The Big Ten is one of the best conferences in the country and they also have some of the most underrated players in the country. Today I’ll run down each Big Ten team’s most underrated/underappreciated player going into the 2023 season.
Ohio State
DL Tyleik Williams
Redshirt Junior
Tyleik Williams was a four-star recruit and the 166th-ranked player in the nation in 2021. He committed to Ohio State over schools such as Alabama, Georgia, Michigan, LSU, Penn St, USC, and 24 more teams. This past season he accounted for 10 tackles and 1 sack while playing in 10 games. He will finally get his chance to shine as Redshirt Senior Taron Vincent has graduated from the program opening the door for Williams to step up and play significantly more snaps next season.
Iowa
DB Xavier Nwanpka
Sophomore
A former high four-star recruit, Xavier Nwanpka was seen as the next great safety in college football. He is currently Iowa’s ninth highest-ranked recruit in program history with a 0.9773 ranking by 247.
Last season Nwanpka saw limited time on the field, as he helped mostly on special teams where he recorded stats in five games played. He finished the season with 11 tackles, one pass deflection, and one interception. He got his first career start in the Music City Bowl against Kentucky and he did not disappoint, putting up eight tackles and one interception that was taken back for a touchdown. With Kaevon Merriweather graduating Nwanpka is almost a lock to get the starting strong safety role next year and will surely be a name to watch for All-Big-Ten honors next season.
https://twitter.com/ESPNCFB/status/1609253127332446212
Maryland
RB Roman Hemby
Redshirt Sophomore
Roman Hemby was not a high-ranked player coming out of high school finishing his prep career ranked as the 1,766th-rated recruit nationally and the 40th-best recruit in the state of Maryland. He decided to stay home as he chose Maryland, and he has proven to be a star in the making for the Terrapins.
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Hemby redshirted in 2021 as he only played in two games including the Pinstripe Bowl when the Terrapins were riddled with injuries and draft opt-outs. Hemby got his chance to shine this past season as he erupted for over 1,000 total yards and 12 total touchdowns. He finished the season as a third team Freshman All American and honorable mention All-Big Ten. Hemby may be one of the most underappreciated players in the Big Ten as he was overlooked by Michigan’s Blake Corum and Penn States Nick Singelton at the running back position. Hemby should make an All-Big Ten team this upcoming season and is a possible dark horse Heisman candidate.
https://twitter.com/TerpsFootball/status/1583954747794817024
Michigan
OL Karsen Barnhart
Senior
Known as the Wolverine’s “sixth Starter”, Karsen Barnhart has done it all for the Wolverines. He can play almost any position on the offensive line as he has started at every position in college. Coming out of high school as a four-star recruit and the 161st-rated player in the country by 247 Sports, he committed to Michigan over his fellow hometown team Michigan State.
Earning an honorable mention for the 2022 All-Big Ten teams, he was also a part of the Joe Moore offensive lineman group of the year. Barnhart has a chance to raise his draft stock this upcoming season and could be the next Michigan great offensive lineman to go to the league.
Michigan State
DT Simeon Barrow
Redshirt Junior
Simeon Barrow has been an underrated name for this Spartan’s defense for the last two seasons as he sneakily has been one of the best defensive players on the team. Last season he set highs in tackles and sacks as he ended the year with 40 tackles and four sacks. He was given All-Big Ten third-team honors by Pro Football Focus and was an All-Big Ten honorable mention by the media and coaches.
Barrow is now the number one defensive tackle on the field, his numbers should make a huge increase and he should be back on All-Big Ten watch this season.
Rutgers
DE Wesley Bailey DE
Junior
Seeing limited action in his redshirt-freshman season, Wesley Bailey’s snap count raised significantly in his redshirt-sophomore year. He was a three-star recruit coming out of high school and was ranked 1,073rd in the country and 140th in Canada.
During his limited time in 2021, Bailey recorded seven tackles and one sack with the sack coming against Ohio St. He then took over the starting job and this past season was able to break out as he finished the season with 30 tackles with eight tackles for loss and he led the Scarlet Knights with three and a half sacks. The 6’5, 250 lb. Bailey did not finish on an All-Big Ten team but it would not surprise me if he were to make the second or third team this upcoming season if he has a similar stat line as he had this past year.
https://twitter.com/RFootball/status/1566202698978009089
Indiana
LB Aaron Casey
Redshirt Senior
Casey may be one of the most underrated players in all of the Big Ten as he sneakily had an All-Big Ten second or third-team type of season but, he was not selected for either team by the media or coaches poll. He still took home an honorable mention from the media and was chosen to the third team All Big-Ten by Pro Football Focus.
In his first year starting for the Hoosiers, he was able to record 86 tackles along with 10.5 tackles for loss, while also having one-and-a-half sacks and two forced fumbles. He will be entering his final season for the Hoosiers and will be the leader of the defense as he looks to boost his draft stock and help Indiana make their first bowl game since 2020.
Purdue
WR Mershawn Rice
Redshirt Senior
With the departure of Charlie Jones, Mershawn Rice should get his chance to shine in this Boilermaker offense. With the addition of former Texas quarterback Hudson Card, Rice gets the chance to play alongside one of the top transfers in the recent cycle. In the limited reps, he got this past season he still managed to end the year with 23 receptions, 283 yards, and a touchdown.
With Jones leaving, this gives Rice a chance to prove why he is underrated as he never got the chance to shine due to Jones transferring in. Purdue does not seem to be taking their pedal off the gas so he should be able to see a huge increase in his reps and could be a candidate for Most Improved Player of The Year in the Big Ten.
https://twitter.com/TPortalCFB/status/1578796978850664450
Illinois
LB Tarique Barnes
Senior
Barnes was one of the best players on the Illini defense in 2022, but this past season he was overlooked by NFL Draft prospects Devon Witherspoon, Sydney Brown, and Jartavius Martin who partially made up one of the nation’s top-rated secondary units. Their strong play helped Illinois’ Corners coach Aaron Henry get promoted to defensive coordinator. Illinois also had an amazing defensive line as they had three guys get All-Big-Ten honors.
Barnes returns to the Illini where he was the third leading tackler on the team with 46 while also having 8.5 tackles for loss. He was named an honorable mention by the coaches and media team for All Big-Ten honors as he helped lead Illinois to their first bowl game since 2019. I think Barnes can be in the running for B1G Defensive Player of the Year if he has an even better season than he did this season now that he is the leader of the defense. He also has the opportunity to play himself into the NFL draft as a featured member of the Illini defense next year.
Nebraska
DB Quinton Newsome
Senior
Quinton Newsome quietly had one of the best years for a defensive back in the Big Ten. Recording 44 tackles as well as four tackles for loss, two sacks, a forced fumble, and recovery, he also had 10 pass deflections which he finished tied for 45th within the country. He made one of the biggest leaps over the span of a year as he had 6 more pass deflections and two more sacks than he did as a sophomore.
New head coach Matt Rhule has worked with a litany of great defensive backs, including most recently Jaycee Horn while he was in Carolina, who looks to be a future All-Pro. If Newsome were to add two to three interceptions onto his stat sheet, he would have finished as a first or second-team All-Big-Ten this year as he finished with zero. He has the chance to develop this offseason into one of the best corners in the conference and would have a chance at being a high draft pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Wisconsin
DB Kamo’i Latu
Senior
Latu had a breakout season last year after transferring in from Utah. He finished the season with 56 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 2 interceptions, and 3 pass deflections. Unfortunately, he did not get any recognition for this great season as he was over shined by fellow defensive back John Torchio who received All-Big-Ten 2nd team honors. With Torchio graduating Latu is being given the chance to lead the Badgers secondary and once again have a top-15 defense in the country. Now with new head coach Luke Fickell taking the job this offseason, Latu will be given an opportunity to be the next great defensive back that Fickell has sent to the pros, as Coby Bryant and Sauce Gardner are both having successful NFL careers as rookies.
Northwestern
LB Xander Mueller
Senior
Northwestern did not end the season how they expected to as they lost 11 straight to end their season. But one of their lone bright spots was Muller, as he led the team in interceptions and finished second in total tackles on the season.
He returns as the team’s leader in interceptions and sacks, as well as second in tackles. With his breakout season, he earned an honorable mention All-Big Ten. Expect Mueller to put up the same numbers he did this past year but this time being the leader of the defense.
https://twitter.com/PFN365/status/1563621035232137217
Penn State
C Hunter Nourzad
Redshirt Senior
Hunter Nourzad has one of the best stories in the Big Ten, he was a three-year starter at right tackle for Cornell University. He then transferred to Penn State looking to make a name for himself and he did indeed make a name for himself as he earned an All-Big Ten honorable mention from the coaches and media. Starting eight games for the Nittany Lions, he helped Nick Singleton have one of the best seasons a freshman running back can have.
Nourzad returns as the unquestioned starter at center, and leads a line that has the upside to be among the best in the league with the additional return of tackle Olu Fashanu. He is sure a name to watch for as he was overshadowed by Ohio States Luke Wypler, Michigan’s Olusegun Oluwatimi, Wisconsin’s Joe Tippmann, and Minnesota’s John Michael Schmitz who were all, All-American worthy players this past season.
Minnesota
Cody Lindenberg LB
Junior
Cody Lindenberg looked to have a breakout sophomore season in 2021, but it was cut short by injury. He then came back in his junior season and recorded 71 tackles, four tackles for loss, and a sack as he helped lead Minnesota to have one of the nation’s best defenses as the Golden Gophers finished ninth in the country. Lindenberg as well earned All-Big Ten honorable mention honors as he was battling against some of the top linebackers in the country in Tommy Eichenberg from Ohio State and Jack Campbell from Iowa. Only a junior, Lindenberg still has a couple of seasons to prove his name even more. He is a name to watch for especially on this stacked Minnesota defense
