We saw last year why winning your conference is so important in the 12-team College Football Playoff era.
Which team will do it in the Big Ten in 2025? There appears to be four teams in serious contention.
In 2024, the top four conference champions got first-round byes in the CFP. This year, the top four teams in the final set of rankings will be the top four seeds. If a conference champion finishes at No. 7 in the rankings, that team will be the No. 7 seed.
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With the 2025 season quickly approaching, here's our look at the Big Ten. The massive conference enters its second season with four teams on the West Coast. Will cross-country road trips play a big role again?
Big Ten championship odds
Ohio State (+190)
Penn State (+240)
Oregon (+350)
Michigan (+700)
USC (18-1)
Indiana (35-1)
Nebraska (35-1)
Iowa (40-1)
Illinois (40-1)
Washington (50-1)
Minnesota (125-1)
Wisconsin (150-1)
Michigan State (150-1)
UCLA (150-1)
Rutgers (250-1)
Maryland (300-1)
Northwestern (500-1)
Purdue (500-1)
Four teams and everyone else?
Is the Big Ten going to be a four-team race for the two title game spots?
All four of the favorites in the conference are also among the College Football Playoff favorites. Ohio State is the No. 2 favorite to win it all at +525, while Penn State is at +700 and Oregon is at +900. Michigan is the long shot of the bunch at 25-1, but the Wolverines still have better odds than teams like Texas A&M, Miami and Tennessee.
Ohio State named Julian Sayin its starting quarterback this week. Sayin is entering his second season with the program after transferring from Alabama as an early signee after Nick Saban’s retirement. Not only will No. 1 Texas vs. No. 3 Ohio State be a matchup of top-three teams on Aug. 30, it’ll also feature five-star quarterbacks in the biggest games of their careers.
The Buckeyes have a new defensive coordinator in former Detroit Lions head coach Matt Patricia. He came to Columbus after Jim Knowles left for Penn State following the national championship game. Knowles is the highest-paid defensive assistant in college football and takes over a Nittany Lions defense that has given up fewer than 20 points in each of the past five full seasons. Penn State needs to replace Jaylen Reed, Kobe King and No. 3 overall NFL Draft pick Abdul Carter, but there’s still plenty of talent on that side of the ball to have another stellar unit.
On offense, the Nittany Lions bring back RBs Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen and moved to add talent at wide receiver after last year’s struggles at the position.
Oregon loaded up in the transfer portal again after losing to Ohio State in the Rose Bowl following its Big Ten title game win over Penn State. Dante Moore is set to start for the Ducks after backing up Dillon Gabriel in 2024. Noah Whittington and Makhi Hughes may be the best running back combination in the conference that doesn’t reside in State College.
Michigan’s 2024 season was derailed by inept quarterback play. The Wolverines threw for just 129 yards per game as the offense averaged 1.5 fewer yards per play than it did in 2023 when Michigan went 15-0 and won the national title. The QB play should be much better in 2025, but will five-star freshman Bryce Underwood or Fresno State transfer Mikey Keene be the starting QB when the Wolverines visit Oklahoma in Week 2? Keeping Underwood in Michigan was a massive get for the Wolverines — he was coached by Connor Stalions in 2024 — after Underwood had initially committed to LSU.
Who will emerge from the middle?
We’re thinking there will be at least one team outside that top four in contention for the title game in November.
USC’s transition to the Big Ten was rough in 2024. Its offense took a step back and it canceled out any improvements its defense made. The Trojans lost by three at Michigan and took Penn State to overtime, but they also lost at Minnesota and Maryland.
The Trojans head to the Eastern Time Zone for a Big Ten game just once in 2025 — a Week 3 game at Purdue — and get Michigan at home. But a Week 5 game at Illinois could be tricky. And the outcome of that game could matter a lot for the standings by the end of the season.
The Illini bring back a ton from a team that went 10-3 in 2024 and may be undervalued to win the Big Ten at 40-1. Illinois won five one-possession games in 2024, however, and road games at Duke and Indiana in September could be early tests. If the Illini get through those unscathed and beat USC, Ohio State’s trip to Champaign on Oct. 11 will be one of the biggest games in recent Illinois football history.
Indiana was the surprise playoff participant of 2024 after going 11-1 in Curt Cignetti’s first season. The Hoosiers replace Kurtis Rourke at QB with Cal transfer Fernando Mendoza and have plenty of returning talent on defense. The schedule is just a bit tougher. In addition to trips to Oregon and Penn State, Indiana also visits Iowa.
The Hawkeyes added former South Dakota State QB Mark Gronowski as they look to average more than 160 yards passing per game for the first time since 2021. By now you know Iowa's defense will be good and its run game will be effective; it’s just a matter of finding a reliable passing game to take pressure off the defense.
Washington is a sleeper candidate for nine wins as Demond Williams Jr. takes over at quarterback. RB Jonah Coleman rushed for over 1,000 yards a season ago and Denzel Boston is one of the better receivers in the conference. Former Purdue head coach Ryan Walters takes over as the team's defensive coordinator with Steve Belichick off to North Carolina to coach with his dad Bill after just one season in Seattle.
Nebraska, meanwhile, may end up closer to the top of the conference than anyone else thanks to an extremely good schedule draw. Michigan visits Lincoln and the Cornhuskers have to head to State College in November, but five of the Huskers’ nine games are against teams with odds of 125-1 or worse.
Can any of the long shots make noise?
Wisconsin may be a team that is better than its record at the end of the season. Would it be enough to save Luke Fickell’s job if the Badgers go 5-7 again? Wisconsin has games at Alabama, Michigan, Oregon and Indiana, and it hosts Iowa, Ohio State, Washington and Illinois. There aren’t many breaks and the Big Ten opener against Maryland on Sept. 20 looks to be the Badgers’ best chance at a conference win.
UCLA found its footing late in the 2024 season after starting 1-5, but also has a brutal schedule. The Bruins have a non-conference game at UNLV in Week 2 and travel to Indiana and Ohio State while getting Penn State, Nebraska and Washington at home after a Week 1 visit from Utah.
Rutgers needs to replace star rusher Kyle Monangai as Antwan Raymond steps into a full-time role. The season ends with back-to-back games against Ohio State and Penn State; the Scarlet Knights probably need to be 6-4 before those two games to get bowl-eligible.
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