot of weapons this fall, but they really reloaded with talent this offseason, as Franklin had a terrific recruiting class. There are some special kids coming into the program, but in Parsons, they have someone who could eventually be an early first round pick in a couple of years.

BREAKOUT STAR TO WATCH: MICHIGAN QB SHEA PATTERSON

Shea Patterson has taken an interesting road to get to the Big Ten, where he is in for a breakout season as the starting quarterback for the Michigan Wolverines. In fact, Patterson is head coach Jim Harbaugh’s best passing quarterback he has had since his days at Stanford, where he coached future No. 1 overall pick Andrew Luck.

Patterson began his college career at Ole Miss, and it did not take long for him to become the team’s starter. Originally expected to redshirt his freshman year, Patterson saw starter Chad Kelly go down with a torn ACL, and was quickly inserted as the starting quarterback for the Rebels.

The following season, Patterson began the year as the team’s starter, and he certainly got off to a monster start to his sophomore season. He threw for over 900 yards in the first two games of the 2017 campaign, including 489 against UT Martin, which set the school’s record for most passing yards in a single game. He also threw for nine touchdowns in that span.

While the season started off great, the rest did not go so well, and after Ole Miss was saddled with another NCAA postseason ban for 2018, he decided it was time to go. Patterson choose the University of Michigan, and was granted a waiver by the NCAA to be eligible to play right away, which he will certainly do this Fall for the Wolverines.

Michigan has the horses to make a run in the Big Ten East Division this season, and Patterson is going to thrive under Harbaugh, who is a former NFL quarterback. He has the gifts to be the best passer this conference has, and if the offensive line can step up in 2018, he should have more than enough time to pick defenses apart.

COACH OF THE YEAR: MARK DANTONIO, MICHIGAN STATE

In Mark Dantonio, the Michigan State Spartans have one of the elite head coaches in all of college football. While his name is not whispered with the likes of Nick Saban and Urban Meyer, he has accomplished so much since taking over the Spartans program back in 2007, and is our candidate for Big Ten Coach of the Year.

Already winning the award twice, with the last one coming back in 2015, his program is on the brink of being a real contender in the Big Ten this season. Coming off a 10-3 record last season, and a second-place finish in the Big Ten East with a 7-2 conference record, he has the players coming back to get them over the hump in 2018.

Michigan State has the horses on the offensive side of the ball to get it done this season, and their quarterback and running back have a ton of experience. In addition, their wide receiver group may be the best in the conference, so there will be no shortage of offense in East Lansing this season.

On defense, all three levels have elite talent in them, and some feel their linebackers, and defensive backs are best in the conference collectively. They have not won a Big Ten title since 2013; when they went 8-0 in the conference, and went on to beat the Stanford Cardinal in the Rose Bowl.

Dantonio is a stellar head coach, and this may be the best team he has had in years. They are going to make a serious run at this in 2018, and if he can get to double-digit wins again, he should bring home Coach of the Year honors.

GAME OF THE YEAR: MICHIGAN AT OHIO STATE, NOVEMBER 24

There is nothing in college football quite like the rivalry between Ohio State and Michigan, and these two teams are going to battle it out late in the season in 2018. That should make for an incredible matchup inside Ohio Stadium on November 24, in a game that could have division championship implications.

Last year, the Ohio State Buckeyes won the East Division, in what was really a down year for Michigan. In fact, the Wolverines finished behind both Michigan State, and Penn State in the final division standings, in a year that Coach Harbaugh and company would like to forget.

Heading into 2018, the Buckeyes are rated as one of the best teams in the country, with Heisman Trophy candidates on both sides of the ball. Quarterback Dwayne Haskins has big shoes to fill replacing J.T. Barrett, and the combination of Mike Weber and J.K. Dobbins should be the best tandem at running back in the division.

The Big Game always brings out the best in these two teams, as they have been getting together to do battle on the gridiron since 1897. Michigan won that game by the score of 34-0, but they have had little to no success against the Buckeyes since 2003, beating Ohio State only one time.

