With college football starting for real this week, it is time for more previews. In this article, I will preview the Big 10 East. If you are looking for a specific team, they are listed in alphabetical order.

Indiana

Last Season

Indiana started off 2018 well with a win at FIU, a nice win over Virginia, and a win over Ball State to start 3-0. The Hoosiers fell to Michigan State, but rebounded with a win over Rutgers. After the 4-1 start, Indiana went on a four game losing streak. They were blown out at Ohio State and against Iowa. They kept it close but still lost to Penn State and Minnesota. The streak was snapped with a close win over Maryland, but the Hoosiers fell to 5-6 when they lost to Michigan. This meant that Indiana’s bowl hopes were on the line against rival Purdue in the Battle for the Old Oaken Bucket. Unfortunately, Indiana came up short for the second straight season to finish 5-7.

Offense

Indiana had been engaged in a three man quarterback battle for most of camp. Peyton Ramsey started for most of last season and returns. In 2018, Ramsey threw for 2,875 yards and completed 66% of his passes, but had a shaky touchdown to interception ratio of 19/13. He also added 354 rushing yards and five touchdowns. Michael Penix looked to take over the starting job during his true freshman season after seeing some time in games, but tore his ACL before he could fully take the job from Ramsey. Penix has a strong arm and is a good athlete, but he was not as accurate as Ramsey in the limited action we saw him in. The wild card in this battle, Utah transfer Jack Tuttle, transferred to Bloomington last winter. Tuttle was a four-star recruit out of high school and is no slouch either. Just this week they announced Penix as the starter for week one. Stevie Scott is back at running back after he ran for 1,137 yards and 10 touchdowns during his true freshman season. Standing 6’2” and weighing 235 pounds, Scott will be a very nice offensive piece for the Hoosiers as a power back. Four-star true freshman Sampson James should also get some carries. At receiver, Indiana loses Luke Timian who finished third on the team in receiving yards last season. They do get back Nick Westbrook who was their leading receiver in 2018. Donovan Hale also is back after finishing second in receiving yards, first in receiving touchdowns, and tying for first in catches last season. The spot left by Timian will be filled by Whop Philyor (great name) who was a backup last season. Ty Fryfogle could also get some reps. At tight end, Peyton Hendershot returns as the starter. On the offensive line, Indiana loses three starters. Wes Martin started for four season at guard and will not be an easy guy to replace. The same goes for center Nick Linder and tackle Brandon Knight. Guard Simon Stepaniak will be the best player on the line this season.

Defense

At defensive tackle, the Hoosiers lose Ja’Merez Bowen who started last season. In his spot will be junior college transfer Juan Harris. Harris originally signed with Indiana out of high school, but went to a junior college for a year and did well there. Jerome Johnson returns at defensive tackle after starting last season. At defensive end, Indiana loses Nile Sykes who was a in 2018. In his spot will be Allen Stallings who started some last season and has been a solid backup for the last two seasons. Gavin Everett is back after starting at defensive end last season. Everett will likely be the best player on this defensive line. Four-star true freshman Beau Robbins could also work his way into the rotation at defensive end. At linebacker, the Hoosiers lose Dameon Willis who finished second on the team in tackles last season. His replacement will be Thomas Allen, the son of head coach Tom Allen. The younger Allen had a strong showing in spots during his freshman season. Raekwon Jones returns at the other linebacker spot after starting last season. Marcelino Ball returns as the starter at the husky position, which is a linebacker/safety hybrid. Ball finished third on the team in tackles and led the team in tackles for loss. Ball could very well be the best player on this defense. At safety, Indiana loses Jonathan Crawford who led the team in tackles last season. Crawford’s replacement at strong safety will likely be Juwan Burgess. Burgess appeared in all 12 games during his redshirt freshman season in 2018. Devon Matthews could also see the field at the spot. Khalil Bryant returns at free safety after being the starter last season. Cam Jones is another player to watch for at safety. At cornerback, Raheem Layne and Andre Brown are back after being the starters last season. Jaylin Williams and A’Shon Riggins could also see time at cornerback. Someone else to watch for will be Reese Taylor. Taylor was a quarterback in high school but switched to receiver upon his arrival in Bloomington. Taylor is making yet another position switch and could be an impact player at cornerback depending on how quickly his skills develop. Logan Justus is back at kicker after a strong showing in 2018. Haydon Whitehead returns at punter.

Coaching Staff

Tom Allen is back for his third season at the helm in Bloomington. Allen has gone 5-7 in both of his seasons with the Hoosiers. While I am sure more is expected from fans, I think that they need to be patient. Indiana plays in an extremely top heavy division and has not had a winning season since 2007. Allen can still make improvements at Indiana, but signs need to be shown soon. Kalen DeBoer was hired on as the offensive coordinator after holding the same position at Fresno State the last two seasons. DeBoer, who won three NAIA Championships as the head coach of Sioux Falls, did pretty well during his stint at Fresno State. Kane Wommack will start his first season as defensive coordinator. Wommack was the defensive coordinator at South Alabama in 2016 and 2017 before working as the linebackers coach for the Hoosiers in 2018.

Final Prediction

Indiana football has been in a bit of a rut recently. The Hoosiers have not had a winning season since 2007, but have come within two games of doing so for four straight seasons. With the great teams in this division, a winning season can be hard to pull off but it has to be done sometime. This season, Indiana returns a lot of skill position talent. If Michael Penix can hold up his end of the bargain at quarterback, this should be a good offense. On defense, the Hoosiers gave up over 30 points in seven of their nine Big 10 games. They need to improve defensively. The best way I think they can is to find a way to generate more big plays and turnovers as they had a negative turnover margin three seasons in a row and struggled to get sacks or tackles for loss in 2018. If Indiana can figure it out on defense, this should be a sneaky team in Big 10 play. I expect the Hoosiers to benefit from an easy non-conference schedule and get to 6-6 this season.

