Questions ahead of Big Ten Media Days
Three days, 18 teams, four incoming schools. Oh, and three new head coaches at legacy programs, too. Let's look ahead to next week in Indy.
This free story is brought to you by Luxee, a subscription box that helps you discover game-changing fitness + wellness brands. All members get a newly curated box of 5-8 full-size products that help improve performance, recovery, and longevity each season. Best of all, readers of The Inside Zone get $15 OFF when they subscribe to Luxee using the code: INSIDEZONE. Subscribe here today!
The Big Ten, like everyone else in college athletics, got a lot of offseason mileage out of the build-up to the EA Sports “College Football ’25” release. Notably, the conference had 31 players ranked among the game’s top-100.
Just nine of those 31 players will actually be on-hand for Big Ten media days next Tuesday through Thursday in Indianapolis.
Nevertheless, there is a ton to talk about, especially as the conference welcomes in four new schools: Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington.
Three new coaches take over Big Ten programs as well: Curt Cignetti, Sherrone Moore and Jonathan Smith.
This college football season was already set to be like none before. And nowhere is that sentiment more prevalent than in the Big Ten.
Let’s look at some pressing questions ahead of next week’s festivities at Lucas Oil Stadium.
(Note: Six schools will speak each day. A full list of participants can be found here.)
1. Is it all quiet on the expansion front?
Maybe you’re tired of hearing about expansion. I know I can get tired of writing about it. But last year’s media days — in the Big Ten and elsewhere — were essentially hijacked when the first expansion domino (Colorado) fell, a move that happened not long after new Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti gave his first media days address.
The CU news broke on July 27. Eight days later, Oregon and Washington were in the Big Ten, effectively killing off the Pac-12 as we knew it.
These things move quickly. But outside of monitoring the discord within the ACC right now, it’s difficult to see any more imminent movement, especially with the Big Ten.
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey had a lot to day this week at his conference’s media days about revenue-sharing, private equity and all of the other looming changes being forced upon college athletics. Here’s guessing Petitti sticks to a similar script this week, especially in light of the Big Ten and SEC’s advisory group that was announced back in February.
2. Are the champs being slept on?
Michigan won the Big Ten its first football national title in nine years. Moore, the Wolverines’ new head coach, will be the last to speak at the podium on Thursday, the event’s final day. To say Moore’s honeymoon has been different than predecessor Jim Harbaugh’s first offseason in Ann Arbor would be an understatement, as we all remember Harbaugh needling everyone inside and outside the Big Ten from Day 1.
Obviously, the circumstances are different, as Moore takes over the defending champs, not a 5-7 program, as Harbaugh did. He’ll have with him Max Bredeson, Donovan Edwards and Makari Paige — all great players, but generally not regarded at the level of Will Johnson, Colston Loveland and Mason Graham. (Each of whom, for what it’s worth, is ranked higher in the videogame than the three Wolverines players who will be in Indy.)
The Big Ten doesn’t do a preseason poll, but there is definitely a bit of a slept-on feeling around the Wolverines, especially with Michigan being listed as look-ahead underdogs in three games this season: Texas, Oregon and at Ohio State. Certainly, Michigan needs to replace J.J. McCarthy. And this year’s schedule is much tougher than last year’s.
Still, this will be one of the best defenses in the country. And there are no more divisions, meaning Michigan could lose two of the above three games — so long as one is Texas — and still make it back to Indy for the Big Ten title game.
3. How will the West Coasters fare?
UCLA and Washington have new head coaches. USC has a new defensive staff. Oregon has the preseason Heisman favorite in Dillon Gabriel, not to mention external expectations to compete for a national title this season.
Each ex-Pac-12 school brings with it some major storylines to the Big Ten.
Washington, like Michigan, had a highly successful season but has a new head coach and is being overlooked by most entering this season. The Trojans came under plenty of fire for losing five games last season with a Heisman winner at QB. How will Lincoln Riley’s crew fare in a new, tougher conference — and with nonconference games against LSU and Notre Dame, no less?
The influx of four big schools — all from another part of the country — should make this the most intriguing season in Big Ten history.
And somehow, we didn’t even mention Ohio State in all of this.
Thanks to all who subscribe to The Inside Zone. Please consider a paid subscription or gift a subscription to a friend or family member here: