Big Ten Football: Predicting the All-Conference First Team
With the end of the regular season fast approaching, players around the nation have one last chance to impress the the various coaches and media representatives who will select the all-conference teams. The Big Ten will announce its official all-conference team in the week leading up to the Big Ten Championship Game, but we have a pretty good idea already about many of the names we'll see.
Making the All-Big Ten team is a singular honor for players, and it can often mean more than a simple plaque of recognition. Many All-Big Ten selections go on to outstanding follow-up performances in subsequent seasons or the NFL. The Big Ten also has a habit of not only selecting top football players, but top players with pretty impressive academic credentials, too.
Here we'll make some predictions for each position as to whom we think All-Big Ten honors will be given.
Punter/Kicker
1 of 9
Prediction: Brad Craddock, Maryland
Kickers aren't really noticed until they screw up or are called upon to boot through a game-winning field goal as time expires. Enter Maryland's Brad Craddock.
Craddock hasn't screwed up much, or really at all this season, as he's the only kicker with a perfect record on field goals (17-of-17 thus far). While second in the conference in field goals made, Craddock bests Penn State's Sam Ficken in percentage of successful field-goal attempts by quite a margin (Ficken is 22-of-26, or 84.6 percent).
It's also worth mentioning that Craddock is 36-of-36 on extra-point kicks and better than 41 percent of his kickoffs result in a touchback.
Defensive Backs
2 of 9
Predictions: William Likely, Maryland; Landon Feichter, Purdue; Kurtis Drummond, Michigan State; Nick VanHoose, Northwestern
William Likely leads the conference in interceptions with six, which is also tied for fourth in the FBS. His 14 total passes defended also leads the Big Ten, so it's hard to make an argument against Likely.
Landon Feichter has been one of the few bright spots in an otherwise lackluster season for Purdue. Feichter has five interceptions so far this season and has broken up three additional passes as well as forcing one fumble. Add in 96 total tackles (ninth in the conference), and Feichter is another player sure to grab quite a bit of attention from the All-Big Ten coaches and media voters.
Kurtis Drummond was an All-Big Ten defensive back in 2013 and a preseason All-Big Ten selection this season. He's lived up to the expectations, snagging four interceptions while breaking up nine more passes. He even managed to add three tackles for loss to his resume during his senior season at Michigan State.
Nick VanHoose has been a steady presence in the Northwestern defensive backfield, breaking up 10 passes this season and intercepting two more. But his most impressive stat of the season is probably his three kick/punt blocks this season, leading the Big Ten, and tied for the most in the FBS as well.
Linebackers
3 of 9
Predictions: Jake Ryan, Michigan; Mike Hull, Penn State; Vince Biegel, Wisconsin
There's no denying that Michigan has suffered through an abysmal season, but you can't pin the Wolverines' woes on Jake Ryan and a defense that is ninth nationally in yards allowed. Ryan leads the team and is second in the Big Ten with 104 tackles (62 solo), has 13 tackles for loss including two sacks, has forced two fumbles and even came away with one interception. His leadership will be sorely missed next season as he's prowling NFL backfields.
Mike Hull is just the latest great linebacker in the long history of greats at the position at Penn State. No one in the Big Ten, and only six in the nation have more tackles this season than Hull (121). He also has an interception, a forced fumble, nine tackles for loss, two sacks and two pass deflections in a very productive season that will see the Nittany Lions back in a bowl game.
Vince Biegel's defensive performance may have been overshadowed by some outstanding offense in Madison this year, but that shouldn't keep his name off of the All-Big Ten list. This sophomore leads all linebackers in the conference with 14.5 tackles for loss (6.5 of which were sacks). Add in two forced fumbles and two passes broken up and Badgers fans should be very excited for the defensive future of their team.
