Jim Harbaugh is the story this Big Ten season. He’s got to produce or doubt is going to start to creep into the minds of the Wolverines’ faithful. With Urban Meyer “retired”, it’s Harbaugh’s best chance to win the Big Ten and get Michigan to the College Football Playoff.
Even without Meyer, the Buckeyes are loaded with talent. He left the program is great shape and the Buckeyes won’t take much of a step back…if any.
The West is wide open. A few teams are legit contenders to make it to the Big Ten title game. Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern and Wisconsin all have potential to win double digits or go 6-6.
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Big Ten Overview
- Big Red is Back!
- The Big Ten edges out the Big 12 as the 2nd strongest football conference headed to 2019
- Strong at the top but weak at the bottom as Big Ten grabs three of the top 7 spots but also 112 and 117
- The West wins more conference games than the East
- 9 Big Ten football teams will play in a bowl game this season
2019 Big Ten Power Rankings
These are our data driven preseason college football power rankings for each Big Ten team. See how Big Ten teams stack up nationally in our full 2019 preseason college football power rankings.
| RANK | TEAM |
| 3 | Michigan |
| 4 | Ohio St |
| 7 | Michigan St |
| 14 | Penn St |
| 26 | Nebraska |
| 43 | Wisconsin |
| 51 | Minnesota |
| 54 | Iowa |
| 66 | Northwestern |
| 69 | Maryland |
| 85 | Purdue |
| 93 | Indiana |
| 112 | Illinois |
| 117 | Rutgers |
2019 Predicted Records and Conference Standings
BIG TEN EAST Overview
- It’s all comes down to November 30 in Ann Arbor
- Sparty will be better than their record shows
- Shea Patterson lights it up for Michigan this year and will be a Heisman finalist
| RANK | BIG TEN EAST | W | L | CONF W | CONF L |
| 3 | Michigan Wolverines | 12 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| 4 | Ohio State Buckeyes | 11 | 1 | 8 | 1 |
| 7 | Michigan State Spartans | 8 | 4 | 5 | 4 |
| 14 | Penn State Nittany Lions | 8 | 4 | 5 | 4 |
| 69 | Maryland Terrapins | 4 | 8 | 2 | 7 |
| 93 | Indiana Hoosiers | 5 | 7 | 2 | 7 |
| 117 | Rutgers Scarlet Knights | 2 | 10 | 0 | 9 |
BIG TEN WEST Overview
- The West gets Frosted
- Wisconsin and Iowa are middle of the pack
- Can the Gophers be Golden?
| RANK | BIG TEN WEST | W | L | CONF W | CONF L |
| 26 | Nebraska Cornhuskers | 10 | 2 | 7 | 2 |
| 66 | Northwestern Wildcats | 8 | 4 | 6 | 3 |
| 51 | Minnesota Golden Gophers | 8 | 4 | 6 | 3 |
| 43 | Wisconsin Badgers | 8 | 4 | 5 | 4 |
| 54 | Iowa Hawkeyes | 6 | 6 | 4 | 5 |
| 85 | Purdue Boilermakers | 3 | 9 | 3 | 6 |
| 112 | Illinois Fighting Illini | 3 | 9 | 1 | 8 |
Championship Game
Michigan beats Nebraska to win the 2019 Big Ten Championship.
See more in our 2019 College Football Preview.