Predicting the MVPs of Each Big Ten Bowl Game
The Big Ten is fresh off the heels of a showcase regular season that put four teams in the Top Eight of the final College Football Playoff rankings, but the league is looking to solidify its status as the best in the country during a pivotal 2016 bowl season.
To do that, players such as Ohio State's J.T. Barrett, Penn State's Trace McSorley and Wisconsin's Sojourn Shelton have to turn in huge performances on college football's biggest stage.
The Big Ten will have 10 of its 14 members suiting up for postseason showdowns over the next two weeks. These players, in particular, will need to show out for their programs.
Maryland: Perry Hills
1 of 10
Opposing high-level quarterbacks have lit up what used to be a stingy Boston College defense, as Virginia Tech's Jerod Evans, Florida State's Deondre Francois, Clemson's Deshaun Watson and Louisville's Lamar Jackson combined to throw 16 touchdowns against just two interceptions against the Eagles this year.
Maryland signal-caller Perry Hills has been excellent when healthy this season, completing 66 percent of his passes with 10 touchdowns and three interceptions. But he's been roughed up, missing two games against Minnesota and Nebraska while getting knocked out of four others.
If the Terrapins can keep the pocket clean in the Quick Lane Bowl, Hills should have a big day.
Minnesota: Rodney Smith
2 of 10
Minnesota has to control the clock to keep Washington State's high-flying offense on the sideline as much as possible in the Holiday Bowl, and the easiest way to do that is to run the ball.
Fortunately for the Gophers, they have one of the Big Ten's best running backs in their backfield. Rodney Smith has been the engine in an offense that was supposed to hit another level with senior quarterback Mitch Leidner, who has struggled greatly this year.
Smith ran for 1,084 yards and 15 touchdowns in 12 games this season, but he'll have to be at his best against a Cougars defense that's yielding just 132.9 yards per game, which ranks 28th nationally.
Northwestern: Austin Carr
3 of 10
Northwestern is going to need a lot of points to keep up with Pitt in the Pinstripe Bowl.
The Panthers brought former Michigan State defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi on as head coach, but they've thrived offensively this season, averaging 42.3 points per game this season, which ranks 11th nationally.
The Wildcats have a solid quarterback in Clayton Thorson and an explosive running back in Justin Jackson, but wideout Austin Carr is the key against the Panthers.
The All-American receiver paced the Wildcats and led the Big Ten with 84 receptions for 1,196 yards and 12 touchdowns. He eclipsed 100 yards receiving in half of Northwestern's games and was at his best in the toughest game, hauling in eight receptions for 158 yards against Ohio State's sixth-ranked pass defense.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Indiana: Tegray Scales
4 of 10
Indiana won just six games this year to match the mark it set last year, but it felt like a more complete team thanks to a defensive renaissance under new defensive coordinator Tom Allen.
The Hoosiers ranked an abysmal 121st nationally in yards surrendered in 2015, but they jumped 80 spots to No. 41 under the direction of Allen. And after Kevin Wilson resigned amid allegations of player mistreatment, Allen was given the keys to the entire football program and named head coach.
He'll need his best player—linebacker Tegray Scales, the nation's leader in solo tackles—to have a huge game in the Foster Farms Bowl.
Utah boasts an equally stingy defense, allowing an average of 23.9 points per game. Indiana's offense could have a hard time moving the ball against the Utes, so it'll be key for Scales to lead the charge for the Hoosiers defense.
Nebraska: Tommy Armstrong
5 of 10
Tommy Armstrong is a rare breed—a four-year starter for Nebraska who's suffered through two different head coaches, a five-win regular season in 2015 and a variety of injuries.
His recent setback—a hamstring injury that he suffered against Minnesota—has put his status in jeopardy for the Music City Bowl against Tennessee. The Cornhuskers might have to call on Ryker Fyfe, a career backup who's completed just 54.2 percent of his passes in his four years at Nebraska.
If Armstrong can't go, the Cornhuskers will have to rely heavily on the run game, which will feature running back Terrell Newby. The senior led the team with 864 rushing yards and seven touchdowns on 181 carries.
