The Big Ten was the most successful college football conference in the regular season. The ACC was the more successful conference in the bowl games and in the College Football Playoff, but no conference had more New Year’s Six bowl teams than the Big Ten, which provided four. No conference had ever done that before. The Big Ten nearly became the first conference to put two teams in the College Football Playoff, and the biggest games in the conference – Ohio State at Penn State and Michigan at Ohio State – became two of the most memorable games of the college football season. What’s next in 2017?
Ohio State Buckeyes
Burning Question: Starters In The Secondary?
The Buckeyes are replacing multiple starters in the secondary for the second straight season. Not having continuity is a problem. Last year, those starters held down Penn State’s passing game, but Penn State’s offense had not yet turned the corner. PSU became a big-time offense only after the Ohio State game. The Buckeyes will face a much bigger challenge against the Nittany Lions next season. The other central story line surrounding Ohio State is the arrival of new offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson, replacing Ed Warinner. That will be another big change, and head coach Urban Meyer knows that if the secondary’s new starters aren’t great, the offense will have to compensate by scoring more than it did in 2016.
Penn State Nittany Lions
Burning Question: What’s Up With The Defense?
There are no questions about the offense, which scored 49 points in the Rose Bowl against USC. It’s all about the defense, which gave up 52 points in that Rose Bowl and now loses multiple pass rushers from the 2016 group. Ohio State and Michigan have top-class athletes, and Michigan State will host PSU during the 2017 season. The Nittany Lions exceeded expectations last season in winning the Big Ten championship. In order to maintain that standard in 2017, head coach James Franklin needs to cultivate solid replacements on the defensive front, specifically the defensive ends on the edges.
Michigan Wolverines
Burning Question: Receivers Ready To Step Up?
When the Wolverines fell short against Ohio State, they lost in part because they didn’t have dominant receivers in the passing game who could make tough catches in traffic on third and five or third and six. Michigan recruited talented wide receivers in its 2017 class, but will those receivers be able to play well enough soon enough to make a difference? The Wolverines need to get back to the days where they were productive in the passing game and their receivers – back then, they were big and fast – would manhandle their opponents in the secondary. As of now, the Wolverines don’t have a player that demands double-teams and that’s a problem.
Michigan is replacing 17 lost starters this season. A lot of freshmen will be counted on to play, as will many sophomores as well. This will be a talented team, but it will be a very youthful team, and that could be a challenge for Michigan against more experienced Big Ten opponents.
Wisconsin Badgers
Burning Question: Who’s The Next Badgers Runner?
The Badgers lost Corey Clement, their star running back, and his immediate backup as well. Wisconsin depends on its ability to run the ball, so for head coach Paul Chryst, finding adequate new performers this season is a must. The Badgers need to run the ball so that their defense remains fresh. That defense needs to be put in positions where it doesn’t have to defend a short field or play too many snaps. This year, Wisconsin has a new defensive coordinator, Jim Leonhard, and loses both T.J. Watt and Vince Biegel, two outstanding tacklers, to the NFL. That’s a lot to address in one offseason.
We know that the Badgers are typically built around a strong running game and have a long lineage of successful Big Ten running backs. They need a new one to emerge so that they can move forward and continue to be productive on the ground.
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