Maryland

Last Season

Maryland started off last season with a bang as they beat Texas in their season opener. The excitement from that win went down as they were blown out by Temple in their third game. A win over Minnesota kept the Terrapins over .500 but a loss to Michigan evened it up. They beat Rutgers, but then lost to Iowa to make their record 4-3. A win over Illinois meant they only needed one win in their final four games to secure a bowl berth. They could not get it done against Michigan State and then lost a close game to Indiana. When Ohio State came to College Park, Maryland gave them all they could handle before losing an overtime game 52-51 in heartbreaking fashion. A loss to Penn State ended Maryland’s season with a 5-7 record.

Offense

Maryland struggled to get consistent quarterback play last season. Kasim Hill was the starter for most of the season and completed less than 50% of his passes and could not do much on the ground. Tyrrell Pigrome did a bit better but still was not too great. Thankfully for the Terrapins, they hit the graduate transfer market to bring in a quarterback. Josh Jackson started in 2017 for Virginia Tech and was the starter for the first three games of last season before going down with an injury. In 16 starts for the Hokies, Jackson completed 60% of his passes and threw for 3,566 yards and a touchdown to interception ratio of 25/10. Jackson is not perfect, but he will be an upgrade. At running back, the loss of Ty Johnson does decrease the depth at the position, but they do return their lead back from last season. Anthony McFarland worked his way up the depth chart during his redshirt freshman campaign in 2018 and did quite well toward the end of the season. McFarland ran for 1,034 yards which was good enough for a freshman record for Maryland. He ran for over 200 yards in back to back games as he had 202 rushing yards against Indiana and a whopping 298 against Ohio State. Tayon Fleet-Davis and Javon Leake should also get some carries. At receiver, the Terrapins lose Taivon Jacobs who led the team in catches and receiving yards last season. They also lose Jahrvis Davenport who was a starter in 2018. To make matters worse, Jeshaun Jones who finished second on the team in receiving yards as a true freshman last season, tore his ACL in fall camp and will miss this entire season. Jones was a nice gadget player who was a good receiver and a threat as a runner. With Jones out, the Terrapins will trot out an entirely new starting receiving corps this season. Dontay Demus will fill in one of the spots after seeing time as a freshman last season. Demus will probably be the team’s best receiver. DJ Turner will start as well and play more in the slot. The other spot will likely go to Darryl Jones but four-star true freshman Isaiah Hazel could definitely see some time as well. Avery Edwards is gone at tight end after starting last season. His replacement will be Buffalo transfer Tyler Mabry. Mabry started for Buffalo last season and should be a solid receiving threat for Maryland this season. On the offensive line, three starters are gone from last season. Tackles Derwin Gray and Damian Prince will be tough guys to replace. Guards Terrence Davis and Sean Christie are the lone returning starters. Redshirt freshman tackle Jaelyn Duncan has received some praise during his recruitment and during camp and could be a contributor as well.

Defense

Maryland will move from a 4-2-5 defense to a 3-4 defense this season. On the defensive line, the Terrapins lose defensive end Byron Cowart. Cowart never lived up to his rating as a five-star recruit in his career, but he was still a good player for Maryland after he transferred there from Auburn and will be missed. Fellow defensive end Jessie Aniebonam also departs after being a strong starter. The new starter at defensive end will be Lawtez Rogers who saw some time as a backup during his freshman season. At defensive tackle, the Terrapins loss Mbi Tanyi who started last season. His replacement will likely be Keiron Howard who did well in spots last season. Adam McLean is back at defensive tackle and is the lone returning starter on the defensive line. Oluwaseun Oluwatimi also could see time at defensive tackle after having a good camp. At linebacker, the Terrapins lose Tre’ Watson. Watson racked up 114 tackles last season and added another five interceptions. With Antoine Brooks moving to safety and switching from a 4-2-5 to a 3-4, there will be quite a few new faces at linebacker. Durell Nchami will start at the jack linebacker spot after seeing some time as a true freshman in 2018. At the other outside linebacker spot, Ohio State transfer Keandre Jones will get the nod. Jones could never consistently get looks at Ohio State but should do well for the Terrapins. Ayinde Eley will get the nod at inside linebacker after seeing some time during his freshman season. Middle linebacker Isaiah Davis is lone returning starter on the unit and finished second on the team in tackles last season. Chance Campbell could also see time at inside linebacker. At cornerback, the Terrapins lose RaVon Davis who was a starter last season. Florida State transfer Marcus Lewis will likely be his replacement as he started some at Florida State and played some for the Terrapins last season. Tino Ellis started last season and will be back at cornerback. Ellis led the team with 11 pass deflections last season. Rayshad Lewis could also challenge for a starting gig. At safety, Maryland will have to replace a first round draft pick in Darnell Savage. Savage was a tremendous athlete with great ball skills and great field vision. His absence will definitely be felt. Antoine Brooks shifted from nickel back to safety and will fill in at the strong safety spot. Brooks finished third on the team in tackles last season and led the team with 9.5 tackles for loss. Antwaine Richardson was the presumed starter at the other safety spot but tore his ACL in spring practice and will be out for the season. The spot will now go to either sophomore Deon Jones or four-star true freshman Nick Cross. Cross was the highest rated recruit to sign with Maryland in this class and I believe is the favorite to win the job. At kicker, Joseph Petrino returns as the starter. Maryland will have to replace a terrific punter in Wade Lees. Last season, Lees averaged 40 yards per punt and downed 28 inside the 20.