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Defensive Line
4 of 9
Predictions: Joey Bosa, Ohio State; Andre Monroe, Maryland; Anthony Zettel, Penn State; Shilique Calhoun, Michigan State
There's no better defensive lineman in the conference, and perhaps none better in the nation than Ohio State's Joey Bosa. Even more impressive is the fact that Bosa is just a sophomore, meaning Buckeyes fans should be excited about not only what's to come in 2014, but 2015, too. Bosa leads the conference with 18 tackles for loss, including 11.5 sacks, and is third in the conference with three forced fumbles. He has a motor that never stops running, and his ability to disrupt any play in the offensive backfield is almost unrivaled.
Many wondered how Maryland's defense would stack up against the competition in the Big Ten this season. If Andre Monroe is any indication, the Terrapins will be fine. Monroe is currently second among active Big Ten defensive linemen with 12 tackles for loss (nine sacks) among his 55 total tackles. Monroe also added a forced fumble to his stat sheet and has been a steady defensive contributor to a Terps team that will be bowling after its first season in the Big Ten.
Shilique Calhoun came into the 2014 season as a 2013 first-team All-Big Ten selection and second-team All-American and a 2014 preseason All-Conference and All-American honoree. The season hasn't quite turned out as expected for Michigan State, as the Spartans will finish just behind Ohio State in the race for the East Division crown, but Calhoun has still been impressive with 11 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks and one fumble recovery (which he returned for 38 yards) and a blocked kick. But his true impact has come on his ability to pressure the quarterback. While this often doesn't show up on stat sheets, Calhoun's ability to shed blocks has forced countless incompletions, sacks and tackles for loss by his disrupting influence in the offensive backfield.
Note: Michigan's Frank Clark was intentionally left off of our list, as he has been dismissed from the program in the wake of a domestic violence accusation.
Offensive Line
5 of 9
Predictions: Jack Allen, Michigan State; Zac Epping, Minnesota; Brandon Scherff, Iowa; Rob Havenstein, Wisconsin; Kyle Costigan, Wisconsin
Despite missing MSU's win over Indiana with an ankle injury, preseason All-Big Ten center Jack Allen returned to the lineup to anchor one of the conference's best—and most surprisingly good—offensive units. Michigan State has built its reputation on defense over the years, but this season, it was the offense's turn to shine. Allen was instrumental in protecting Connor Cook, who leads the Big Ten in passing (2,720 yards).
Zac Epping has been instrumental in Minnesota's running success this season, which has been the major reason the Golden Gophers find themselves in what amounts to a West Division championship game this week against Wisconsin.
What else can be said about Iowa's Brandon Scherff? He's a lock for the All-Big Ten team, and he's probably a lock to be a consensus All-American, too. To put it another way, he's been nothing short of an unqualified success at Iowa, and he'll be an instant success next year in the NFL.
Both Rob Havenstein and Kyle Costigan have been brick walls on the Wisconsin offensive line. While guys like Melvin Gordon are getting all of the press, Havenstein and Costigan have been making Wisconsin's record-breaking offensive onslaught possible. Costigan has even faced personal adversity, as his mother is battling kidney cancer. With all of the rushing yards put up by Gordon and the Badgers, you have to expect Wisconsin to be well represented on the all-conference list this season.
Tight End
6 of 9
Prediction: Maxx Williams, Minnesota
There are two sides to Maxx Williams' play this season that have us believing he's a strong candidate for the first-team All-Big Ten at tight end. First, there's his statistical output. Williams leads all tight ends with 418 receiving yards, and he's among the top 20 in the Big Ten—regardless of position—with 41.8 yards per game. He's also fifth among all receivers with seven touchdowns.
Minnesota hasn't really been known as a passing team this year. In fact, the Gophers are dead last in the Big Ten in terms of passing offense with just 134.7 yards per game. It shouldn't surprise anyone, then, that Williams is the leading receiver for the Gophers—by a pretty wide margin.
Now, the other side of the coin. Because Minnesota has been so anemic in the passing department, the run game has been the Gophers' bread and butter in 2014. Again, enter Williams. He's a big enough passing threat to occupy the attention of opposing defenders, but he's also capable of laying down some crucial blocks on the perimeter to allow big-play backs like David Cobb to pick up hefty yardage. He's also better than your average modern receiving tight end in pass protection.
Put all of that together and sprinkle a potential West Division title on top, and we think you have the perfect recipe for an All-Big Ten tight end.