Michigan: Wilton Speight
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There was a common theme in Florida State's three losses this season: They were all the direct result of an explosive performance from the opposing quarterback.
In their three defeats to Louisville, North Carolina and Clemson, Lamar Jackson, Mitch Trubisky and Deshaun Watson averaged 397 total yards against the Seminoles.
There was also a common theme in Michigan's two losses this year: Wilton Speight struggled greatly against both Iowa and Ohio State. The junior completed just 54.8 percent of his passes for an average of 161 passing yards to complement two touchdowns and three interceptions, one of which was returned by Ohio State for a touchdown.
That's why the Wolverines need Speight to be at his best in the Orange Bowl, and with more than a month to prepare and heal from a shoulder injury he suffered against Iowa, he should return to form.
Ohio State: J.T. Barrett
7 of 10
J.T. Barrett will have to be Ohio State's MVP in the playoff showdown with Clemson out of necessity.
The Buckeyes have been explosive offensively this season, ranking ninth nationally with an average of 42.7 points per game. But the passing attack has been erratic for much of the season, and Barrett is coming off two of his most unproductive performances through the air, averaging just 105 passing yards in games against Michigan State and Michigan.
That won't cut it against the Tigers in the Fiesta Bowl, who allow just 188.2 passing yards per game and rank second in the country in sacks per game.
But with a month to tighten up the offensive line and build chemistry with his receivers, Barrett should have a better day passing the ball against Clemson.
Iowa: LeShun Daniels
8 of 10
Points will be at a premium when Iowa and Florida face off in the Outback Bowl.
The Gators have continued their defensive dominance under head coach Jim McElwain, who was brought in before the 2015 season for his offensive expertise. Although decimated by injuries, Florida has still managed to assemble the nation's No. 6 total defense and No. 10 scoring defense.
Teams have had little success passing the ball against the Gators, who surrender just 156.3 yards per game through the air. But if the unit has anything close to a weakness, it would be against the rush, where it's allowed 142 yards per game.
That's why LeShun Daniels is set up to have a solid showing in the Outback Bowl. Daniels ran for 1,013 yards in the regular season, but he's coming off the best performances of the season as he eclipsed 150 rushing yards and scored two touchdowns in each of Iowa's games against Illinois and Nebraska.
Wisconson: Sojourn Shelton
9 of 10
Leading Penn State 28-14 at halftime of the Big Ten title game, Wisconsin needed just two more quarters of shutdown defense to clinch a spot in the Rose Bowl and set up a rematch of last year's Holiday Bowl with USC.
But the Nittany Lions loaded up and fired shot after shot against a Badgers secondary that had been stout up until that point of the season. At the end of the game, Wisconsin had surrendered a season-high 384 passing yards and four touchdowns to Penn State in a 38-31 loss.
That defeat sent the Badgers to the Cotton Bowl for a showdown with Western Michigan, which boasts arguably college football's best quarterback-wide receiver tandem in Zach Terrell and Corey Davis.
Davis leads the nation with 18 receiving touchdowns to complement 1,427 receiving yards and 91 receptions. But he hasn't seen a cornerback as good Sojourn Shelton, the all-Big Ten defender who'll draw the primary coverage in the Cotton Bowl.
Penn State: Trace McSorley
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Saquon Barkley was without question the team's MVP this season, a notion that was reinforced when he won co-conference MVP honors alongside Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett.
But against USC in the Rose Bowl, it'll be quarterback Trace McSorley's time to shine.
The sophomore quarterback went on an absolute tear in the final month of the regular season, which included a trio of 300-plus-yard passing performances. He really hit his stride down the stretch, throwing for 376 yards and four touchdowns in the East Division-clinching win against Michigan State and 384 yards and four touchdowns in the Big Ten title win over Wisconsin.
Just as impressive—he hasn't thrown an interception since early in the third quarter of the Indiana game in Week 11.
He's set to face a Trojans secondary that ranks just 67th nationally in pass defense.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
