Five best college football futures bets to make, including our Syracuse Orange, who return 80% of their starters this season. Itll have to show that it can win big games before we can place the Cornhuskers higher. 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. A new-look offense will be headlined by former Pitt offensive coordinator Mark Whipple and Texas transfer quarterback Casey Thompson. Oct 23, 2021; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions offensive lineman Rasheed Walker (53) and linebacker Jesse Luketa (40) and safety Jaquan Brisker (1) and safety Jonathan Sutherland (0) walk on the field for the coin flip prior to the game Illinois Fighting Illini at Beaver Stadium. Minnesota was another team that made a big jump from 2020 to 2021, and with Tanner Morgan returning, yet again, theres an opportunity for the Gophers to continue that ascent. Score Prediction: Wisconsin 27, Washington State 24. Can Michigan [] There is a good chance this is the next top-10 perhaps top-five showdown in the series. Dec 29, 2021; New York, NY, USA; Maryland Terrapins quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa (3) runs the ball as Virginia Tech Hokies linebacker Dax Hollifield (4) pursues during the second half of the 2021 Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium. USA TODAY - Bryant Crews 1h. Get the fastest scores, stats, news, LIVE videos, and more. Michigan won the league last year, but Ohio State enters the 2022 college football season as the overwhelming Big Ten favorite. Below is a look at the bowl projections and playoff picks before all the fun begins for the 2022 season. It starts with taking full advantage of a slate that misses Penn State and Michigan from the other side of the conference and taking care of business in the 50-50 games. MOST RECENT. And while the Rose Bowl is hosting a College Football Playoff matchup next bowl season (more on that in a bit), the Badgers could be landing in the Orange Bowl for a New Years Six matchup with potential ACC champion Florida State. Fleck's team intends on toppling Iowa and Wisconsin down the stretch to advance to the Big Ten Championship Game. It helps that Iowa gets Michigan at home, but facing the Wolverines and Buckeyes in one season isnt exactly cause for celebration. If new defensive coordinator Jim Knowles can do anything with the defense, we could be talking about national title aspirations again. Michigan State and Penn State will stay in the mix in the Big Ten East, but it still comes down to the Buckeyes and Wolverines. Credit: Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports. Michigan is the pick from 247Sports to win the Big Ten and claim a spot in the Rose Bowl in the College Football Playoff. This should be a bowl team, but we saw how the team fell apart last year in every single game. And Penn State has some good bowl history against the Vols. Jim Harbaugh peeked into an NFL position but decided to stay. 1. Everything sets up for the Wolverines to defend their crown, and ultimately, it will likely come down to Michigan and Ohio State, once again. Here is a look at the spring way-too-early Michigan 3. Credit: USA TODAY Sports. Notably, those struggles came against the top of the conference including C.J. They also lost at home to Rutgers and UTSA. Wins: Indiana State, at Syracuse, Florida Atlantic, Iowa,Northwestern, at Indiana, Losses: Penn State, at Minnesota, at Maryland,Nebraska, at Wisconsin,at Illinois. Washington State quarterback Cam Ward has opted to return to school in 2023, and this should be a down-to-the-wire fight in Pac-12 country. Sean Clifford returns for his fifth season in Happy Valley after he threw 21 touchdowns in 2021. How can the sophomore improve his chances? The Wildcats did win the Big Ten West in 2018 and 2020. Be more involved in the big games. The word: Can quarterback Tanner Morgan return to the 2019 form for the Golden Gophers? The offense will reset the Big Ten record book in several areas. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-USA TODAY Sports. https://wolverineswire.usatoday.com/lists/too-early-big-ten-power-rankings-winter-2022-edition-college-football/, Notable Michigan football position switches under Jim Harbaugh, Who could be next? The Spartans have won the last two in the Paul Bunyan Trophy series, and Tucker hasn't backed down from the Wolverines at all. But the 2022 schedule sets up quite nicely, with three breezy nonconference games before opening up the conference slate with Maryland at home. B/R's preview of the Big Ten includes star players, top storylines, key games and just about everything short of USC and UCLA. Clifford returns, and a road game at Auburn is daunting, as is playing at Michigan. Highs will include a home win over Iowa while the lows could feature a road loss to Illinois for Jeff Brohm's group. The 2021 Big Ten Football season had plenty of surprises. In our 2021 too-early power rankings, eventual Big Ten champion, the hometown Michigan Wolverines, were slated at No. That's when the campaignultimately swings in the wrong direction with a brutal stretch versus the Nittany Lions followed by road games against likely top-10 teams Ohio State and Michigan State. Mandatory Credit: Joseph Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports. Ferentz just re-upped his contract and will have a talented, veteran team this upcoming season. C.J. You bet. Was that an indirect shot at the rest of the competition? 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. Heading into 2022, there are major questions for just about everybody not named Ohio State. It almost always comes down to The Game, and the Wolverines revived the rivalry with a 42-27 victory last season. Iowa won the division in 2021 before being dumped 42-3 by the Wolverines at Lucas Oil Stadium. Oct 16, 2021; Evanston, Illinois, USA; Northwestern Wildcats head coach Pat Fitzgerald looks on in the first half against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Ryan Field. Whether the Iowa offense can score consistently is again a major question, but this defense should be fierce. It's still the toughest road test on the Buckeyes' schedule and part of a thrilling day in the Big Ten East. Michigan loses a ton of talent from a team that went to the College Football Playoff last season. But overhauls are never sure things, even with the collection of talent that OSU has. 3. Big Ten Football B1G 2022 FULL Big Ten Record Predictions and 2022 Season Preview Who wins the West? really being the only question worth a damn here. Please check your email for a confirmation. Day repeatedly used the word "edgy" at Big Ten Media Days to describe the team's mindset in the offseason. And crossovers against Penn State and Ohio State certainly dont help matters. List LOOK: Michigan football 2022 schedule officially set. 247Sports writer Kevin Flaherty joined Athlon Sports in predicting Texas to finish first in the Big 12 conference. Not since 2010-13 has OSU gone Not since 2010-13 has OSU gone two-plus seasons without standing atop the conference. Aug. 27: Nebraska vs. Northwestern (in Dublin). Can they finish some of those close games in 2022? The 6-foot-6, 220 pound athlete committed to Wisconsin in late January, becoming the first pass-catcher to join the program for 2024. The schedule is a bit more daunting for the Buckeyes. Greg Schiano has improved this team greatly, but the schedule is brutal in 2022. This will not be a "White Out" game for some reason; perhaps because Ohio State has won the last five meetings since the 2016 loss at Happy Valley. Wisconsin Badgers running back Braelon Allen (0) runs for a long first down in the third quarter against Nebraska Cornhuskers safety Myles Farmer (4) during their football game Saturday, November 20, 2021, at Camp Randall in Madison, Wis. Dan Powers/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin. The Big Ten sent two teams to the CFB Playoff in 2022 for the first time in conference history. The road to Indianapolis and the Big Ten Championship Game goes through Columbuseven though it technically starts in Ireland. Once again, ESPN FPI is high on the Badgers as we enter the 2022 season. Well this would be a dream scenario for the Big Ten. Credit: USA TODAY Sports. Nov 20, 2021; College Park, Maryland, USA; Michigan Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh speaks with quarterback Cade McNamara (12) after during the first half against the Maryland Terrapins at Capital One Field at Maryland Stadium. Position but decided to stay should thrive in a season-long performance worthy mixed... 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