Coaching Staff

Mike Locksley was hired on to be the head coach for Maryland this past offseason. Locksley was the offensive coordinator at Alabama in 2018 and was the offensive coordinator for the Terrapins from 2012-2015. Fans are excited for Locksley because of his success as an offensive coordinator and the familiarity he has with the DMV area, which should be beneficial to recruiting. Former East Carolina head coach Scottie Montgomery is entering his first season as offensive coordinator. Jon Hoke has been coaching defensive backs for three different NFL teams the last two decades and will be the new defensive coordinator.

Final Prediction

With all that happened in the 2018 offseason, it is pretty understandable for Maryland football to be in rebuild mode for the time being. The Terrapins also lose a lot of production from last season, especially defensively. Mike Locksley was hired on at Maryland to build up a program through offensive innovation and recruiting. Maryland adds a solid piece at quarterback and returns a good running back, but has holes all over the board at receiver and offensive line. On defense, five of their top eight tacklers are gone as is their top three in interceptions. This team will be playing a lot of new faces this season. The route to being decent will be having solid quarterback play, and at least one emergent receiver. On defense, it will require the front seven to develop quickly and not get run over. While I do not think those things are out of the realm of possibility, I do not see all of them coming to fruition this season. I see Maryland going 4-8 while figuring stuff out along the way.

Michigan

Last Season

Michigan got off to a bumpy start last season as they fell to Notre Dame 24-17 in the season opener. Wins over SMU, Western Michigan, and a blowout win over Nebraska put the Wolverines back at their original preseason ranking of 14th. When they went to Northwestern, they had to overcome a 17-0 deficit but rallied to win 20-17. Where this team started to look like a contender was in the following three game stretch. With College GameDay in town, the Wolverines blasted Wisconsin 38-13, they won 21-7 at Michigan State the next week, then dismantled Penn State 42-7 after that. The win at Penn State vaulted Michigan to 8-1 on the season and fourth in the polls. Wins over Rutgers and Indiana set up a matchup at Ohio State with the winner taking home the Big 10 East and for Michigan, a really good chance at the playoff. Sadly, Michigan fell apart and lost 62-39 and then fell to Florida in the Peach Bowl.

Offense

After it was suspected that he would enter the NFL Draft, Shea Patterson elected to return to school. Patterson, who transferred from Ole Miss after 2017, completed 64% of his passes and threw for 2,600 yards on eight yards per attempt and had a touchdown to interception ratio of 22/7. Patterson does pretty well as a runner too. Patterson is a pretty strong player at quarterback who has improved upon Michigan’s quarterback situation. With the changes on offense, Patterson should find more success this season. The Wolverines enter this season with some questions at running back. Karan Higdon will be gone after he ran for 1,178 yards and 10 touchdowns last season and did well as a bell cow back the last couple seasons. Chris Evans was slotted to take the spot but has since been suspended from the team. This means Michigan will likely have a fairly spilt backfield. Tru Wilson was the third leading rusher on the team last season and will probably take the number one spot. Redshirt freshman Christian Turner and blue chip true freshman Zach Charbonnet will also get some carries. It is likely that Wilson, Turner, and Charbonnet will have their carries split fairly evenly until one of them distances themselves. Michigan returns Nico Collins at receiver. Collins led the team in receiving yards last season and should see more balls thrown his way in the spread offense. Donovan Peoples-Jones is also back at receiver and should also improve after leading the team in catches and finishing second in receiving yards last season. A wild card at receiver will be Tarik Black. Black has done very well in his time at receiver when healthy, but can not get rid of the injury bug. If Black can stay healthy, he could be Michigan’s best receiver. Ronnie Bell and true freshman Mike Sainristil should also see time at receiver. Zach Gentry is gone at tight end. Gentry had the perfect combination of size at 6’8” and 265 pounds, speed, and blocking. Gentry’s replacement will be Sean McKeon. Michigan gets four starters back on the offensive line. While the unit looked shaky at first in 2018, they improved tremendously as the season went on. Center Cesar Ruiz, guard Ben Bredeson, and tackle Jon Runyan will all be key contributors to what looks like one of the best offensive lines in the country.

