FAVORITE TEAMS

Ohio State is the obvious choice to win the Big Ten East, Big Ten title, and qualify for the playoffs. Their offense is lethal and hopefully their defense can stop struggling. However, someone on their schedule (or a West winner) wants to end their hopes of a division title and playoff opportunity.

Who wants to end Ohio State’s hopes?

Michigan ended their long losing streak to Ohio State last season and returns key pieces for an encore, but their D must be up to speed after losing leadership of Aidan Hutchinson, David Ojabo, and Dax Hill. They also must find out who’s their legit quarterback. Can they defeat Ohio State on the road to create a winning streak against them?

Wisconsin will win the trenches on both sides and their defense will be stellar, even with new faces. What every Wisconsin fan is waiting for is quarterback Graham Mertz to breakout like he did against Illinois in 2020. That’s the only resolution to winning the West and potentially upsetting Ohio State.

Michigan State has potential, but their coverage must play 100% better to slow the Buckeyes lethal receiving group. They added Georgia transfer Ameer Speed to hopefully improve the back end of the defense.

Penn State must win in the trenches on both sides to have a remote chance. Can Sean Clifford bounce back after an inconsistent 2021 season? Hosting the Buckeyes helps a great deal with fans behind them, but the team must come through for Happy Valley.

Maryland coach Mike Locksley had four seasons of development and successful recruiting. The offense is entertaining and Taulia Tagovailoa is reliable, but the coverage could have difficulty against Ohio State’s elite receivers.

Iowa’s defense can put this team in a winning situation, but this offense was poor last season and something must be done if they want to challenge Ohio State.

Purdue has a shot. Aidan O’Connell is heavily praised by the program, conference, and college football nation. All they have to do is win the division and they can challenge the Ohio State for the division title.

Anyone else with an outside chance at them?

Minnesota is on the fence but bringing back offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca figures to revive the offense and quarterback Tanner Morgan that made them successful in 2019. Can the lines on both sides maintain stability after making changes on the roster?

Nebraska could but must find a way to finish the entire game instead of the first half of football. They failed once again, and it was outside of the US this time. Texas transfer quarterback Casey Thompson showed what he could do but there’s still some work cut out for him. As for Scott Frost, his seat just got hotter. Find a way to win first, then find a way to win the West.

Northwestern should be an underrated team again this season. After questions with the roster, they may have figured out what they can do about that. They have their quarterback and their defense still plays well, even after losing safety Brandon Joseph to Notre Dame. They could put another scare into the Buckeyes in the first week of November.

As for the rest?

Illinois could play for a bowl berth, but can they turn up the offense and bit and maybe see more of what Syracuse transfer quarterback Tommy Devito can do?

Indiana is a question mark. They had a poor 2021 after their last two seasons were successful.

Rutgers likely doesn’t go anywhere this season, but may ruin one team’s week during the season. Otherwise, watch out for them in 2023.

Can the Buckeyes survive the Big Ten for a playoff berth?

Yes. I doubt they finish the season undefeated, but yes they will. CJ Stroud and company are back with a vengeance. Their offense should be unstoppable and Stroud should be on pace for probably his best season that determines if he’s their Heisman winner. They have an advantage on their schedule throughout the season, but they will slip up somewhere. If they go undefeated up until Michigan, depending on how the Wolverines do, this could either make or break their Big Ten East chances. If Ohio State’s like Georgia last season, one loss isn’t a big deal. If they defeat Michigan and lose in the Big Ten title game, it shouldn’t prevent them from a playoff spot.