Big Ten Football: Season preview and final standings predictions
Big Ten West
| Wisconsin | 1 |
| Iowa | T-2 |
| Nebraska | T-2 |
| Northwestern | T-2 |
| Minnesota | 5 |
| Purdue | 6 |
| Illinois | 7 |
There was a consensus around one thing in the Big Ten West, and one thing only. Wisconsin is going to win the division in runaway fashion. Saturday Blitz staff named Wisconsin one of two unanimous division winners, along with Southern Cal in the Pac-12 South. That’s right not Alabama, Florida State or Washington received every vote to win their division. But Wisconsin? Really?
Really. The Badgers have a lot of returning pieces that will make them dangerous in 2017 led by quarterback Alex Hornibrook, tight end Troy Fumagalli and receiver Jazz Peavy. However, what separates Wisconsin most from the pack is the tenacity of their offensive line. They love to run the football. Corey Clement, their leading rusher from a season, will be missed, but they’ll plug in the next guy and keep grinding out first downs.
More: Projecting the 2-deep depth chart for Wisconsin in 2017
After the Badgers there was a lot of confusion. Nebraska and Iowa both look to be consistent eight or nine win teams. Even though they’ve fielded some quality teams, Nebraska hasn’t really been dominant since they moved to the Big Ten. The same can be said about Iowa, who has just two seasons of 10 or more wins under Kirk Ferentz since 2005.
Northwestern Wildcats is an interesting newcomer to the fray. They don’t have the talent on their roster to contend with Wisconsin, but they’ve proven themselves to be a relatively disciplined team in the past few seasons. The Wildcats were third in the Big Ten in turnover margin in 2016 and were the third least penalized squad in the nation. They have a sort of “Kansas State of the Big Ten” feel to them. They’ll be solid in 2017 and catch a few teams off guard.
Minnesota’s P.J. Fleck made plenty of noise at Western Michigan a year ago, but it figures to be a steep learning curve in the Big Ten. Luckily for him he won’t draw Ohio State or Penn State from the West, but Michigan, Michigan State and Wisconsin are a pretty big step up from the competition he faced just a year ago.