Defense

On the defensive line, the Wolverines lose what was likely the best duo at defensive end in the country. Rashan Gary battled injuries for a good portion of last season but was a very effective player in his time there. Gary drew a ton of attention from opposing lines and freed up room for fellow defensive end Chase Winovich to have a great season. Winovich was a second team all-American in 2018 and had 69 tackles, and a team leading 17 tackles for loss and seven quarterback hurries on the season. The new starters at defensive end will be Aidan Hutchinson and Mike Danna. Hutchinson was a backup last season. Danna is a graduate transfer from Central Michigan. Last season with the Chippewas, Danna recorded 69 tackles, 9.5 sacks, 15 tackles for loss, and seven quarterback hurries. Danna will definitely be a player to watch on this defense although he will likely not be as good as Gary or Winovich. Kwity Paye could also see time at defensive end after he stepped in when Gary was injured last season. Five-star true freshman Chris Hinton is another player who could see time. At defensive tackle, Michigan loses Bryan Mone who started last season. His replacement will be Donovan Jeter. Carlo Kemp is back after starting last season. Four-star true freshman Mazi Smith could also get some reps. Another player to watch for on the defensive line will be converted fullback Ben Mason. Mason was the primary fullback for Michigan last season but with changes in the offensive scheme, he chose to switch to defensive line and could turn into a solid player on the unit. Michigan loses Big 10 Defensive Player of the Year Devin Bush at linebacker. Bush was the tenth overall pick in the last NFL Draft and was a very good player for the Wolverines. His replacement will be Josh Ross who spent 2018 as a backup but got quite a bit of play time. Devin Gil returns returns at outside linebacker after starting last season. Khaleke Hudson looked like a star in the making in 2017, but regressed a bit last season. If he can return to his form in 2017, he will be a definite impact player. Josh Uche is a freak athlete and will see time at linebacker this season too. Uche led the team in sacks last season. Michigan loses David Long who was very strong in coverage. Brandon Watson is also gone after playing a key backup role last season. His replacement will be either Vincent Gray or Jaylen Kelly-Powell. Lavert Hill is back at cornerback after deciding to hold off on the NFL Draft. Hill was a third team all-American last season and will be one of the key players on the defense. At safety, the Wolverines lose Tyree Kinnel. Kinnel finished second on the team in tackles last season. His replacement will be Brad Hawkins who played a backup role last season. True freshman Daxton Hill was a five-star recruit the top safety recruit in the country last season, and will see some time if he does not beat out Hawkins for the starting role. Josh Metellus returns as the starter at strong safety. Metellus picked off three passes last season. J’Marick Woods will be another player to watch at safety. Michigan probably has the single most intriguing kicker battle in the country. Quin Nordin was the top rated kicker in the in the recruiting class of 2016, but has never quite lived up to expectations. Jake Moody stepped in last season as the placekicker when Nordin was injured and was also a kickoff specialist. Moody put up better numbers than Nordin did during his time at kicker, which has now led to a camp battle. I expect Moody to take the job. Will Hart returns at punter after getting an all-Big 10 nod last season.

Coaching Staff

Jim Harbaugh is back for year five in Ann Arbor. Harbaugh was considered a slam dunk hire at the time, but had left many fans disappointed. His 5-7 record against Ohio State, Michigan State, and Penn State and more specifically his 0-4 record against Ohio State is a likely cause of that along with the fact that they have never won their division or won a NY6 Bowl. Despite that, I think Harbaugh is a great coach and has done well at Michigan. I think it is only a matter of time before Michigan turns the tide of the Big 10 in their favor. Josh Gattis will be starting his first season as offensive coordinator. Gattis worked as the passing game coordinator at Penn State and saw quite a bit of success. Gattis was hired as a co-offensive coordinator at Alabama for the 2018 season and also saw success there. Harbaugh has fully turned the offense over to Gattis and with the switch to the spread, Michigan will definitely be changing things up. Gattis has even adopted the “speed in space” moniker for this offense. Don Brown is back at defensive coordinator and is one of the best in the country at his job. Since he took over at Michigan in 2016, Brown has led one of the nation’s best defenses.

Final Prediction

Michigan had yet another disappointing season that seems to fit the memo of their recent teams. Michigan has all the tools to succeed and have done good, but they need to elevate to great as soon as possible. Michigan needs to bring home a conference title soon, and more importantly, best Ohio State. Thankfully, it looks like they have the talent to do it. If they can figure it out at running back, they will likely have the best offense Jim Harbaugh has ever coached at Michigan. On defense, they lose some key guys but I have faith in Michigan’s ability to reload at this point. It might not be a good way to do it, but Michigan’s entire season will be judged on whether or not they beat Ohio State. Luckily for them, I think they can pull it off. Michigan just needs to not take a game off with their tough non-conference schedule. I predict Michigan to go 11-1 in the regular season, (my guess for their loss will be either Penn State or Notre Dame) win the Big 10 Championship, and make the playoff this season.

Michigan State

Last Season

Michigan State entered 2018 with some hype as a darkhorse playoff contender. The Spartans did not get off to a great start as they struggled to beat Utah State in the season opener (this was before people realized Utah State was good). In their second game, Michigan State fell at Arizona State. Wins over Central Michigan and Indiana put the Spartans back on the right track. After that, they fell to Northwestern. An upset win over then eighth ranked Penn State was a nice win to have, but the loss in their next game to rival Michigan was not. Wins over Purdue and Maryland put the Spartans at 6-3. That was followed by two ugly losses to Ohio State and Nebraska. The regular season ended on win, but not a convincing one as they just beat Rutgers 14-10. In their bowl game, the Spartans fell to Oregon in an ugly game to finish the season 7-6, which coincidentally was the score of the bowl game they lost.

Offense

After garnering a lot of hype due to his solid 2017 performance, Brian Lewerke fell short of those expectations in 2018. While Lewerke had a disappointing 2018 season, I believe much of it can be chalked up to a nagging shoulder injury. I think that Lewerke will have a solid showing this season if he stays healthy. LJ Scott (who I think was a Nick Saban recruit) was the lead back last season when healthy and is gone. Thankfully, many other players got experience being the lead back as Scott went down with injury early. Connor Heyward led the team in rushing yards last season and is a pretty good power runner. Heyward is pretty big for a running back as he weighs 236 pounds but he can run through tacklers well and has a quick burst of speed. La’Darius Jefferson and true freshman Anthony Williams should also see time at running back. Max Rosenthal took over the starting gig at fullback midway through last season and will return this season. At receiver, Michigan State loses Felton Davis. Davis started started the first seven games, but still led the team in receiving touchdowns and receiving yards per game. He will be tough to replace. Cody White returns after he led the team in catches and receiving yards last season. Darrell Stewart started last season and also returns. Jalen Nailor will fill in Davis’s spot after seeing some time during his freshman season. Brandon Sowards and Cam Chambers could also get some reps. Matt Sokol is gone at tight end after starting last season. His replacement will be Matt Dotson. On the offensive line, Michigan State returns all five starters and some key backups who saw time due to injury. Center Matthew Allen will be the best player on the unit. Tackle Jordan Reid and guard Kevin Jarvis should also be solid. Michigan State was pretty bad offensively in 2018 and had some very rough spots, but much of that can be chalked up to injuries. If they can stay healthy, many of the issues that plagued the offense last season should be gone.

