We’re still months away from Ohio State and the rest of the college football teams breaking the seal on another season of intrigue. However, if you follow us, you know by now that we like to talk about football every hour of every day and then some. In fact, as we go through the offseason, we’ll continue to look ahead to what might be in store for the football Buckeyes in 2023.
One of the things that often determine which teams have a shot at some really special things, including a conference championship and College Football Playoff appearance is the experience and returning production on a team. At a place like Ohio State, there’s always young talent expected to be the next to roll off the football assembly line. However, returning talent and experience do indeed matter.
There are other things that go into the ingredients to baking a memorable season such as injuries, luck and more. But a group that has marinated together for longer tends to be better. Of course, there is always some turnover — especially nowadays with the transfer portal and name, image and likeness considerations — but you get the idea.
So how does OSU stack up with the rest of the Big Ten when it comes to 2023? Which teams have the most returning production? Which programs might be building a house of cards from scratch?
Maybe it’s good for all of us that the fine folks at ESPN (subscription required) have devised a formula for these sorts of things, and we’re checking it out for a second straight year.
The sausage was made using a formulaic equation that resident ESPN analytics expert Bill Connelly has devised. It takes into account returning production, including yards, snaps, tackles and other such stats across various position groups.
Here’s how conference teams stack up from least returning production to most experienced across in the Big Ten.