Big Ten Football: Post-spring power rankings heading into 2022
3. Michigan State
The Spartans are on the rise under the direction of Mel Tucker, who is entering his third season as the head coach at Michigan State.
So far, Tucker is 2-0 against Michigan and led the Spartans to a Peach Bowl victory. Yet, an embarrassing loss to Ohio State is hard to forget and until MSU proves it can hang with the Buckeyes, it’s hard to view MSU as a legit Big Ten title contender.
Payton Thorne is back at quarterback and is probably the most decorated passer returning outside of Stroud from Ohio State.
Jayden Reed will also be back but the Spartans will also need to replace Kenneth Walker at running back and Jalen Berger from Wisconsin from the transfer portal could be the guy. Can the Spartans find magic in a bottle again in the transfer portal? Can the defense improve? We shall see.
2. Michigan
The defending Big Ten champions return their starting quarterback, as well as a stout offensive line and basically all of its skill guys outside of Hassan Haskins.
Blake Corum and Donovan Edwards will form one of the best running back duos in the country, while the receivers and tight ends are the best in the conference outside of OSU.
Michigan’s offensive line won the Joe Moore Award as the best in the nation in 2021 but might be even better thanks to an All-American addition at center in Olusegun Oluwatimi from Virginia.
Aidan Hutchinson, Daxton Hill, and David Ojabo were huge losses on defense, and DC Mike Macdonald went back to the NFL and was replaced by former Vanderbilt DC and Ravens assistant Jesse Minter.
Yet, Jim Harbaugh brings in five-star freshman Will Johnson at cornerback and Junior Colson looks like an All-American linebacker. The X-factor is former five-star QB J.J. McCarthy. He was expected to push McNamara for the job this spring but was injured.
That battle is something to watch but with a favorable schedule that includes Michigan State and Penn State at home, we could be in store for another Big Ten East title showdown in “The Game.”