The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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THE WOLVERINE 2020 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 125 West Division 1. Wisconsin (10-2, 7-2): All-American running back Jonathan Taylor is off to the NFL after rushing for 5,745 yards during his three years in Madison, but the club still returns ultra-efficient senior quarterback Jack Coan (led the Big Ten with a 69.6 completion percentage in 2019) and two of its top receiv- ers in senior Danny Davis and fifth-year senior Kendric Pryor. Coordinator Jim Leonhard, whose Badger defenses have fin- ished with an average national rank of 11.6 over the past three years, also returns to lead yet another stellar unit, in what is expected to be head coach Paul Chryst's fifth 10-win season in six years on the job. 2. Minnesota (9-3, 6-3): Head coach P.J. Fleck led Minnesota to a magical 11-2 campaign last year — the school's most wins since going 13-0 in 1904. He will have an outstanding chance of replicating that suc- cess in 2020 with redshirt junior quarterback Tanner Morgan, junior wideout Rashod Bateman, redshirt junior running back Mohamed Ibrahim and all five starters on the offensive line coming back to Minneapolis. The Gophers' schedule sets up favorably with Michigan and Iowa coming to TCF Bank Stadium, and lowly Maryland and Michigan State standing as the club's other two cross- over games from the East division. 3. Iowa (8-4, 5-4): The Hawkeyes welcome back an ex- perienced group of running backs, receivers, offensive line- men and most of its key cogs on a defensive unit that finished 12th nationally last year, but face one major question mark in 2020. Three-year starter Nate Stanley is gone and redshirt sophomore Spen- cer Petras is the presumed starter. How well he performs in challenging road trips to Minnesota, Penn State and Ohio State will determine whether or not Iowa contends for the West division title. T4. Illinois (6-6, 3-6): Head coach Lovie Smith took the Illini to a bowl game in 2019 for the first time in his four years on the job, and should return them to the postseason in 2020 with fifth-year senior quarterback and Michigan transfer Brandon Peters, fifth- year senior wideout Josh Imatorbhebhe and four offensive line starters all back. A defense that jumped 51 spots in the national rankings from 2018 to 2019 (went from 128th overall to 77th) should improve once again thanks to a veteran secondary led by junior safety Sydney Brown and the senior cornerback duo of Tony Adams and Nate Hobbs. T4. Nebraska (6-6, 3-6): Head coach Scott Frost finally has the offensive firepower in place for Nebraska to make a bowl game for the first time since 2016, with junior quarterback Adrian Martinez, fifth-year senior running back Dedrick Mills and sophomore wideout Wan'Dale Robinson spearheading the attack. A 5-1 start should be the expectation with the Cornhuskers play- ing five of their first six at home, before closing out the year with a menacing five-contest stretch that features road trips to Ohio State, Iowa and Wisconsin, and home matchups against Penn State and Minnesota. T4. Northwestern (6-6, 3-6): The arrival of fifth-year senior quarterback Peyton Ramsey from Indiana (2,454 passing yards and a 68.0 completion percentage last season with the Hoo- siers) should provide a significant boost to a Wildcats offense that only averaged 297.1 yards per game in 2019 (123rd nationally). Last year 's 3-9 disaster was the pro- gram's worst campaign since winning just three games in 2002, meaning the 2020 goal for head coach Pat Fitzgerald should simply be to get back to the postseason. 7. Purdue (4-8, 2-7): The Boiler- makers will have one of the most explosive passing attacks in the Big Ten with redshirt sophomore quarterback Jack Plummer, sopho- more wideout David Bell and red- shirt sophomore receiver Rondale Moore leading the charge, but throwing the ball has never been an issue during head coach Jeff Brohm's three years in West Lafay- ette (finished 46th or better in the national rankings each season). The defense, on the other hand, has ranked 100th or lower each of the last two years, and will likely be the culprit in Purdue missing a bowl game for a second straight year. Ohio State over Wisconsin: This has been the exact conference championship matchup and outcome in four of the past six years, and it's likely to occur yet again in 2020. Ohio State looks to be far and away the best team in the conference with junior quarterback Justin Fields leading its offense, while Wisconsin has a huge question mark it needs to address in finding Jonathan Taylor's replacement at running back. Redshirt sophomore Nakia Watson is the most likely candidate, but he only has 331 career yards. The Badgers nonetheless still appear to be a notch ahead of both Minnesota and Iowa in the West, while Ohio State's biggest competition in the East will come from Penn State and Michigan. When considering the roll OSU has been on over the last two years (26-2 record) and the immense amount of offensive talent on the roster, it's difficult not to pick the Buckeyes to win the Big Ten for a fourth straight year. Prediction: Ohio State 35, Wisconsin 21 Big Ten Championship Game Prediction Led by the return of starting quarterback Jack Coan, Wisconsin is a clear favorite in the Big Ten West division. PHOTO COURTESY WISCONSIN ATHLETICS