By Mark Pszonak
Now that we are halfway through the 2020’s, it is a good time to see how each Big Ten team has done to this point. Here is a closer look at all 18 schools that are currently members of the conference
Top Tier
1. Ohio State: 54-9 (85.7%)
2. Michigan: 50-12 (80.7%)
3. Oregon: 49-13 (79.0%)
4. Penn State: 45-19 (70.3%)
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Review: No real surprises here with these four programs. Oregon has only played one season in the Big Ten but went 13-1 so any thoughts of a drop-off have quickly been extinguished. The Buckeyes have been the most consistent, never losing more than two games in a season, while the Wolverines dominated between 2021 and 2023 but went 10-9 during the other two seasons. Penn State has experienced similar experiences, but are on an upswing after going 34-8 over the last three seasons.
© Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images
Middle Tier
5. Iowa: 42-20 (67.7%)
6. Washington: 38-19 (66.7%)
7. USC: 35-23 (60.3%)
8. Minnesota: 35-24 (59.3%)
9. UCLA: 33-24 (57.9%)
10. Wisconsin: 32-26 (55.2%)
11. Maryland: 29-27 (51.8%)
12. Illinois: 30-28 (51.7%)
Review: All three of the remaining new Big Ten programs lie in the middle, with Washington somewhat surprisingly leading the way. Much of that is due to their 25-3 record during the 2022 and 2023 seasons. As for Iowa, they are the only program in the middle tier that hasn’t experienced a losing season during this decade.
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Bottom Tier
13. Michigan State: 27-29 (48.2%)
14. Indiana: 26-31 (45.6%)
15. Rutgers: 26-34 (43.3%)
16. Purdue: 24-33 (42.1%)
17. Northwestern: 23-35 (39.7%)
18. Nebraska: 22-35 (38.6%)
Review: Michigan State has had four losing seasons, but the other one finished at 11-2 which has made the bad start to the decade look a little better. Similar can be said for Indiana, except that they also enjoyed a 6-2 season during the shortened COVID season. Maybe the most surprising result of this breakdown is that Nebraska has had the worst showing of the decade. However, after finishing with their only winning season (7-6), hopes in Lincoln are that the second half of the decade will be greatly improved.
