The defending national champion Ohio State Buckeyes fell just short against the Michigan State Spartans in 2015, opening the door for a new Big Ten champion. That wasn’t the only major storyline throughout the Big Ten a year ago, though, as Jim Harbaugh’s arrival at Michigan signaled the Wolverines’ return to prominence. Meanwhile, Iowa went undefeated in conference play and Northwestern put on a show early in the season before fading down the stretch. The fallout from last year has college football fans eagerly anticipating the 2016 college football season and a new wave of stars that will determine next year’s conference champion. Here is a look at five potential breakout players that will steal the show in the Big Ten in 2016.
Sam Hubbard, Ohio State Buckeyes
Defensive Tackle
The Buckeyes will look a lot different next year than they did this past season with the NFL Draft and graduation taking a major toll on Urban Meyer’s roster. However, Ohio State has done an excellent job recruiting and Hubbard is among the future stars projected to have the biggest impact in 2016. At 6’5’’ and 265 pounds, Hubbard is an athletic defensive tackle that has the potential to be very disruptive at the line of scrimmage in his sophomore season. Hubbard recorded 6.5 sacks in a reserve role for the Buckeyes last season and he should have no problem raising that total as a breakout star in 2016.
Malik McDowell, Michigan State Spartans
Defensive Tackle
Michigan State’s defense was a big reason why Spartans’ fans were able to celebrate a Big Ten title last year and maintaining that high level of play will be essential. It won’t be easy after losing three starters on the defensive line, but Michigan State has recruited some impressive talent including the former five-star prospect McDowell. The 6’6’’, 275-pound nose tackle went from 4.5 tackles for a loss as a freshman to 13 tackles for a loss last year and he still has room for improvement. McDowell will be a key cog for the Spartans in 2016 and a breakout player that makes a huge impact on what they are able to accomplish in the Big Ten.
Bryan Mone, Michigan Wolverines
Defensive Tackle
Harbaugh led Michigan to a 10-3 record in his first season as head coach and he has already provided even more reason for optimism for next year with a strong recruiting class and the addition of Don Brown as the team’s new defensive coordinator. Brown led one of the best defenses in the nation at Boston College a year ago and it will be very interesting to see what he can do with a Wolverines’ unit that ranked fourth in the country last season. Michigan landed the No. 1 overall prospect in Rashan Gary, but Mone’s return will be just as important after he missed all of last year because of injury. Mone is a 6’4’’, 325-pound beast that is expected to anchor the defensive line in 2016 and Brown will help develop him in to a breakout star.
Matt Nelson, Iowa Hawkeyes
Defensive Tackle
The Hawkeyes recorded 12 wins and made their first Rose Bowl appearance in 25 years, but their lasting memory will be a blowout loss to Stanford that put somewhat of a damper on the optimism generated last season. However, one of the lone bright spots from that blowout loss in the Rose Bowl was the emergence of Nelson, who had a half-sack and 1.5 tackles for a loss versus the Cardinal while looking like a disruptive force throughout the entire game. The sophomore defensive tackle is an absolute monster at 6’8’’and 270 pounds and he really made progress in his technique throughout last year. Nelson will play a much bigger role for Iowa this season as he helps replace Drew Ott and Nate Meier on the defensive line.
Garrett Dickerson, Northwestern Wildcats
Running Back
Northwestern uses the term “super back” to describe the position Dickerson will play for them in 2016. The Wildcats will use him as somewhat of a hybrid between an H-back, but he will never run the football. Dickerson will instead be used as a receiving option in the space between the line of scrimmage and where defenders will cover wide receivers and that will allow him to get out in space and make plays. The 6’3’’, 245-pound has excellent hands, speed and vision and he is worth keeping an eye on as a potential breakout star in the Northwestern offense next season.