There is a lot to be excited about for both programs heading into 2018, and as we have seen over the last few years in the Big Ten, anything can happen on any given year. A win against Ohio State would be Harbaugh’s first in the Big Game, and would really put an exclamation point on the regular season.

PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH

BIG 10 CONFERENCE STANDINGS
CHAMPION: WISCONSIN	OVERALL	COFERENCE
EAST DIVISION
OHIO STATE	W 11 L1	W 8 L 1
PENN STATE	W 10 L 2	W 7 L 2
MICHIGAN	W 9 L 3	W 7 L 2
MICHGAN STATE	W 9 L 3	W 6 L 3
INDIANA	W 5 L 7	W 3 L 6
MARYLAND	W 4 L 8	W 2 L 7
RUTGERS	W 4 L 8	W 2 L 7

The East Division will once again be the best in the Big Ten, as there are four teams who could legitimately vie for the chance to play in the Big Ten Championship Game. Based on the talent they have on both sides of the ball, the Ohio State Buckeyes enter the 2018 season as the favorite to repeat in the East Division, but they will have a tough road ahead of them to do so.

Michigan should be improved at quarterback with Shea Patterson coming in, and while they are losing Saquon Barkley, Penn State reloaded this past offseason, and has a Heisman candidate in quarterback Trace McSorley. Michigan State went 6-3 in the conference last season, and has studs coming back on offense, including quarterback Brian Lewerke, and senior running back L.J. Scott.

WEST DIVISION
WISCONSIN	W 11 L 1	W 8 L 1
NORTHWESTERN	W 9 L 3	W 7 L 2
IOWA	W 8 L 4	W 5 L 4
NEBRASKA	W 7 L 5	W 4 L 5
PURDUE	W 5 L 7	W 3 L 6
MINNESOTA	W 4 L 8	W 1 L 8
ILLINOIS	W 2 L 10	W 0 L 9

In the West Division, it is once again Wisconsin’s to lose, and they will likely steamroll through the rest of the teams in 2018. They just have more talent than every other team in the West, and with arguably the best running back in all of football, they are going to be hard to overtake, especially with head coach Paul Chryst running the show.

Iowa is always tough, and should be close to the top of the division, as will be Purdue this season. Nebraska and Minnesota have two elite head coaches in Scott Frost and P.J. Fleck and with Frost in his first year with the Cornhuskers, look for them to turn some heads. Illinois is headed towards the cellar of the West Division once again, and for head coach Lovie Smith, his time with the school could be coming to an end.

CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS: OHIO STATE BUCKEYES

One look at the Ohio State roster and you can see why many feel they will be the team to beat in the Big Ten this season. The Buckeyes are going to be tasked with replacing J.T. Barrett at quarterback, but Dwayne Haskins is no slouch, and he has a bunch of weapons around him in his first year as the starter.

In the backfield, Mike Weber and J.K. Dobbins are a dominant tandem, and they have one of the best wide receivers in the Big Ten in Parris Campbell. On defense, the Buckeyes could have the best overall unit in the entire nation, as guys like Nick Bosa; Dre’Mont Jones should be very tough to compete with up front. In addition, Damon Arnette is one of the best cornerbacks in the country.

Ohio State does have to go on the road to take on Michigan State and Penn State, so their road to the top of the East Division will not be an easy one. However, they do get Michigan inside Ohio Stadium, and while that game is late in the year, the Buckeyes should be able to take care of business in front of their home fans.

There is no word as to what is going to happen with head coach Urban Meyer just yet, as the investigation should be concluded by the end of the week. That has cast a bit of a cloud over the program over the past few weeks, but the only thing the players can do is prepare themselves for the season opener against Oregon State.

Ohio State will have to wait until later this week to learn the status of their head coach, but the team has forged on to prepare themselves for the 2018 season. They have the players to win no matter who is the head coach, but Meyer is a difference maker when he is stalking the sidelines, and they are going to need him if they want to bring home a national title.