Previewing Big Ten media days: From make overs at Ohio

Adam Rittenberg Close Adam Rittenberg ESPN Elder Author College football reporter. Joined ESPN.com in 2008. Graduate of Northwestern University.Tom VanHaaren Close Tom VanHaaren ESPN Personnel Writer ESPN staff writer Joined ESPN in 2011 Finished from Central Michigan Jul 26, 2023, 09:00 AM ET Power 5 media days will formally wrap up with the Big Ten

• on Wednesday and Thursday
• at Lucas Oil Stadium in
• Indianapolis.With the entries of UCLA and USC still a year away, the focus will be on the conference’s historic blue bloods: How will Ohio State look with a new starting quarterback? Can Michigan, with coach Jim Harbaugh facing a possible four-game suspension to start the season, three-peat? And is the country neglecting Penn State?All of those questions will be addressed today, along with Wisconsin’s new-look offense, Nebraska under Matt Rhule in Year 1 and the conference’s best quarterbacks.(Northwestern, after shooting Pat Fitzgerald in the wake of a hazing scandal, will be represented by interim coach David Braun. Players Bryce Gallagher, Rod Heard II and Bryce Kirtz will not attend due to the fact that they”did not desire our involvement to be controlled by the hazing issue and take the focus away

from football and the upcoming season.”)Adam Rittenberg and Tom VanHaaren break down the Huge 10’s biggest on-field questions as the season draws closer.How powerful will Ohio State’s offense lack C.J. Stroud at quarterback?Adam Rittenberg: Still extremely powerful. Coach Ryan Day has raised Ohio State’s production on offense, especially at quarterback, because his arrival in 2017. He

has produced 3 successive NFL first-round draft choices in Dwayne Haskins Jr., Justin Fields and Stroud, and there’s little reason to question what he can do with Stroud’s successor. Kyle McCord, a previous ESPN top-35 recruit, has patiently waited his turn and will enter preseason camp as the favorite to win the job. Ohio State will return the country’s premier wide receiver group, led by Marvin Harrison Jr. and Emeka Egbuka, and skilled running backs looking to get better from an uneven year. The secret might be the offensive line, which lost tackles Paris Johnson Jr. and Dawand Jones to the NFL and must stay a strength. Ohio State has the players, coaches and plan to stay one of the nation’s leading offenses.Tom VanHaaren: Losing a first-round quarterback is never a positive, but Day has actually been in this position before, where he required to replace a productive quarterback. I keep in mind when Kyle McCord devoted to Ohio State out of high school, believing that he would become a fantastic alternative at quarterback for the Buckeyes. I still believe he’ll be a terrific choice, especially with Harrison Jr. to toss to. They were teammates in high school and currently had chemistry

— Harrison captured 37 profession goals during his high school career. He’s in a quarterback competitors with Devin Brown, however McCord has an excellent chance at winning the job. As Adam mentioned, I believe the run game will be enhanced this season as long as both TreVeyon Henderson and Miyan Williams remain healthy. It may take a couple of games to get ready and get utilized to the new players, but I think Ohio State will remain as one of the top offenses in the nation in 2023. What does the Wisconsin offense look like under Luke Fickell and offensive planner Phil Longo?Rittenberg: Wisconsin fans won’t acknowledge the offense they see at Camp Randall Stadium this fall. Longo is a real Air Raid practitioner and brings a system that will highlight the passing game and pace like Wisconsin never has previously.”It’ll be a little bit of a culture shock, however ideally they’ll enjoy it,”Longo informed me this spring.”If we’re scoring points, I think they’ll enjoy it. If we’re winning games, they’ll enjoy it.

