CBS Sports’ Chip Patterson has a bold prediction for the Big Ten West division in 2022. Patterson sees neither Iowa repeating nor Wisconsin taking the crown, but Minnesota advancing to the Big Ten championship game.
Iowa is in the midst of an ongoing quarterback battle on an offense that finished No. 121 nationally in total offense at 303.7 yards per game last season. With that in mind, not picking Iowa to repeat as Big Ten West champions isn’t necessarily the most shocking thought in the world, but choosing Minnesota instead of Wisconsin definitely qualifies as a surprise.
The Golden Gophers nearly won the division in 2021 despite significant injury issues. It just flew below the radar because many wrote off P.J. Fleck’s team following their loss to Bowling Green. Minnesota’s ability to figure out different ways to win suggests the program does have a strong foundation, and one of the keys to establishing that foundation is back with Kirk Ciarrocca returning as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Ciarrocca was Minnesota’s OC for three seasons, last in 2019 when the Golden Gophers went 11-2, and I think his return sparks a breakthrough Big Ten championship game appearance. – Chip Patterson, CBS Sports.
Minnesota was a strong team last season, finishing with a 9-4 record in a bounce-back season. The return of Ciarrocca appears to be a big one for the Golden Gophers. When Ciarrocca was last coaching the team, quarterback Tanner Morgan experienced his best season. Morgan’s play has dipped after a very strong 2019 season.
The Golden Gophers will have stiff competiton for the crown in the West. Wisconsin is always a tough team, as is reigning champion Iowa. Do not forget about Purdue and Nebraska as well. It will be a dogfight for a spot in the Big Ten championship game.
The Hawkeyes captured the Big Ten West last season with a 7-2 mark in conference play. In Iowa’s 6-0 start to the 2021 season, the Hawkeyes won all three of their games against Big Ten East opponents to start league play 3-0.
That string of victories included the season-opening triumph over then-No. 17 Indiana, 34-6, a 51-14 blowout of Maryland and a 23-20 victory over then-No. 4 Penn State inside Kinnick Stadium.
Iowa stumbled after that, losing its first two contests against Big Ten West opponents in Purdue and Wisconsin. Purdue held the Hawkeyes to just 271 total yards of offense and a lone score in a 24-7 win on Oct. 16, 2021. Iowa starting quarterback Spencer Petras was intercepted four times against the Boilermakers, including three times in the game’s final four minutes.
It was more of the same against Wisconsin. Iowa had just nine first downs and 156 total yards of offense in Madison, Wis. Petras finished that game with only nine completions for 93 passing yards as Wisconsin topped Iowa, 27-7.
Iowa rebounded, though, winning each of its final four regular season games. A banged-up Petras played just three series at Northwestern. Backup quarterback Alex Padilla helped lead the Hawkeyes to a 17-12 win at Northwestern and proceeded to start the next three games for Iowa.
In his first career start, Padilla passed for 206 yards and a pair of touchdowns and ran for another in Iowa’s 27-22 win over Minnesota. The Hawkeyes followed that victory with a win over Illinois, 33-23, and closed the season with a 28-21 win at Nebraska after Petras came off the bench to help spearhead the rally.
All of it added up to the Big Ten West division title. Whether or not the Hawkeyes found any remedy to its ailing offense remains to be seen. Envisioning Iowa as a repeat Big Ten West representee in the conference championship game hinges on just how much progress that unit makes.
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