Defense

Michigan State returns every starter on the defensive line from last season. Raequan Williams returns at defensive tackle after starting last season. Williams put up an impressive 53 tackles and 10.5 tackles for loss in his 2018 campaign. Fellow defensive tackle Mike Panasiuk also is back after starting last season. Starting at defensive end is Mike’s brother Jacub Panasiuk. Both brothers are solid players who interestingly speak Polish to each other to call signals on the defensive line. The other starting defensive end is reigning Big 10 Defensive Lineman of the Year Kenny Willekes. In 2018, Willekes amassed 78 tackles, 8.5 sacks, 20.5 tackles for loss, and 12 quarterback hurries. Willekes looks to be a monster in 2018. This defensive line unit also has multiple solid backups that could be contributors. At linebacker, Andrew Dowell needs to be replaced as does key backup Jon Reschke. Dowell was a good all around linebacker as he had 97 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, and nine pass deflections. Dowell’s replacement will be Antjuan Simmons. Simmons appeared in every game last season and played a solid backup role. Tyriq Thompson returns at outside linebacker. Thompson is a big hitter and had a solid showing in 2018. At middle linebacker, Joe Bachie is back after getting a fourth team all-American nod last season. Bachie led the Spartans with 102 tackles and added another 8.5 tackles for loss. At cornerback, the Spartans lose Justin Layne. In 2018, Layne finished fifth on the team in tackles and added another 15 pass deflections on the season. Layne’s replacement will probably be Josh Butler. Butler saw time starting due to injuries and should be a solid player this season. Josiah Scott is also back after starting the first five games at cornerback before going down with an injury. Tre Person could also see time at cornerback. At safety, Michigan State will be without Khari Willis. Willis was third on the team in tackles in 2018, and added 10 pass deflections. Willis was a hard hitting safety who led all safeties in bench press reps at the NFL combine. He will be missed. Xavier Henderson will be Willis’s replacement. David Dowell is back after starting at the other safety spot. True freshman Julian Barnett was a four-star recruit and could also see time in the secondary. Tyler Hunt returns at punter after starting last season, but could get beat out by Jake Hartbarger who started at first in 2018 before going down with an injury. Matt Coghlin returns at kicker.

Coaching Staff

Mark Dantonio is back for his thirteenth season as head coach for Michigan State. Dantonio has done very well in his time in East Lansing. Dantonio has garnered a reputation of getting players to reach their talent ceilings and I think will continue to do that. Brad Salem has been promoted from quarterbacks coach to offensive coordinator. Mike Tressel is back for his fifth season as defensive coordinator. Michigan State also scrambled around a bunch of titles for their position coaches this past offseason.

Final Prediction

While it is hard to look down too much at a 7-6 record, Michigan State’s 2018 season was a train wreck at times, mostly on offense. This team was bitten by the injury bug, but also struggled to get anything to work. Michigan State entered 2018 as a darkhorse playoff candidate (I at least thought they were and if I say it enough, it will sound like a common opinion) but flopped. Thankfully for the Spartans, they get a lot of guys back. Getting through their front seven in the ground should be like running through a brick wall with Kenny Willekes, Raequan Williams, and the Panasiuk brothers up front and Joe Bachie leading the linebackers. Their secondary might not be as good as their front seven but it should still be solid. Where Michigan State will need to pick it up is on offense. Their whole starting offensive line is back which is a good starting point. What they need is for Brian Lewerke to at least come close to his 2017 season and for a solid and consistent threat to emerge at each of the skill spots. I have faith in Mark Dantonio and believe that he can always figure out how to maximize talent, so I have Michigan State going 9-3 this season.

Ohio State

Last Season

Ohio State’s started off 2018 with blowout wins over Oregon State and Rutgers. Against TCU, the Buckeyes started off slow but pulled ahead to win 40-28. When they made the trip to Penn State, the Buckeyes made some plays late to win 27-26. Wins over Indiana and Minnesota put the Buckeyes at 7-0 and vaulted them to second in the polls. In their next game at Purdue, the Buckeyes just laid an egg as they lost 49-20. In their next game, Ohio State also struggled to beat Nebraska. They beat Michigan State soundly, but then were a two point conversion away from losing at Maryland. When the public opinion of Ohio State was at an all-time (or at least all season) low, they kicked it in gear and beat rival Michigan. In the Big 10 Championship, they also took down Northwestern. Unfortunately, Ohio State was left out of the playoff but did beat Washington in the Rose Bowl.