“The adjustment will be interesting, specifically for leading running back Braelon Allen and Wisconsin’s offensive linemen

, who are utilized to a run-heavy, systematic system. Wisconsin struck the portal tough for quarterbacks and pass receivers, consisting of forecasted QB starter Tanner Mordecai. They’re comfortable with the Air Raid, but the secret will be how Wisconsin’s holdover players adjust, and how the system fits in the Huge Ten.Editor’s Picks 2 Associated VanHaaren: The key for Longo and Fickell was making sure they had somebody at quarterback who could run the system, since as Adam pointed out, it’s going to be very different from the Wisconsin we’re all utilized to. The Badgers saw quarterback Graham Mertz transfer to Florida, Deacon Hill transfer to Iowa, and Chase Wolf enter the portal also. The personnel generated Mordecai from SMU and Nick Evers from Oklahoma. Longo’s offense last season at North Carolina was ranked No. 11 nationally in pass backyards per game with 309.3 backyards through the air. Wisconsin was ranked No. 114 with 183.8 pass backyards per game. That stat might be manipulated

as Longo had one

of the very best quarterbacks in the nation in Drake Maye, but looking even more into the stats, the Tar Heels were ranked No. 7 in pass attempts last season with 526 and Wisconsin was ranked No. 116 with 326 attempts all season. That alone ought to give Wisconsin fans a peek of what to expect this season. Michigan’s Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards form among the top backfields in college football. Picture by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire Can Michigan remain atop the conference for a third year in a row?Rittenberg: Michigan has the schedule and the returning players to win its third successive Big Ten title for the very first time since 1992, when the group declared its fifth consecutive championship (straight-out or shared). The Wolverines bring back the country’s best running back tandem in Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards, as well as quarterback J.J. McCarthy, a seasoned offensive line and several protective standouts. Michigan also can ease into the season, like it performed in 2022, not facing any Power 5 challengers beyond the league and not leaving Ann Arbor till Sept. 30 (Nebraska). The Wolverines will need to establish a more consistently threatening death game, and

figure out some of the defensive breakdowns that emerged in their CFP semifinal loss to TCU. McCarthy likely will get more freedom than he did as a first-year starter, but he also has to avoid devastating turnovers. Michigan has actually never won three straight outright Huge 10 titles, and Ohio State and Penn State are both powerful challengers. However the Wolverines walloped Penn State last season and compare well versus a very aggressive PSU defense, and they get Ohio State at home.VanHaaren: Ohio State will do whatever in its power to stop Michigan from winning another Big 10 title, however as Adam said, the Wolverines are returning a fair bit from last season at premium positions. McCarthy is more skilled– he concentrated on getting strength and arm health this offseason– and remains in position to have his finest season at Michigan yet. With Edwards and Corum both returning, the run game will still be the core of this offense and despite losing a couple of pieces along the offensive line, Michigan used the transfer website to make certain that unit in advance stayed strong. The personnel generated Stanford lineman Drake Nugent to assist replace Olu Oluwatimi at center, as well as tackle Myles Hinton and Arizona State guard LaDarius Henderson. On defense, the coaches are returning some staples in the secondary with second-year corner Will Johnson, who had an impressive first season, as well as Mike Sainristil, Rod Moore and Makari Paige. It’s going to be difficult to knock the Wolverines off of the top, but both Ohio State and Penn State are in position to try to do it.Is Penn State being neglected in the conference?Rittenberg: I don’t believe so. Anybody who studies Penn State’s roster and the returning players, particularly on defense, ought to realize the group can contend for the Big Ten title. Penn State’s two losses in 2022 both came against CFP teams. The Nittany Lions mostly beat Ohio State before J.T. Tuimoloau took over the game in the fourth quarter. Penn State hasn’t beaten Ohio State considering that 2016, but its biggest challenge could be Michigan, which steamrolled James Franklin’s squad for 418 hurrying yards in October. Given that 2016, Penn State has actually lost 3 games to Michigan by 24 points or more. But the Lions return an actually great group in the protective front seven, consisting of linebacker Abdul Carter and end Chop Robinson. Quarterback Drew Allar likely has a greater ceiling than predecessor Sean Clifford, who never ever took a clear dive in efficiency. Penn State also can really lean on its run game and offending line once again, specifically with deal with Olu Fashanu back for another season. The chance is there for Franklin’s team to compete this fall.VanHaaren: Perhaps not by Big Ten fans, however it doesn’t seem like Penn State is being spoken about nationally as much as they must be. I know the Nittany Lions have a brand-new quarterback, but Drew Allar has all the prospective to be great. Offending planner Mike Yurcich is returning, which means a lot more comfort and understanding of the system. The run game need to take another advance and ought to be a strength, which Penn State hasn’t had the ability to state for a couple of seasons now. With Michigan winning back-to-back titles and Ohio State being Ohio State, it does feel like Penn State should get a little bit more acknowledgment based upon who they’re returning. I concur with what Adam said about those who study the program, but anyone who does not understand what prospective Penn State might have this season could be pretty surprised.What ought to we expect from Matt Rhule and Nebraska this season?Rittenberg: A cleaner brand of football more connected to Nebraska’s roots. Nebraska’s Year 1 progress under Rhule should not necessarily be measured in wins, however by whether the team can break the habits that appeared under predecessor Scott Frost. The Huskers need to limit turnovers

