Michigan at Penn State football will decide the Big Ten in 2023

If one thing has become clear since the Big Ten realigned its divisions, it is that the best three teams in the conference are all in the Big Ten East. Since the sanctions dropped on Penn State football in 2016, the Nittany Lions have been as competitive as nearly anyone. In 2023, Michigan will visit Penn State in November in a game that I expect to decide the Big Ten.

Michigan and Penn State football have seen ups and downs under their current head coaches. Jim Harbaugh was hired in late 2014 (his first season was in 2015) and inherited a mess of a program.

The Wolverines’ days of prominence were long gone; Michigan had not won the Big Ten since 2004 and had zero top-5 finishes since 1999. In the seven seasons before Jim Harbaugh, Michigan compiled a record of 46 wins and 42 losses with only one 10-win season.

On the other side, James Franklin inherited an even bigger mess. After decades of dominating the nation, Penn State football was rocked with massive NCAA sanctions when news broke of the Jerry Sandusky scandal. The sanctions put in place were meant to cripple Penn State’s program, yet from 2012-2014 (during the sanctions), Penn State’s worst record was 7-6.

Since leading the Nittany Lions out of a dark place, James Franklin has done a remarkable job. While still under sanctions in 2014 and 2015, Franklin went 14-12 with one bowl win. When the sanctions were lifted in 2016, Franklin took Penn State from “worst to first” in one season.

Penn State football won the Big Ten in 2016 and finished with an 11-3 record. Since then, the Nittany Lions have seen two more 11-win seasons (2017 and 2019) and two New Year’s Six bowl wins (Fiesta and Cotton).

Despite not being able to capitalize on his success from 2016-2019, James Franklin has still built a remarkable program that is headed to the Rose Bowl on January 2nd, 2023. Back in Ann Arbor, Jim Harbaugh’s Wolverines won back-to-back Big Ten Championships and are headed to the College Football Playoff for the second-straight season.

Don’t get me wrong, Ohio State stands in the way still, though, in fairness, Michigan is 2-0 against the Buckeyes this decade. Still, Penn State and Michigan are two of the top-10 programs since 2016 and top teams in the Big Ten year in and year out.