The last time they were in Indianapolis, things went pretty well for Urban Meyer and the Buckeyes as they throttled the Badgers by a score of 59-0. That was in December of 2014, and despite the NFL Draft prompting an abnormal amount of roster reshuffling, they're looking to make a return trip in 2016.
There's no question that there are three teams who appear poised to make a run at the Big Ten's East Division, but which of the Mitten State schools will be the biggest threat to another run to Indianapolis?
THE CASE FOR THE WOLVERINES
Since arriving in Columbus, Meyer has notched a 4-0 record against the Wolverines with the most recent victory coming against then first-year head coach Jim Harbaugh. This year, the Maize and Blue will travel south to Columbus for the annual November showdown.
As will be the biggest question mark for a number of Big Ten teams, the Wolverines too must replace last season's starter at quarterback. With Jake Rudock gone, Houston transfer John O'Korn looks to be the guy, though nothing has been announced just yet. Junior Shane Morris and sophomore Wilton Speight are also in the running, but neither has been too impressive thus far.
Michigan will return most of its pass-catchers, and tight end Jake Butt should continue to be one of the best in the country. Jehu Chesson and Amara Darboh are both back at receiver, though the former is still nursing a leg injury that he suffered in the Citrus Bowl against Florida. Last year, Chesson hauled in 50 passes for 764 yards and nine scores while Darboh added 58 for 727 yards and five touchdowns.
Beyond those two, 2016 signees Ahmir Mitchell and Dylan Crawford could battle for playing time as well, and passing game coordinator Jedd Fisch (lol) has an idea of what he wants to see from the unit.
“We need more production,” Fisch said. “We need someone else to be in that range of 40 or 50 catches. We need (Darboh) and (Chesson) to be in the range of 75 catches.” Via
The Wolverines have a pretty solid stable at running back but continue to look for a real home-run hitter. De'Veon Smith and Drake Johnson are both back for 2016 after the duo combined for just over 1000 yards and 10 scores a year ago. USC transfer Ty Isaac was expected to play a prominent role in 2015, but by November, he wasn't even on the depth chart. Right now he appears to be out of the doghouse and should add some depth for the backfield. Early enrollee Kareem Walker should also see a significant role this season as the Wolverines look for their first 1000-yard back since 2011.
Peppers will be asked to do a little bit of everything again.
On the other side of the ball, the biggest loss is definitely at the linebacker spot as new defensive coordinator Don Brown is looking to replace all three starters from a year ago. Jabrill Peppers has been experimenting at linebacker and newcomer Devin Bush Jr. could be expected to play early and often. The defensive line should be solid again this season as Willie Henry is the only departure from a year ago. The biggest addition should be the return of tackle Bryan Mone who was slated to start a year ago before suffering a broken leg.
Overall, the Wolverines return eight starters on offense and six on defense. Outside of the trip to Columbus, their biggest games will be at Michigan State and then back-to-back home contests with Penn State and Wisconsin.
THE CASE FOR THE SPARTANS
There's no question that the Spartans have been a bit of a thorn in Urban Meyer's side. Dating back to 2012, two of his four losses have come at the hands of Mark Dantonio. While Urban has taken a pair from Dino as well, the two losses to the Spartans were both of the heartbreaking variety.
A season ago, Tyler O'Connor and Damion Terry led the way to a somewhat improbable victory in Columbus. In place of the injured Connor Cook, it was O'Connor who got the bulk of the playing time, though he wasn't asked to do a whole lot. Then a junior, he only threw 12 passes as the Spartans relied heavily on the running game. Quarterback is the biggest question mark and this summer O'Connor and Terry will continue to battle it out for the starting gig.
The Spartans will also be without Aaron Burbridge and Macgarrett Kings, a duo that accounted for more than half of the team's receptions a year ago. Fortunately for Dantonio, the Spartans were able to bring in one of the top wide receiver classes this year. Early enrollees Donnie Corley and Cameron Chambers should have ample opportunity to see the field early on in their careers.
L.J. Scott will be the workhorse for the Spartans.
Michigan State will also look to replace three starting offensive linemen, including Jack Conklin, who was drafted eighth overall by the Tennessee Titans. Behind that offensive line should be one of the conference's top units as both L.J. Scott and Gerald Holmes return in the backfield. Given the question marks at quarterback and wideout, the running game should be featured heavily yet again in 2016.
Defensively, the Spartans lose three starters along the line, including All-Big Ten defensive end Shilique Calhoun. The lone returning starters is a good one, though, as Malik McDowell recorded 13 TFL and 4.5 sacks a season ago. The Spartans' "No Fly Zone" hasn't exactly been imposing as of late. The secondary will need to replace one cornerback and safeties Montae Nicholson and Demetrious Cox will need to improve their play. The secondary was a very unSpartan-like 72nd in pass efficiency a year ago.
The Spartans return four starters on offense and five on defense. They have the luxury of hosting the Badgers, Wolverines, and Buckeyes this year. Their lone conference road challenge – if you want to call it that – looks to be a late-November date in Happy Valley.
So who should be the bigger threat this season? The Wolverines are certainly getting more preseason hype, but it's fair to assume a lot of that is strictly due to the number of returning starters. Neither Jim Harbaugh nor Mark Dantonio will be facing an especially tough schedule, but it's tough to ignore the Spartans getting the Wolverines in East Lansing. Couple that with Michigan having to travel to Columbus and there's two games that are going to be tough for the Wolverines to take.
The quarterback play is likely to determine how a lot of this plays out. Personally, I'd take O'Korn over any of the Spartans' signal-callers, but Michigan State certainly edges out their in-state foes in other areas, most notably at tailback.
Even with Michigan's 14 returning starters, I am of the opinion that the Spartans will continue to be the bigger threat in the East. Mark Dantonio seems to have Urban Meyer figured out better than anyone else right now, and that atmosphere will be a challenge to a number of new starters.
Here's to this year's trip to East Lansing being very reminiscent of the last.