Wide Receivers
7 of 9
Predictions: Tony Lippett, Michigan State; Leonte Carroo, Rutgers
Tony Lippett leads the Big Ten in receiving yards and is thus far the only receiver in the conference to surpass 1,000 yards on the season (1,071). He has been a reliable target for Connor Cook, and he even got the opportunity to play a little defensive back in a blowout win for the Spartans over Rutgers. Lippett also leads the Big Ten with 10 receiving touchdowns. He's been a big part of MSU's offensive renaissance, and if he's left off of the All-Big Ten list, it's a travesty.
Rutgers' Leonte Carroo has been impressive, along with most of his Scarlet Knights team. Rutgers is heading for a bowl game in its first Big Ten season, thanks in large part to the connection between Carroo and his quarterback, Gary Nova. Carroo is closing in on 1,000 receiving yards this season, and along with Lippett and Illinois' Mike Dudek, he is one of only three Big Ten receivers to average more than 80 yards per game. On an interesting side note, Carroo is credited with a blocked punt this season against Penn State.
Running Back
8 of 9
Prediction: Melvin Gordon, Wisconsin
Not much of a surprise here. Early on, it looked as if Nebraska's Ameer Abdullah would run away with his second consecutive Big Ten rushing title. But when the Huskers stalled a bit as the season wore on, so too did Abdullah's lofty numbers.
It's OK, though. Melvin Gordon showed up to take over the mantle as the next superstar Big Ten running back.
Melvin Gordon's accomplishments this season are the kind we see once in a generation or so. Through 11 games, Gordon has amassed 2,109 rushing yards—breaking the 2,000-yard mark faster than any other running back in FBS history. We also can't overlook his 408 yards against Nebraska on November 15, an FBS single-game record (which, amazingly, was broken the following week by Oklahoma's Samaje Perine).
The all-time season record is still a ways off, sitting at 2,628, but it's being put in doubt for the first time in quite a while. If Wisconsin defeats Minnesota, the Badgers will have both the Big Ten Championship Game and a subsequent bowl game for Gordon to gain those 520 yards he needs to edge out Barry Sanders' record. That's "just" 173.3 yards per game.
Gordon is averaging 191.7 per game.
Quarterback
9 of 9
Prediction: J.T. Barrett, Ohio State
Who were you expecting?
When news broke that Braxton Miller would miss the entire 2014 season with a shoulder injury, a lot of us wrote off Ohio State. And why not? Miller was the unquestioned leader of a team that struggled at times to put together four complete quarters. He had the skills to pull his team out of the mud single-handedly. He was even a pretty solid Heisman hopeful.
When a player like that goes down, so too do the expectations for the season.
The problem with all of that pretty reasonable logic is a guy named J.T. Barrett. After a middling performance against Navy and a pretty ugly loss to Virginia Tech, everyone felt pretty secure in their belief that the Buckeyes would play themselves out of a conference title in 2014. Barrett had different plans.
Over the next several weeks, Barrett transformed from an inexperienced freshman seemingly startled by the bright lights of the nation's biggest stage to a wily veteran capable of making big plays with his arms and even bigger plays with his feet.
Now, as we approach the final game of the regular season, Barrett leads the conference in total offense, accounting for 3,507 offensive yards (2,658 passing and 849 rushing) and a whopping 42 touchdowns (33 passing, nine rushing).
Only Brandon Doughty from Western Kentucky has more passing touchdowns (36), and Barrett is in the top 10 among FBS quarterbacks in terms of rushing touchdowns. He leads all freshmen in total offense and is second among all underclassmen (just six yards behind Cal's Jared Goff).
Oh, yeah, there's also that little matter of blowing through the Big Ten en route to an East Division title. And let's not forget about the College Football Playoff. The Buckeyes, with just a smidgen of help, could very well find themselves receiving an invitation to the inaugural playoff semifinal in either Pasadena or New Orleans.
And it's all thanks to J.T. Barrett.
Unless otherwise noted, quotes or references to quotes were obtained firsthand by the writer.
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