5 unranked Big Ten teams that can finish 2023 in the Top 25...Gophers?

nitramnaed · Aug 20, 2023

5 unranked Big Ten teams that can finish 2023 in the Top 25

Alex Hickey

Do the Gophers make it into the top 25 at seasons end?

One of the few certainties in college football is that the picture at the starting line is going to look a lot different than the picture at the finish line.
A year ago, 3 teams in the preseason AP Top 10 and 15 teams in the preseason Top 25 finished the season unranked. So if things go according to form this season, there are currently more unranked teams who will finish in the Top 25 than ranked teams.
The expectations are high in the top half of the Big Ten. Specifically, the Big Ten East. Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State all find themselves ranked in the top 7. Wisconsin and Iowa also appear in the preseason Top 25.

Georgia (60) 1,572
Michigan (2) 1,490
Ohio State (1) 1,400
Alabama 1,398
LSU 1,276
Southern California 1,245
Penn State 1,177
Florida State 1,147
Clemson 1,032
Washington 977
Texas 882
Tennessee 868
Notre Dame 863
Utah 811
Oregon 732
Kansas State 501
TCU 416
Oregon State 406
Wisconsin 386
Oklahoma 296
North Carolina 292
Ole Miss 281
Texas A&M 227
Tulane 224
Iowa 131

So which B1G teams are poised to join the Wolverines, Buckeyes, Nittany Lions, Badgers and Hawkeyes in the Top 25 at season’s end, or in some cases replace them?
Expect 1-2 of the following teams to make their way into the final rankings, listed in reverse order of likelihood.

3. Minnesota

2022 record: 9-4

Why the Golden Gophers can finish in the Top 25: Minnesota was a win away from finishing in the Top 25 a year ago and has a chance to do better in 2023. After years of a run-first approach, PJ Fleck now has a quarterback he wants to build the offense around in Athan Kaliakmanis. Minnesota is a viable dark horse to win its first Big Ten West title in the final year of divisional play.

Why it’s unlikely: The Gophers have one of the country’s toughest schedules, drawing both Michigan and Ohio State in divisional crossover games. There’s also a Week 3 road game against Heisman hopeful Drake Maye and North Carolina. Heck, Minnesota can’t even sleep on a Week 2 game against an Eastern Michigan team that went 9-4 last year.

Plus, we don’t know if the Kaliakmanis-centric offensive plan will work.