Offense

At quarterback, Ohio State loses a Heisman finalist in Dwayne Haskins. Last season, Haskins threw for 4,831 yards and 50 touchdowns while completing 70% of his passes. Haskins was a great quarterback during his one season as the starter for the Buckeyes. He will definitely not be easy to replace. Thankfully for Ohio State, they are not totally starting from scratch at quarterback. The Buckeyes dipped into the transfer market and were able to sign Justin Fields. Fields was the second overall recruit in the class of 2018 and won the Elite 11 MVP before his senior season of high school (see I am not the only moron who thought he was going to be better than Trevor Lawrence). Fields transferred to Ohio State after failing to win the job at Georgia. Fields is a tremendous athlete who has a very good arm as well. If he can improve his field vision and pocket awareness, he can turn into an elite quarterback for the Buckeyes. At running back, the has been built on the backfield duo of JK Dobbins and Mike Weber the last two seasons. Unfortunately, Weber is now gone leaving Dobbins as the lead back. Weber ran for 954 yards in 2018. Dobbins led the team with 1,053 yards and 10 touchdowns. Demario McCall will likely be the second back. McCall is smaller than Dobbins but is a playmaker and is dangerous with open space. Master Teague could also get some carries as well. Ohio State loses three of their top four receivers from last season. Parris Campbell put up 90 catches for 1,063 yards and 12 touchdowns and will be gone. Terry McLaurin had 701 yards and 11 touchdowns last season and needs to be replaced as well as Johnnie Dixon who had 669 yards and eight touchdowns. Their best returning receiver is KJ Hill who had 70 catches for 885 yards last season. Austin Mack started the first eight games at receiver before going down with an injury and will be back. The other starting spot will go to Binjimen Victor. Chris Olave is a player to watch for in the receiving corps as well. Olave really broke out toward the end of 2018, especially in the Michigan game and will look to ride that momentum into this season. Five-star true freshman Garrett Wilson could also get some looks. Luke Farrell will return as the starting tight this season. On the offensive line, the Buckeyes lose four starters. Michael Jordan was a first team all-American at center and will be gone as will first team all-Big 10 tackle Isaiah Prince. The best player on the line and lone returning starter will be tackle Thayer Munford.

Defense

At defensive tackle, the Buckeyes lose a key player in Dre’Mont Jones. Jones had an impressive season in 2018 where he racked up 13 tackles for loss. His replacement will be Davon Hamilton who was a solid backup last season. The other defensive tackle will be Robert Landers who started last season. Jashon Cornell will also look to see time at defensive tackle. Jonathon Cooper is back at defensive end after starting last season. The other defensive end, Chase Young, will be one of the best defensive players in the country. Young put up 10.5 sacks, 15.5 tackles for loss, had five pass deflections, and another nine quarterback hurries. Young has crazy good speed off the ball and will likely be a top five pick in the upcoming NFL Draft. Tyreke Smith is another player who could get some reps at defensive end as is five-star true freshman Zach Harrison. At linebacker, Ohio State returns every starter from last season. Tuf Borland started at middle linebacker last season and finished third on the team in tackles while adding another nine tackles for loss. Malik Harrison returns after he had 81 tackles last season, which was good enough to tie for first on the team. Harrison will be one of the best players on this defense. Pete Werner is back at outside linebacker and will be a solid starter. Another linebacker to look out for is Baron Browning. Browning is a tremendous athlete but has not been able to crack the starting lineup. At cornerback, the Buckeyes lose Kendall Sheffield who was a very good player last season. Thankfully, his replacement will be a former five-star recruit and possible first round pick in Jeffery Okudah. Okudah is a very good athlete who plays very intelligently and with good instincts. Damon Arnette is back at the other cornerback spot after starting in 2018. Shaun Wade will be another player to look out for. Brendon White is back at safety after starting last season. Jordan Fuller also started at safety in 2018 and will be back. Fuller led the team in tackles last season and was named second team all-Big 10. Jahsen Wint and Isaiah Pryor will also get looks at safety. Blake Haubeil returns at kicker. Drue Chrishman is back at punter and will be one of the best in the country as he averaged 43 yards per punt last season and downed 29 inside the 20.

Coaching Staff

After the retirement of Urban Meyer, Ohio State hired offensive coordinator Ryan Day as their head coach. Day was the offensive coordinator in 2018 and did a very good job in that role. Day has also been a quarterback coach in the NFL before. Former Indiana head coach Kevin Wilson is back for his third season as offensive coordinator. After former defensive coordinator Greg Schiano left, the Buckeyes made a pretty bold move by hiring Michigan defensive line coach Greg Mattison as their defensive coordinator. Mattison has had two separate stints as Michigan’s defensive coordinator and was also the defensive coordinator at Notre Dame and the Baltimore Ravens. Mattison is clearly a well established coach. After the departure of Alex Grinch, former San Francisco 49ers secondary coach Jeff Hafley will enter his first season as co-defensive coordinator.

Final Prediction

Ohio State was an elite team in 2018. The only problem is that for about four games of the season, they played nothing like it. Ohio State will need to be consistent this season. While Ohio State have a new coach, I think changing of the guard will not be as dramatic since Ryan Day was hired from within. The Buckeyes will have to coach up a new quarterback this season. While Justin Fields has tremendous talent, he is not yet on the same level as Haskins was. There will be some change at running back and receiver, but the Buckeyes have clear next men up that I have faith in. Their defense returns a lot of guys and Is littered with blue chippers and potential first round draft picks. This team has all the talent to do very well, but I worry about consistency. I expect the Buckeyes to go 10-2 this season, losing to Michigan and some middling Big 10 West team. If they can avoid inconsistency, they could make the playoff.

Penn State

Last Season

Penn State survived a scare on opening weekend as they needed overtime to take down a very good Appalachian State team. The Nittany Lions laid waste to rival Pittsburgh the next week and did more of the same against Kent State and Illinois. Against Ohio State, the Nittany Lions got off to a good start but collapsed late and fell 27-26. They then lost to Michigan State in their next game. They scraped to a win over Indiana and beat Iowa but were blown out by Michigan. Penn State turned around their fortunes with a win over Wisconsin and won their last two regular season games to finish 9-3. In the Citrus Bowl against Kentucky, the Nittany Lions unfortunately lost to finish 9-4.

