Nebraska Football Picked To Finish 5th In Big Ten West

Big Ten Media Days are almost upon us, which means it’s time to start paying attention (a little maybe?) to Husker football!

Every year the Big Ten media votes on where they believe each team will place in the upcoming season. Here’s an explanation from the Cleveland Plain Dealer newspaper/online site:

Cleveland.com picked up the responsibility for organizing the poll when the Big Ten dropped it 12 years ago. The panel included beat writers from 13 of 14 Big Ten teams and some who cover the entire league or have a national perspective.

Here’s how the media voted on where each Big Ten team is expected to place this wonderful, beautiful 2022 college football season:

WEST

1. Wisconsin (31 first-place votes)

2. Iowa (3)

3. Minnesota (2)

4. Purdue

5. Nebraska

6. Illinois

7. Northwestern

EAST

1. Ohio State (36)

2. Michigan

3. Penn State

4. Michigan State

5. Maryland

6. Rutgers

7. Indiana

Let’s break this down, starting with the East.

Instead of thinking about each team’s assets, you really look at this and say, “Who is going to beat Ohio State?”

Michigan did it last year, but can they do it two years in a row? Probably not. Ryan Day needs to show he’s fixed his defensive issue from last season, but not as much as Jim Harbaugh needs to show he can be consistently good.

Penn State hasn’t broken through, and Michigan State’s 2021 season might be a fluke. Like Indiana football.

Ergo, unanimous selection for Ohio State at the top.

IN THE WEST:

Wisconsin gets the unanimous selection because the West is a giant shitshow. Seriously.

Who else are you going to select to win the Big Ten West?

Iowa? The Hawkeye offense has been a joke since the dawn of Kirk Ferentz. Iowa wins more now because the competition has been terrible. Give it to Iowa and Ferentz, though, they have at the least been consistent.

Minnesota? No break through season for PJ Fleck. Maybe this year? He has a lot of offensive line to replace?

Purdue? They’re happy to get to a bowl game yearly.

Nebraska? HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA Not as long as Scott Frost proves he can coach the Huskers to a winning season, let alone finish anywhere in the top for the Big Ten West. Hey, at least we’re ahead of Illinois and they beat us last year.

If you were going to select the rankings, where would you place Nebraska?