Ohio State fell from atop the Big Ten's mountain last season in one rain-soaked, three-and-a-half-hour period at Ohio Stadium.
Though a shocking 17-14 loss to Michigan State on Senior Day didn't completely close the door on the Buckeyes winning the East Division for the second straight year, the chances the Spartans lost at home to Penn State the following week did not favor Ohio State. Even though the Buckeyes roasted archrival Michigan 42-13 to finish its regular season on a high note, Sparty drubbed James Franklin's team by 39 points to earn a trip to Indianapolis.
Technically Ohio State won the Big Ten East because its 7-1 conference record tied with Michigan State, but the Nov. 21 loss to Mark Dantonio's squad left the Buckeyes at home when the Spartans battled Iowa at Lucas Oil Stadium. Plus, a tie is like kissing your sister.
Still, despite the loss and the talent that left either via graduation or for the NFL, Urban Meyer's 2016 team is still the betting favorite along with Michigan to win the Big Ten. For good measure, media members also overwhelming like the Buckeyes to make it back to Indianapolis in early December.
Unlike last season, the Buckeyes face a barrage of difficult road games in 2016: at Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Penn State and finally Michigan State.
East Divisional Powers
Unless something major changes in the near future, it looks like the Big Ten East is set to hold the biggest key to everything the conference does on a national stage. With Meyer in Columbus, Dantonio in East Lansing and Jim Harbaugh residing in Ann Arbor, that leaves everyone else to chase those top programs both on the recruiting trail and in between the lines.
Put that together with an expected step forward from Franklin and Penn State as they move away from program sanctions and scholarship reductions, Indiana always one step away, plus Chris Ash and DJ Durkin leading resurgences on the East Coast at Rutgers and Maryland as first-year head coaches and the division is even more intriguing in 2016.
"It's legit. I was shocked when I came here in 2012 the disrespect for the Big Ten nationally," Meyer said in Chicago at Big Ten Media Days last month. "Then you look and I don't want to say deserved because that's harsh, but you looked at the draft picks, you looked at the recruiting cycles, you never saw Big Ten teams in the top-5, top-10. Now you're seeing it."
Meyer is correct. Harbaugh's antics, though odd, bolster Michigan's presence on the recruiting trail and there is belief Ash and Durkin can at least keep some of the top talent near their new jobs home to build those respective programs.
The Buckeyes visit Michigan State looking to avenge their only loss from last season on Nov. 19. Jim Harbaugh heads to Columbus for the first time as Michigan's head coach a week later. Michigan and Michigan State lock horns Oct. 29 at Spartan Stadium, so give Mark Dantonio's group the edge for the simple fact it gets its two toughest games at home.
Meyer remains unbeaten in true road games through four seasons in Columbus, however, and Michigan appears in a place to compete for the conference crown after a strong recruiting class and a boatload of seniors back. But Harbaugh is 0-2 against Dantonio and Meyer, plus he needs a quarterback to replace Jake Rudock.
| DATE | TIME | OPPONENT |
|---|---|---|
| 10/1/16 | NOON | RUTGERS |
| 10/8/16 | TBA | INDIANA |
| 10/15/16 | 8 p.m. | at WISCONSIN |
| 10/22/16 | 8 p.m. | at PENN STATE |
| 10/29/16 | 5:30 p.m. | NORTHWESTERN |
| 11/5/16 | 8 p.m. | NEBRASKA |
| 11/12/16 | TBA | at MARYLAND |
| 11/19/16 | TBA | at MICHIGAN STATE |
| 11/26/16 | TBA | MICHIGAN |
The Wolverines also travel to defending Big Ten West champion Iowa two weeks before they visit Ohio State. Penn State goes to Michigan but gets Ohio State and Iowa under the lights over a span of three weeks. The Nittany Lions also host Michigan State in their regular season finale.
Rugged matchups line the docket for the East's top teams, made possible because of the recent upswing in recruiting and fresh new faces in the coaching carousel.
"It's a credit to Jim Delaney, it's a credit to the athletic directors, coaches, but most importantly the quality of the player," Meyer said in Chicago. "I feel a much different vibe walking through these hallways about the respect nationally for the Big Ten."
Though Michigan State won the conference and made the College Football Playoff, its flop against Alabama in the Cotton Bowl plus graduations of Connor Cook, Shilique Calhoun and two top receivers pave the way for many to believe in Ohio State's young roster led by J.T. Barrett. Only six starters return for the Buckeyes but not even that kept oddsmakers from liking them in the race for the Big Ten crown.
Ohio State is set to figure out quickly what kind of team it has early, as a Sept. 17 date with Oklahoma on the road sits exactly a month out at the time of this writing. The Buckeyes do play two home games to open conference play against Rutgers and Indiana, which should provide a nice buffer before trips to Wisconsin and Penn State in back-to-back weeks. Meyer and his staff also don't have to deal with complacency this season after the loss to the Spartans a year ago foiled any chance at repeating as national champs.
Instead, Meyer says he feels a familiar feeling.
"It's a hunger," Meyer said in January. "It's going to be back to like I said the 2014, a hungry, nasty, mean team."
The Buckeyes will need all the hunger they can get and more with the rest of the East seemingly on a rise, the constant presence of Harbaugh and Dantonio's Michigan State team not looking like it is going anywhere anytime soon.
Western Vibes
Iowa surprised most everyone by earning its way to the Big Ten Championship Game last season, although it did so by navigating a relatively easy schedule. Wins at Wisconsin, Iowa and Nebraska weren't easy by any means, but the Hawkeyes avoided Ohio State, Michigan State, Michigan and Penn State in the 2015 regular season. And guess what: Kirk Ferentz won Big Ten Coach of the Year for the fourth time in his career. He also received yet another contract extension.
The Hawkeyes fell short against Michigan State in the title game 16-13 before getting rocked by Christian McCaffrey and Stanford at the Rose Bowl 45-16. Ferentz's club enters this season as the favorite to come out of the West again, with quarterback C.J. Beathard and Thorpe Award winner Desmond King back in the fold.
Iowa visits Rutgers, Minnesota, Purdue, Penn State and Illinois and hosts Michigan in conference play. Outside of the Wolverines, not exactly murderer's row. Meanwhile, Nebraska plays at Wisconsin, Indiana, Northwestern, Ohio State and Iowa. Wisconsin's conference road slate is even tougher. Paul Chryst's Badgers travel to Michigan State and Michigan in back-to-back weeks before getting a week off and hosting Ohio State. A trip to Iowa follows and then Northwestern two weeks later.
The Cornhuskers and Badgers, at least on paper, look to be talented enough to compete with Iowa for the West crown. Minnesota is hoping to build off a bowl win under now permanent head coach Tracy Claeys, Pat Fitzgerald needs more help from his offense despite winning 10 games last year, Lovie Smith has his hands full with the mess Tim Beckman left behind in Illinois and Purdue is, well, Purdue.
The West is a little more wide open than the East, although it is clear there is an upper echelon of teams — though they don't look to be on the same level as Ohio State, Michigan State and Michigan.
2016 Outlook
The Big Ten moves to a nine-game football schedule for the first time this season, which should add additional intrigue and excitement to the conference as it removes a cupcake from everybody's schedule.
Ohio State's exodus following the 2015 season opens the door slightly for the rest of the conference to capitalize on the youth and inexperience in Meyer's program and topple the Buckeyes. But Barrett is enough to help Ohio State avoid such a setback, provided he stays healthy and returns to the form that allowed him to set a laundry list of records in 2014.
Unlike this time last year, the Buckeyes know who their man will be under center. Talent waits in the wings in Columbus and the Big Ten should also be better. The conference went 5-5 in its bowl games last year and a flurry of new coaches bring positivity to doormats Rutgers, Illinois and Maryland.
Ohio State's schedule is difficult — especially at the end with Michigan State and Michigan back-to-back before and after Thanksgiving — though Meyer is anxious to see what a young team can do when tested. The head coach's track record and what happened in 2014 makes it a fool's errand to bet against him and Ohio State until they falter with some form of consistency in the conference.
