Once again, the Big Ten looks like the best conference in college football heading into league play. Sure, Illinois, Ohio State, Oregon, and Penn State are at the top of the conference standings and all in the top 10 in the rankings, but there are many other teams in the Big Ten worth paying attention to as the B1G play begins in earnest.
With so much talent across the conference’s 18 teams, and the Buckeyes on a bye this Saturday, today seemed like a good day to highlight one player to watch on the other
17 teams in the conference. Now, fair warning, I’m going to try — as much as possible — not to pick the most obvious household name. So, I’m not just going to go with the big-name quarterbacks. That’s not to say that Drew Allar, Dante Moore, Luke Altmayer, and Bryce Underwood aren’t players to watch on their respective teams, but, come on, that would be just too easy.
Illinois: Gabe Jacas | Outside Linebacker
Illinois entered this season as one of the most experienced teams, not just in the Big Ten but the entire country. A big part of what’s gotten them to a No. 9 ranking is their defense, which returned nearly every starter from last year’s 10-win team.
Jacas is my pick for a somewhat under-the-radar player to watch on the Fighting Illini. He has been a menace through the first three weeks of the season, with 3.5 sacks and four tackles for loss. He’s also forced two fumbles and has two quarterback hits and a pass breakup.
The Fighting Illini aim to take the next step and compete for a Big Ten championship and a spot in the College Football Playoff this season. If they take that next step, in large part, it will be because of Jacas and their defense.
Indiana: Omar Cooper Jr. | Wide Receiver
Cooper is an explosive receiver, with 299 receiving yards on just 13 receptions. That’s an average of 23 yards per catch. Remarkable!
Fernando Mendoza has had a great first three games in Bloomington, and Cooper is benefiting from his presence. Indiana’s offense has been fairly prolific through three games — yes, they were against FBS teams — and Cooper is someone worth watching heading into Big Ten play.
Iowa: Max Llewellyn | Defensive Lineman
It should come as no surprise that the Hawkeye offense doesn’t really have anybody worth watching. That’s why the player to watch is Llewellyn. Iowa is driven through its defensive line, and Llewellyn is off to a great start this season with three sacks and 4.5 tackles for loss.
The Hawkeyes are going to lean on him and their defense throughout the season, especially as FCS transfer quarterback Mark Gronkowski and the Iowa offense go through some growing pains early.
Maryland: Malik Washington | Quarterback
I’m going with Maryland’s quarterback here because he has been really impressive through the Terrapins’ first three games. A D.C. area product, the appropriately named Washington has passed for 773 yards through The Terps’ first three games with six touchdowns and just one interception. These are impressive numbers considering that the Terrapins haven’t gotten their running game going through the first quarter of the season.
It’s going to be fun to watch Washington in his first road start at Wisconsin this Saturday. It’s a 12 noon game on NBC, so we’ll get to see a lot of the true freshman for the first time in his career.
Michigan: Justice Haynes | Running Back
Haynes has been running the ball well through the Wolverines’ first three games, with 388 yards to average 129.3 rushing yards per game.
While Bryce Underwood takes time to develop, look for Haynes’s running ability to be a big part of the Wolverines’ offense.
Michigan State: Jordan Hall | Linebacker
Hall is the leader of the Spartans’ defense. He leads the Spartans with 27 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, and two sacks, while adding a quarterback hit and forced fumble. Sparty is shaping up to be a scrappy team, even if they aren’t the most talented. With a defensive leader like Hall in the middle of the defense, they can make games miserable for offenses if you aren’t careful.
Minnesota: Anthony Smith | Defensive Lineman
Smith leads the Golden Gophers’ defense with three sacks and four tackles for loss. He has another pass breakup and seven total tackles this season. Through three games, the Gophers’ run defense has been among the best in college football. Minnesota is tied for second nationally, allowing only 41.33 yards per game, and they haven’t given up a rush touchdown so far this year.
