The Biggest Hole Each Big Ten Team Must Fix for 2012-13

As the college football season comes to a close, each program will be taking stock of what players they have returning to their schools and what areas they need to shore up for next season. The Big Ten is no different than the rest, and each of its teams have needs going into next year that they need to address.

Wisconsin needs a quarterback, Indiana needs everything, and Penn State needs a coach.

Here’s what each Big Ten team needs to fix for next season.

Illinois

More Points

The Illinois Illini had the most disappointing year of any Big Ten team. Not because of their ending win total, but because they started out 6-0 only to finish the year on a six-game losing streak at 6-6.

That six-game losing streak saw them score more than 20 points zero times. Their defense was good enough to win, holding opponents to 20.1 points per game. If they’d been able to score last year, they might have had a very memorable year.

Indiana

Everything

Indiana Hoosiers head coach Kevin Wilson has his work cut out for him. His team went winless in Big Ten play and ranked worse than 100th in both points scored and points allowed.

This is a bad team. They need literally anything they can get for next season.

Iowa

Clutch Playmaker

The Iowa Hawkeyes went 7-5 this season. No slouch, but they could’ve have very easily gone 9-3 or even 10-2. First, they lost narrowly to Iowa State by 3 points in overtime. They also lost to lowly Minnesota by a single point.

This team needs a clutch playmaker to make those plays in at the end of the game. It will be the difference between mediocrity and a good record.

Michigan

Big Time Receiver

After having his best season so far, Michigan Wolverine quarterback Denard Robinson will be a senior next season. Robinson proved this year that he could lead the team and win, but for Michigan to take the next step, he needs a big time wide receiver.

Robinson is OK as a passer, but the team needs a better passing game. A big time receiver to help him out would deliver that.

Michigan State

Quarterback

Kirk Cousins has been a big part of the recent success for the Michigan State Spartans. The biggest need the team will have is trying to find a replacement for him after he graduates.

Sophomore Andrew Maxwell appears to be Cousins’ heir, but he’ll have to prove himself first.

Minnesota

Better Offense

The Minnesota Golden Gophers did not score more than 29 points in a single game all season long. They ranked 111th in points scored per game (18.4) and 108th in passing yards per game (150.3).

The Gopher defense wasn’t good either, but they were put in bad positions by their offense all year. When you can’t even score on FCS teams, you know something is seriously wrong with your offense.

Nebraska

Better Quarterback Play

The Nebraska Cornhuskers are a one-trick pony. They averaged 223.9 yards per game on the ground this season, but only 166.6 yards through the air. They need to be able to pass the ball if they want to be a championship caliber team.

Taylor Martinez is still young and is getting better, but he needs to continue to improve and complete a higher percentage of his passes.

Northwestern

Quarterback

Senior quarterback Dan Persa has been a leader for the Northwestern Wildcats for the past two seasons. The 6’1” quarterback has thrown for nearly 5,000 yards in the two seasons and has completed over 73 percent of his passes each year.

That’s production that Northwestern will miss and that will be hard to replace.

Ohio State

Better Offense

This is one thing that Urban Meyer will fix. He’s been known for his running quarterbacks and Braxton Miller is talented enough to be the next guy to flourish in his system.

When Meyer takes over the Ohio State Buckeyes, expect the offense to improve dramatically. Meyer is one of the best head coaches in the country and a highly productive, multi-faceted offense has been one of his staples.

Penn State

Head Coach

It will take a very special coach to take over the Penn State Nittany Lions given the current situation surrounding the program. Joe Paterno was a legend there, which won’t help the newcomer any.

This is clearly the biggest need for this program, a far bigger need than anything on the field. It needs a strong leader who can handle this situation with delicacy while leading a successful football program.

Purdue

A little of everything

The Purdue Boilermakers had a decent season this year. Despite not having much talent, they struggled to a 6-6 record and won their bowl game to go to 7-6 on the year. Mediocre, but that’s good for this squad.

To get to a higher level, this team needs help on both sides of the ball. It ranked 67th in points scored per game and 64th in points allowed per game.

The Boilermakers need to get better on both sides of the ball. Otherwise, they’ll stay mired in mediocrity.

Wisconsin

Quarterback

The Wisconsin Badgers took their play to another level this season, and quarterback Russell Wilson was a huge part of that. He’s the biggest thing they’re losing for next season.

Wilson threw 31 touchdowns and just three interceptions all season, completing 72.5 percent of his passes. That type of production will be difficult to find in another quarterback.