With 65 days until the 2023 college football season kicks off, the Big Ten will look to maintain its surge of consistency, as it saw two conference representatives make the College Football Playoff with Michigan and Ohio State getting bounced in the semifinal.
Despite the Big Ten West’s top-heaviness, not even Purdue, the loser in last year’s Big Ten championship game, found itself sniffing a top-four bid. Could 2023 bring something different into the West? As the old saying goes, “That’s why they play the game.” Ultimately, that’s what makes college football unique in its own right, as the parity is second-to-none.
Nonetheless, here is an overview of each team and where it sits just three months before summer meets autumn. Let the debates commence.
My Big Ten West 2023 Predictions
7. Northwestern – 2023 record prediction – (2-10, 0-9 Big Ten)
Northwestern enters the 2023 season amid the dumpster fire that was on the 2022 roster. After winning the opener in Dublin, Ireland, against Nebraska, the Wildcats stumbled their way through the rest of the year through a myriad of injuries, offensive line issues, and quarterback play, which even saw Brendan Sullivan, a then-sophomore, earn playing time. The offense struggled to move the football, only averaging 13.75 points per game en route to blowout home losses against Wisconsin and Illinois. The defense wasn’t much better, giving up 374.8 yards per game.
https://twitter.com/nufbfamily/status/1663969543952187395
The Wildcats will look to have much of the same issues in 2023, as their most prominent piece of offensive production, running back Evan Hull, went off to the NFL. The long-time Wildcats head coach, Pat Fitzgerald, is at a crossroads, going just 7-29 (not including the Big Ten title game appearance against Ohio State in 2020) over the last four seasons. A manageable nonconference schedule with games against Duke, UTEP, and Howard bleeds into a rigorous conference slate with matchups against Minnesota, Penn State, and Purdue, to name a few. The Wildcats conclude the season with Illinois in Champaign. By then, it’s unclear who the quarterback will be with Ryan Hilinski back from injury and Ben Bryant coming to Evanston from Luke Fickell‘s ex-Bearcat offense.
Northwestern has too many more question marks than answers, making it the division’s worst team.
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6. Nebraska – 2023 record prediction (5-7, 4-5 Big Ten)
Nebraska has yet to find sustained success in the Big Ten for its entire stint thus far. Even after the hiring of seasoned veteran Matt Rhule, along with Jeff Sims at quarterback and 14 incoming transfers, the flame will be lit by the fall and be dim by November. Although the fanbase is loyal to the Cornhuskers and it’s obvious the athletic department believes in the regime, the Big Ten is still the Big Ten. No game, nor lead, is easy to maintain control of. The Cornhuskers lost six games by a touchdown or less a season ago, and if all of those games go the other way, Nebraska is in the Top 25 and playoff discussion. The reality, however, remains pitiful. None of it happened, as Scott Frost was fired mid-season.
Despite Rhule’s track record of turning teams around nearly everywhere, the first two years of his tenure are not always the kindest. The Cornhuskers face a difficult Big Ten schedule that includes games against Michigan, Illinois, and Purdue, as the Illini and Boilermakers controlled the top of the conference standings for the back half of the 2022 season.
If Nebraska can’t find wins in early September and October, especially against a new-look Colorado team led by Deion Sanders, it’ll be another missed opportunity at a bowl berth.
https://twitter.com/huskerfbnation/status/1663971841927528454
5. Purdue – 2023 record prediction (6-6, 5-4 Big Ten)
Regardless of where Purdue finishes in the Big Ten standings, the first year of the Ryan Walters era in West Lafayette should be one to pay attention to. Walters served as the defensive coordinator in Champaign over the course of two seasons, guiding the Illinois defense to a top-tier unit in the FBS and witnessing Devon Witherspoon become the NFL’s highest-drafted cornerback in the 2023 class.
Now at Purdue, Walters will look to keep Purdue in the Big Ten divisional race. Quarterback Hudson Card transferred in from Texas looking for a fresh start under offensive coordinator Graham Harrell, who is also a new arrival to the Purdue system from West Virginia. The running back room remains deep, led by a hybrid type in Devin Mockobee. The Boilermakers will see some offensive skill position players switch positions, including Tyrone Tracy‘s move from receiver to running back to balance Mockobee’s attack, as he scored nine touchdowns a season ago.
The Boilermakers also return their primary receiving target in TJ Sheffield, who hauled in four touchdowns and nearly 500 receiving yards, giving Card an automatic weapon to throw to multiple times per game.
On the defensive side of the ball, Purdue returns some key pieces but will have to adapt to Walters’ 3-4 scheme that made Illinois elite. If Purdue can do that, it will find itself competing for a Big Ten title again, but standing in its way are juggernauts out of the Big Ten East in Michigan and Ohio State, plus league opponents in Wisconsin and Iowa, as all four teams will likely be gunning for division crowns and trips to Indianapolis, Ind. If Purdue stumbles early, it could be a long season.
https://twitter.com/boilerfootball/status/1666902427381948426
4. Minnesota – 2023 record prediction – 8-4 (6-3 Big Ten)
It’s put up or shut up for PJ Fleck and the Minnesota Golden Gophers this fall. After finishing 11-2 and with a Top 10 ranking at the end of the 2019 season, the Gophers followed up that success with consecutive nine-win campaigns the next two years but no conference titles to show for it.