If Smith and the rest of the defensive line can continue to contain opposing running backs, the Gophers could be a surprise team in the Big Ten.
Nebraska: Dylan Raiola | Quarterback
Yes, I’m buying into Raiola. He’s off to a tremendous start this season, with 829 passing yards and eight touchdowns. The key, though, is that he hasn’t thrown an interception this season.
Raiola had an up-and-down freshman season in 2024, but I think that it’s clear that he is ready to take a big second-year leap in 2025.
Northwestern: Mac Uihlein | Linebacker
On a team that has struggled so far this season, Uihlein has been a bright spot on the Wildcats’ defense. He leads the team with two interceptions while ranking second on the team with 21 tackles. Uihlein also has two tackles for loss. This might not be a banner season for NU, but Uihlein should give Wildcat fans something to cheer about.
Oregon: Dante Moore | Quarterback
I’m going with Moore here because he has been really good through three weeks, and even though he was a high-profile, true-freshman starter for part of the 2023 season at UCLA, after sitting last season, his level of notoriety has dipped a bit.
The Ducks have been fortunate with Bo Nix and Dillon Gabriel being so experienced in each of the last two seasons. This season, another transfer QB is having early success leading the Oregon offense. Moore has completed 78.1% of his passes for 657 yards and seven touchdowns through three games, and the Ducks look like one of the best squads in college football.
Penn State: Dani Dennis-Sutton | Defensive End
As we’ve all heard throughout the offseason, the Nittany Lions boast one of the most talented and experienced rosters in college football. One of the chief reasons why is Dennis-Sutton.
The edge rusher is their defensive leader, and with Jim Knowles at the helm, the Penn State defense could be the difference between them reaching their national championship goals or falling short again… yet again.
Dennis-Sutton has been everywhere on defense, with two sacks and 4.5 tackles for loss, nine tackles, two pass breakups, four quarterback hits, and two forced fumbles. He’s a do-it-all player and a future NFL first-round draft pick. .
Purdue: Ryan Browne | Quarterback
The Barry Odom era is off to a good start, with the Boilermakers at 2-1 heading into this Saturday’s matchup at Notre Dame.
Quarterback Ryan Browne has had an up-and-down first three games. While his 786 yards rank fourth in the Big Ten, and his five touchdowns are solid, he has also thrown four interceptions, tied for second-worst in the conference.
Rutgers: Athan Kaliakmanis | Quarterback
Kaliakmanis has seemingly been the quarterback in Piscataway since the Clinton administration, and this year, he is off to a really good start. He has thrown for 820 yards (3rd in the B1G) and seven touchdowns (5th in the B1G).
Under Greg Schiano, Rutgers is always going to be a defense-first team, but if Kaliakmanis can bring some consistency to the offense, things could end up being a lot less volatile for the Scarlet Knights.
UCLA: Isaiah Chisom | Linebacker
It’s been a rough season for the Bruins, who fired head coach DeShaun Foster after an 0-3 start. A bright spot has been linebacker Isaiah Chisom. The sophomore has 37 tackles with 1.5 tackles for loss and one quarterback hit through three games. If UCLA is going to turn its season around, his play will likely be at the center of that effort.
USC: Jayden Maiava | Quarterback
The Trojans have gotten off to a 3-0 start and have vaulted into the AP Top 25, leading some people to ask the age-old question, “Is USC back?”
A significant reason for this resurgence has been the play of Maiava. The junior has been on a tear through three games, throwing for 989 yards and six touchdowns without an interception and completing 68.6% of his passes. If The Men of Troy are going to make an impact on the B1G race, it will likely be behind the arm of their QB.
Wisconsin: Christian Alliegro | Linebacker
While things have not gone according to plan against Alabama last week for Luke Fichell’s Badgers, in the first two games of the season, the defense looked stout — admittedly against weaker competition.
Christian Alliegro is one of the leaders on the Badgers’ defense, and through three games has amassed two sacks and four tackles for loss. In total, he has 15 tackles, 11 of them solo.
