Though rival Ohio State seems to still be getting a lot of love nationally, and has been all offseason, the narrative has shifted in terms of which team is actually currently running the Big Ten.
It’s the team in Ann Arbor, not Columbus.
Michigan football got another vote of confidence this week from friend of the site Bill Bender from Sporting News. Bender predicted the order of finish in the Big Ten, the champion, and standout players, and the Wolverines got his vote as the winner of the conference for the third-straight year.
Big Ten champion: Michigan
This is not an easy pick. The Wolverines are the hunted now, and Ohio State has a more talented roster from a star-rating perspective. The Wolverines are 2-2 at Beaver Stadium under Harbaugh, but that will also be a tough out. There also is the possibility that Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State all finish 11-1 and beat each other in the process. File this away: If that happens, then the team with the best Big Ten West opponent record will go to Indianapolis. Here are their opponents:
SCHOOL BIG TEN WEST OPPONENTS Michigan at Nebraska, at Minnesota, vs. Purdue Ohio State at Purdue, at Wisconsin, vs. Minnesota Penn State at Illinois, vs. Iowa, at Northwestern We’ll stick with Michigan. It’s on the Buckeyes to flip the script back in their favor.
Given the past two years as well as OSU’s personnel losses, coupled with the fact that Michigan is returning the bulk of its 2022 team in 2023, it’s the obvious choice on paper. However, as we always say, they play games for a reason. And it will be uncharted territory for the Wolverines this year, because they, believe it or not, were not the favorite last year.
Now, everyone will be gunning for them. And Ohio State has no excuses.
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