Defending national champion Ohio State was an unanimous favorite among the media as the pre-season poll was announced recently.
The Buckeyes (14-1, 8-0) are expected to also be the top team in the nation when the Associated Press pre-season poll comes out later.
“Every coach is concerned about that,” Ohio State Head Coach Urban Meyer said during the Big 10 media days of his team’s focus heading into the fall. “There’s no perfect team. There’s no perfect program. And everyone deals with stuff. You know, when you’re Ohio State or some of these other big-time programs, stuff becomes a major deal. And this is.”
For the Buckeyes, the quarterback position has the biggest question mark. Sophomore J.T. Barrett led the team with 2,834 yards passing with 34 touchdowns until an injury ended his season. Junior Cardale Jones stepped into the position and led Ohio State to the national title.
Junior running back Ezekiel Elliott and his 1,878 yards and 18 touchdowns are also back. Junior Michael Thomas returns as the top receiver with 54 catches for 799 yards and nine touchdowns.
Senior linebacker Joshua Perry led the Buckeyes in tackles last season with 124, while junior defensive end Joey Bosa had 13.5 sacks. Junior safety Vonn Bell added six interceptions.
Ohio State led the way in the East Division followed by Michigan State (11-2, 7-1), Penn State (7-6, 2-6), Michigan (5-7, 3-5), Maryland (7-6, 4-4), Rutgers (8-5, 3-5), and Indiana (4-8, 1-7).
In the West, Wisconsin (11-3, 7-1) was picked in the top spot with Nebraska (9-4, 5-3) in second and Minnesota (8-5, 5-3) in third. Iowa (7-6, 4-4), Northwestern (5-7, 3-5), Illinois (6-7, 3-5) and Purdue (3-9, 1-7) rounded out the poll.
The Badgers have five offensive starters back with six on defense. senior quarterback Joel Stave threw for 1,350 yards and nine touchdowns. Junior Corey Clement, who gained 949 yards with nine scores a year is expected to lead the ground attack.
Senior safety Michael Caputo is a leader on defense with 106 tackles and an interception in 2014.
Some Other Players to Watch in the Big 10: Illinois: Wes Lund, Mike Dudek, Mason Monheim; Indiana: Nate Sudfeld, T.J. Simmons, Erich Toth; Iowa: Tevaun Smith, Jordan Lomax, Desmond King; Maryland: William Likely, Brad Craddock, Wes Brown; Michigan: Joe Bolden, Amara Darboh, Jourdan Lewis; Michigan State: Connor Cook, R.J. Williamson, Josiah Price; Minnesota: Mitch Leidner, DeVondre Campbell, Briean Boddy-Calhoun; Nebraska: Tommy Armstrong Jr., Jordan Westerkamp, Nate Gerry; Northwestern: Justin Jackson, Traveon Henry, Matthew Harris; Penn State: Christian Hackenberg, DaeSean Hamilton, Nyeem Wartman-White; Purdue: Austin Appleby, Ja’Whaun Bentley, Frankie Williams; Rutgers: Paul James, Leonte Carrdo, Steve Longa.
Editor’s note: Quotes, photos and logos courtesy of CollegePressBox.com.