By James Kratch | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

If experience translates into wins, Rutgers has a chance to qualify for a bowl game in 2018.

The Scarlet Knights bring back more production from their 2017 roster than most teams in the Big Ten, according to SB Nation's returning production rankings. The returning production is relatively concentrated, too, considering Rutgers is near the bottom of the league in returning letter winners this fall, according to the Big Ten office, and middle of the pack when it comes to returning starters.

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John Munson | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Experience is not a perfect indicator of on-field success - especially when it returns from a losing team. Graduate transfers, incoming freshmen and injuries are not factored into the data used. But it's a good metric to examine where each school stands heading into the fall.

Here is a closer look at how experienced each Big Ten team will be in 2018. All 14 member schools are ranked based on SB Nation's returning production rankings, with returning letter winner and starter information via the conference's official statistics. Schools who have part-time starters from 2017 included are noted with an asterisk.

The rankings ...

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Orlando Ramirez | USA TODAY Sports

1. MICHIGAN STATE

Returning production: 92 percent

Returning letter winners: 49

• Offense: 23

• Defense: 23

• Special teams: 3

Returning starters: 21

• Offense: 10

• Defense: 9

• Special teams: 2

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Kim Klement | USA TODAY Sports

2. MICHIGAN

Returning production: 78 percent

Returning letter winners: 63

• Offense: 29

• Defense: 29

• Special teams: 5

Returning starters: 21

• Offense: 9*

• Defense: 10*

• Special teams: 2

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John Munson | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

3. RUTGERS

Returning production: 71 percent

Returning letter winners: 42

• Offense: 16

• Defense: 24

• Special teams: 2

Returning starters: 16

• Offense: 7

• Defense: 8

• Special teams: 1*

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Jesse Johnson | USA TODAY Sports

4. MINNESOTA

Returning production: 68 percent

Returning letter winners: 40

• Offense: 18

• Defense: 19

• Special teams: 3

Returning starters: 12

• Offense: 5

• Defense: 6

• Special teams: 1

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Streeter Lecka | Getty Images

T5. NEBRASKA:

Returning production: 64 percent

Returning letter winners: 52

• Offense: 21

• Defense: 29

• Special teams: 2

Returning starters: 15

• Offense: 6

• Defense: 8*

• Special teams: 1

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Takeaways from Saturday's Rutgers scrimmage

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Jim Brown | USA TODAY Sports

T5. NORTHWESTERN:

Returning production: 64 percent

Returning letter winners: 61

• Offense: 33

• Defense: 26

• Special teams: 3

Returning starters: 15

• Offense: 7

• Defense: 7

• Special teams: 1

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Michael Hickey | Getty Images

7. ILLINOIS

Returning production: 64 percent

Returning letter winners: 41

• Offense: 17

• Defense: 20

• Special teams: 4

Returning starters: 16

• Offense: 7

• Defense: 7

• Special teams: 2

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Matthew Emmons | USA TODAY Sports

8. OHIO STATE:

Returning production: 62 percent

Returning letter winners: 49

• Offense: 23

• Defense: 22

• Special teams: 4

Returning starters: 15

• Offense: 8*

• Defense: 4*

• Special teams: 3

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Seth Wenig | AP Photo

T9. IOWA:

Returning production: 61 percent

Returning letter winners: 45

• Offense: 21

• Defense: 21

• Special teams: 3

Returning starters: 15

• Offense: 7

• Defense: 6

• Special teams: 2

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Saed Hindash | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

T9. MARYLAND:

Returning production: 61 percent

Returning letter winners: 48

• Offense: 28

• Defense: 19

• Special teams: 1

Returning starters: 15

• Offense: 9*

• Defense: 5

• Special teams: 1

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Jasen Vinlove | USA TODAY Sports

11. WISCONSIN:

Returning production: 60 percent

Returning letter winners: 44

• Offense: 23

• Defense: 16

• Special teams: 5

Returning starters: 16

• Offense: 9

• Defense: 4

• Special teams: 3

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13 Rutgers players who stood out in Saturday scrimmage

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Dennis Schneidler | USA TODAY Sports

12. PURDUE:

Returning production: 59 percent

Returning letter winners: 53

• Offense: 28

• Defense: 19

• Special teams: 6

Returning starters: 20

• Offense: 13*

• Defense: 4

• Special teams: 3*

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Joe Hermitt | jhermitt@pennlive.com

13. PENN STATE:

Returning production: 52 percent

Returning letter winners: 39

• Offense: 16

• Defense: 21

• Special teams: 2

Returning starters: 12

• Offense: 8*

• Defense: 3

• Special teams: 1

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Which Big Ten football program makes the most money?

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Joe Robbins | Getty Images

14. INDIANA:

Returning production: 51 percent

Returning letter winners: 56

• Offense: 29

• Defense: 24

• Special teams: 3

Returning starters: 16

• Offense: 11*

• Defense: 4

• Special teams: 1

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Andrew Mills | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

MORE RUTGERS FOOTBALL COVERAGE:

• The strange way Billy Taylor became Rutgers' long snapper last year

• Rutgers striving for balance with running back Raheem Blackshear

• Why you won't see any 'torpedoes' from punter Adam Korsak

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James Kratch may be reached at jkratch@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JamesKratch. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.