Offense

At quarterback, Penn State loses a three-year starter and Penn State legend in Trace McSorley. McSorley left Penn State as the program’s all-time leading passer and was a great dual threat as well. McSorley was someone Penn State could always rely upon and could make plays in big moments while also being a great leader for the team. His absence will definitely be felt. Penn State made a bit of a surprising decision toward the end of spring ball to go with Sean Clifford as the starter despite many expecting it to be Tommy Stevens. Clifford is a redshirt sophomore who has a good arm and reportedly ran a faster 40 yard dash than McSorley. Clifford has looked to have gained the trust of the coaching staff and team. At running back, the Nittany Lions will have to replace Miles Sanders. Sanders ran for 1,274 yards last season and while he was no Saquon Barkley, he was a good lead back did quite well in 2018. The next man up at running back will be Ricky Slade. Slade was a five-star recruit and top all-purpose back in the class of 2018. He saw time during his freshman season but will fully take the reigns in 2019. The second back role will be split between two four-star true freshmen in Noah Cain and Devyn Ford. Both were top 100 recruits in the country and should get some carries. At receiver, Penn State loses Juwan Johnson. Johnson was a solid starter for Penn State and made one of the most important catches in recent memory for Penn State. DeAndre Thompkins was a nice rotational receiver who will also be gone. In his spot will be Justin Shorter. Shorter was a five-star recruit and top overall receiver in the class of 2018. Shorter saw limited reps last season but could be a breakout player in 2019. KJ Hamler is back at receiver after leading the team in catches and receiving yards as a true freshman last season. Hamler is a very good athlete and can be impactful in multiple ways. Jahan Dotson is also back at receiver after starting last season. At tight end, Pat Freiermuth returns after a very strong freshman season. Freiermuth finished second on the team in receiving yards last season and led the team in receiving touchdowns. Freiermuth is a good all-around tight end and will be nice to have back. Penn State returns three starters on the offensive line but loses two key players. Guard Connor McGovern and tackle Ryan Bates were both solid players who will be tough to replace. Tackle Will Fries will likely be the top offensive lineman.

Defense

On the defensive line, the Nittany Lions lose defensive end Shareef Miller who had 15 tackles for loss last season en route to a second team all-Big 10 nod. Miller was a strong defensive end and made it to where teams could not entirely focus on Yetur Gross-Matos. Luckily for Penn State, Gross-Matos does return after putting up a monster performance in 2018. He had 54 tackles at defensive end, eight sacks, and 20 tackles for loss while being named first team all-Big 10. Gross-Matos will be a tough player to game plan against and is nice to have back. Shane Simmons will be filling in Miller’s spot at defensive end. Shaka Toney will also get some reps at the spot. At defensive tackle, Kevin Givens will be gone after starting last season after accumulating 10.5 tackles for loss. His spot will go to either PJ Mustipher or Antonio Shelton. Both of the two were backups last season. Robert Windsor is back at the other spot after starting last season. Windsor had 7.5 sacks and 11 tackles for loss last season and will be a very good player to have on this unit. At linebacker, Penn State loses Koa Farmer, but have a good backup plan. Micah Parsons was a top five overall recruit in the country in the class of 2018. While he only started one game last season, he got quite a bit of reps and led the team in tackles, the first true freshman to ever do so at Penn State. Parsons looks to seamlessly shift into the starting role. Cam Brown is back at outside linebacker after starting last season. At middle linebacker, Jan Johnson finished second on the team in tackles last season. Johnson, a wrestler at Penn State who walked on to the football team last season, will be a key player on this defense. True freshman Brandon Smith was a five-star recruit and the top inside linebacker prospect in the country and should see time this season at linebacker. Penn State loses their top cornerback from last season in Amani Oruwariye. Oruwariye made an impact as a terrific press corner who could really shut down receivers once he got his hands on them. He picked off three passes last season and had 12 pass deflections. Tariq Castro-Fields will fill in the spot. Castro-Fields looks solid in spots last season. John Reid started at cornerback last season and will return. The Nittany Lions lose Nick Scott at strong safety. Scott finished fourth on the team in tackles last season and added three interceptions. His replacement will be Lamont Wade who saw time as a backup last season. Garrett Taylor is back after starting at free safety last season. Taylor had 71 tackles, seven pass deflections, and three interceptions last season. Penn State returns Jake Pinegar at kicker as well as Blake Gillikin at punter. Gillikin did quite well last season, averaging 44 yards per punt.

Coaching Staff

James Franklin is back for his sixth season in State College. Franklin started off a bit rough, but once he got his recruits in, the team took it up a notch. Franklin boasts a 45-21 record at Penn State and a 31-9 record the last three seasons. Franklin is a great recruiter but needs to avoid late game errors which he has struggled with. Ricky Rahne returns for his second season as offensive coordinator. Brent Pry and Tim Banks are back for their fourth season together as co-defensive coordinators.

Final Prediction

Penn State did fine in 2018, but I believe fans were likely hoping for more. Penn State is in a significantly better spot than they were five years ago, but they need to continue to grow. James Franklin has brought in a ton of talent that can lead to Big 10 Championships down the line if coached well. There will be a change at quarterback that will be tough to make, but the coaching staff believes in Sean Clifford and I am inclined to trust them. I also trust that they can coach up the five-star recruits filling in missing spots. Penn State’s defense should be elite this season. This team has a high ceiling, but they need to do better in close games and high pressure situations. That goes for James Franklin too. I expect Penn State to go 9-3 this season and look ready for a run in 2020.