Tanner Morgan graduated after his team went 9-4 in 2022 and now it’s up to Athan Kaliakmanis to take over the controls at quarterback. The Gophers will have some newer faces in Minneapolis, including at running back. Sean Tyler, a transfer running back from Western Michigan, will look to provide depth, while their wide receiver core will see the return of Chris Autman-Bell and tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford for their seventh and fifth years, respectively.
The Golden Gophers will have to rely on a defensive unit that gave up only 13.8 points per game a season ago. Chances are, that won’t be difficult considering Tyler Nubin decided to forego the NFL Draft and return for one final season, among other key pieces of a unit that finished fourth in the FBS with 18 touchdowns.
Minnesota will have to get off to a fast start to find success as its schedule ramps up in early October with a home date against Michigan. The Gophers finish the season with two of their final three games on the road, which includes a trip to Columbus in a potential trap game against Ohio State. The Gophers end the season with the Wisconsin Badgers, as both teams could very well be playing for a Big Ten West crown based on how the standings shake out.
https://twitter.com/gopherfootball/status/1663969354038247431
3. Illinois – 2023 season prediction – 9-3 (7-2 Big Ten)
Ilinois enters the third year of the Bret Bielema era as it looks to continue the magic that transpired in 2022, finishing 8-5 with a bowl game appearance.
Graduate transfer Tommy DeVito departed Champaign, and the Cincinnati Bengals and Philadelphia Eagles drafted Chase and Sydney Brown in the spring while the Illini went to work and retooled their roster, adding Luke Altmyer from Ole Miss to fill the role at quarterback. Illinois also maintained a core of its defensive prowess, returning Keith Randolph and Jer’Zhan “Johnny” Newton, one of the best one-two punch combinations in the country.
Of course, the Illini will look to rely on Isaiah Williams as a primary target for Luke Altmyer while also looking to Josh McCray and Reggie Love III in the backfield to reconstruct the bread and butter that was the Illini form of ground and pound. Receivers Casey Washington and Pat Bryant may also be in a position to take big steps forward this season. Incoming high school All-American receiver Malik Elzy may also earn a role in the offense depending on how fall camp goes.
The Illini avoid Ohio State and Michigan this season but will host Penn State in the conference opener. A Week 2 road matchup against Kansas could be a season-defining game given the Illini’s struggles with non-conference opponents in the past. Nonetheless, Illinois will close the season against Indiana, on the road in Iowa City against the Hawkeyes, and will look to make it three-straight against Northwestern Thanksgiving weekend in Champaign, Ill.
Given Illinois’ schedule, this is its best chance to compete for a Big Ten title in over two decades, as a two-year turnaround already has the Illini back in the national spotlight once again.
https://twitter.com/illinifootball/status/1663974353313177601
2. Divisional runner-up: Wisconsin – 2023 season prediction – 10-2 (8-1 Big Ten)
Tanner Mordecai and Phill Longo‘s air-raid offense will look to dominate the Big Ten this upcoming season. The Badgers have immense talent in all three phases and damage in the transfer portal with the additions of Bryson Green and CJ Williams to complement the Badgers’ three returnees in Chimere Dike, Skyler Bell, and Keontez Lewis. The unit was ranked 113th last season, and barring anything catastrophic, it’s highly unlikely something similar will happen again. Of course, Wisconsin still has Braelon Allen, arguably the nation’s top running back.
The defense is where Wisconsin struggled immensely, giving up 24 points per game a season ago. Almost the entire unit is getting restructured with many fresh faces, including Gio Paez and Darryl Peterson, to name a few.
Nonetheless, Wisconsin’s schedule is favorable with all of the usual suspects, but the game to circle comes mid-season in Week 9 against Ohio State. If the chips fall like they’re supposed to, it could be the difference between one Big Ten blemish and an undefeated conference mark. In non-conference play, the Badgers travel to Washington State in a potential trap game, but signs should point to Wisconsin’s best season in over a decade.
https://twitter.com/badgerfootball/status/1663995525618704384
1. Big Ten West champion: Iowa Hawkeyes – 2023 season prediction – 11-1 (8-1 Big Ten)
The Iowa Hawkeyes have reloaded in a big way. Cade McNamara transferred in from Michigan to be the starting quarterback. In addition, the Hawkeyes snatched McNamara’s dream target, Kaleb Brown, to fix an offense that was nearly unwatchable a season ago. At one point, the Hawkeyes attempted more punts than touchdowns while managing to come just one game short of a Big Ten West crown.
The Hawkeyes have a relatively manageable schedule, with its most brutal road game against Penn State in late September. If the offense can keep up, given how potentially weak the middle of the division is, the Hawkeyes should have little to no trouble clinching a berth in Indianapolis.
Regardless of how everything falls, the Big Ten West will be another drama-filled football-style circus from the opening kick.
https://twitter.com/hawkeyefootball/status/1663969136639131652
All games can be viewed on CBS, FOX, FS1, NBC, or BTN unless otherwise noted, given the brand-new conference media rights deal.