and penalties, make special groups a minimum of a net neutral and regain the line-of-scrimmage play that made them nationally elite for years. Rhule might need another recruiting/transfer cycle to get the lineup in shape, but incremental improvements and fewer pulling-your-hair-out moments are sensible to anticipate. Nebraska also should be able to benefit from the Big 10 West, a traditionally wide-open department in its final year of presence. Get your favorite live sports, stories and originals with ESPN+, Disney + and Hulu. Update to a Disney Package plan and start streaming something for everybody today! VanHaaren: I agree that we most likely can’t evaluate Rhule based upon this season, because it’s going to take more than one offseason to turn the lineup over

. If you look back to his previous two college football stops, the blueprint is quite

comparable. At Temple, his first season ended with a 2-10 record, followed by 6-6 in his 2nd and eventually a 10-4 record in his 3rd season as head coach. He finished 1-11 in his first season as Baylor’s coach, then went 6-6 in Year 2 and 11-1 in his third season. That 3rd year seems to be the magic number for Rhule, so Nebraska fans must probably stay patient with what’s about to happen. I do think we will see a various group immediately, however, one that does not make as numerous self-inflicted injuries and ends up out whole games. The record likely won’t reflect the process, however it seems as though Nebraska remains in great hands with Rhule.Who will become the best quarterback in the conference?Rittenberg: Do not sleep on Maryland’s Taulia Tagovailoa. He’s the Big Ten’s most knowledgeable returning quarterback with 646 completions for 7,658 lawns and

50 touchdowns. Tagovailoa has 6,647 pass lawns and 44 goals the previous two seasons. He will be throwing to an equally skilled player in wide receiver Jeshaun Jones.

Maryland likewise has high expect transfers Kaden Prather(West Virginia )and Tyrese Chambers( Florida International), and speedster Octavian Smith Jr. could handle a bigger role as a sophomore. Tagovailoa comprehends coach Mike Locksley’s offense and the Big Ten landscape. League coaches have fantastic regard for him as one of the couple of established QBs in the conference.VanHaaren: I broke it down to Tagovailoa, McCarthy, McCord and Allar as my 4 choices. I agree that it most likely ends up being Tagovailoa since of his experience. To state someone various, for argument’s sake, I’ll say McCarthy. I’m not one hundred percent offered on Michigan’s options at receiver, however running back Donovan Edwards showed to be an exceptional choice in the pass game, as did tight end Colston Loveland and the staff added Indiana tight end AJ Barner from the transfer website. With Allar and McCord not having as much experience, it is difficult to choose either of them at this moment. McCord does have Harrison Jr. and Egbuka to toss to,

but McCarthy has actually done it on the field and shown he can lead the Michigan offense.