Rutgers

Last Season

Rutgers got a nice 35-7 win over Texas State in their season opener. Things went downhill from there. The Scarlet Knights were blown out by Ohio State which was expected, but unexpectedly suffered the same fate against Kansas and Buffalo. The game was kept close with Indiana, but they again were blown out by Illinois and Maryland. They hung with Northwestern and Wisconsin which was nice, but they hoped to win a game again at some point. Rutgers had some moral victories toward the end of the season as they played it close with Michigan State and Penn State, but still finished an appalling 1-11.

Offense

Rutgers will likely be rolling out a new quarterback this season. Artur Sitkowski started as a true freshman last season and had his fair share of struggles. He completed less than half of his passes, and had a pretty rough touchdown to interception ratio of 4/18. While part of his poor performance can be attributed to him being thrown into the fire early when he was probably not ready, he still clearly has work to do before he can be a trusted starter. Rutgers brought in McLane Carter as a graduate transfer from Texas Tech who transferred to Rutgers after failing to win the starting job in Lubbock. While Carter is far from perfect, he will be an upgrade over what they had last season. Carter and Sitkowski are still technically battling it out, but it looks like Carter is going to get the nod. Rutgers returns their two leading rushers from last season. Raheem Blackshear led the team in rushing yards and receiving yards last season while Isaih Pacheco led the team in yards per carry. Blackshear and Pacheco will likely split carries again this season. True freshman Aaron Young was the highest rated recruit to sign with Rutgers in this past cycle and could also see time. Rutgers loses Jerome Washington at receiver who started last season. In his spot will be either Eddie Lewis or Hunter Hayek. Both of the two saw time last season. Bo Melton led all receivers in catches and receiving yards last season and will return. Shameen Jones also started at receiver last season and will return. Converted tight end Daevon Robinson will be someone to watch at receiver as well. At tight end, the Scarlet Knights lose Travis Vokolek who started last season as well as Nakia Griffin-Stewart. The next man up will be either converted quarterback Johnathan Lewis or Wisconsin transfer Kyle Penniston. On the offensive line, Rutgers will be without tackle Tariq Cole and guard Jonah Jackson who were both multi year starters. Tackle Kamaal Seymour looks to be the best offensive lineman on the team.

Defense

On the defensive line, the Scarlet Knights will be without defensive end Kevin Wilkins who looked like their best defensive lineman last season. In his spot will be Mike Tverdov who saw time as a rotational player last season. Rutgers does return Elorm Lumor at defensive end. Lumor led the team in tackles for loss last season and will be the best defensive lineman on this team. At defensive tackle, Jon Bateky will need to be replaced. Bateky’s replacement will be Willington Previlon who played a backup role last season. Julius Turner started at defensive tackle last season and returns. Micah Clark converted over from offensive line this past offseason and will be a player to watch. Rutgers loses their leading tackler last season in linebacker Trevor Morris. Morris had 109 tackles, eight pass deflections, and a team leading five quarterback hurries en route to a third team all-Big 10 nod. Deonte Roberts was second on the team in tackles and also has departed. Tyreek Maddox-Williams is the lone returning starter at linebacker and will have to take a step up this season. Tyshon Fogg will start at middle linebacker after seeing time in the rotation last season. The other outside linebacker position will go to Olakunle Fatukasi. Drew Singleton transferred to Rutgers from Michigan and will be a player to look out for at linebacker. At safety, the Scarlet Knights lose Saquan Hampton and Kiy Hester. Hampton led the team with 13 pass deflections last season and picked off three passes. Their spots are up for grabs right now. Malik Dixon Christian Izien will battle it out at strong safety while Jarrett Paul and Tim Barrow will battle for the job at free safety. None of the four players have a ton of experience. At cornerback, Rutgers loses Isaiah Wharton who was a pretty strong and versatile player as he had six tackles for loss and eight pass deflections. Avery Young is back at cornerback after finishing third on the team in tackles and second with 10 pass deflections last season. Young leads all returning players in both categories. Damon Hayes also returns after starting last season at cornerback. Justin Davidovicz returns at kicker after a solid showing in 2018. Australian prospect Adam Korsak is back at punter after averaging 42.7 yards per punt and downing 23 inside the 20 last season.

Coaching Staff

Chris Ash returns for his fourth season as head coach and needs to make some things happen this season to keep his job. Ash is 7-29 in three season at Rutgers. Ash was the defensive coordinator at Wisconsin before being hired by the Scarlet Knights. John McNulty is the team’s first returning offensive coordinator in 10 years. McNulty had some struggles in year one but has the pedigree as he has coached in the NFL for nine seasons before taking the job with Rutgers. Andy Buh is in year one as defensive coordinator after holding the same position at Maryland previously. Noah Joseph is back for his second season as co-defensive coordinator.

Final Prediction

Rutgers football is not in a good place. The team has not won more than four games since 2014, and is stuck in an extremely top heavy division in a conference where they have lost 12 straight conference games. The Scarlet Knights were quite the rebuilding project but Chris Ash needs to show some signs of a rebuild soon. This team has talent in some areas but gaping holes in others. I expect the Scarlet Knights to struggle again this season and go 3-9.

Here are my final standings predictions

Michigan 11-1 Ohio State 10-2 Michigan State 9-3 Penn State 9-3 Indiana 6-6 Maryland 4-8 Rutgers 3-9

To be notified when I post follow my Instagram @impassionedpsortsnerd. Up next I will preview the Pac 12 North and I will have my Week 1 Preview out later this week.

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