Around the Big Ten News and Links - Fall Camp Edition

The college football season is growing closer and today we take a lok around the Big Ten to see what opposing Big Ten conference teams are doing with a little over two weeks till kickoff. Below you’ll find a blurb on each program and anything of note that has come out about the respective program in fall practices so far.

Big Ten East:

Indiana:

The Hoosiers fall camp has been rather quiet from a news perspective but the Hoosiers are in the midst of a quarterback competition between incumbent starter Peyton Ramsey, redshirt freshman Michael Penix Jr. and Utah transfer Jack Tuttle. Right now, Ramsey is considered the favorite after throwing for close to 3,000 yards last season as well as 19 touchdowns.

Maryland:

The Terrapins are entering their first season under Mike Locksley and all is quiet in College Park. Running back Anthony McFarland is impressing and Virginia Tech transfer Josh Jackson is expected to be the starter this season. It’s been mostly quiet but two injuries to note are backup running back Lorenzo Harrison, who is dealing with a potential hamstring injury, while WR Jeshaun Jones will miss all of the 2019 season after tearing his ACL.

Michigan:

Former Penn State wide receivers coach Josh Gattis is now the Wolverines offensive coordinator, which should be interesting to see how their offense changes in 2019. In terms of news, true freshman running back Zach CharBonnet is impressing so far on offense. Additionally, cornerback Ambry Thomas is recovering from an undisclosed injury and may not be ready for the beginning of the season. Both the offensive and defensive lines are also looking strong in fall camp.

Michigan State:

It’s been a relatively quiet camp in East Lansing which isn’t necessarily a bad thing for the Spartans. Very little news has come out of the Spartans camp so far and nothing we found of note. That being said, quarterback Brian Lewerke believes that the Spartans mojo “is back”.

Ohio State:

The first fall camp under Ryan Day has been an uneventful one but that’s not exactly good for the Buckeyes. They’ve yet to name a starting quarterback as Justin Fields hasn’t performed at the level that the Buckeyes coaching staff and fan base expected out of the former five-star recruit. Additionally, the Buckeyes have yet to find their No. 2 running back behind star J.K Dobbins.

Rutgers:

As of right now, Rutgers’ starting quarterback for 2019 will be Artur Sitkowski. The true sophomore struggled mightily in 2018 and led the country in interceptions. That being said, Texas Tech transfer McLane Carter is making it interesting and the Scarlet Knights could see a quarterback battle unfold here as week one grows nearer.

Big Ten West:

Illinois:

Lovie Smith needs a big 2019 season and entering the season, he has himself a quarterback competition. The two candidates to be the Illini’s starter in 2019 are Michigan transfer Brandon Peters and redshirt freshman Matt Robinson.

Iowa:

The Hawkeyes enter 2019 with high expectations but must replace two first-round tight ends on offense. Their defensive line, led by AJ Epenesa, should be ferocious, and could see the breakout of redshirt freshman John Waggoner.

Minnesota:

A quick look at the interwebs regarding the Gophers fall camp reveals not much is going on with PJ Fleck’s program as he continues to build in Minneapolis. But one thing is for sure, they’ll be fielding some BIG GOPHERS this upcoming season.

Nebraska:

There may not be a team in college football that has been hyped up more than Nebraska entering 2019 and the Huskers fall camp.

Northwestern:
The focus of Northwestern’s fall camp so far has been their quarterback competition to replace four-year stater Clayton Thorson. The odds on favorite heading into camp to win the job is Clemson transfer Hunter Johnson but Pat Fitzgerald certainty won’t just hand the job over to the Indiana native. He’ll have to earn it. His biggest competition at this point is senior TJ Green, the son of former NFL quarterback Trent Green. You can read a full story on the Northwestern QB competition here.

Purdue:

A few notables tidbits have come out of Purdue’s camp, including the injury of star defensive line Lorenzo Neal, who is already questionable for week one. Additionally, expect to see a lot of freshman line up for the Boilermakers in 2019. That includes former Penn State target David Bell, who is currently nursing a hamstring injury.

Wisconsin:

The most notable story right now happening in Camp Randall is the Wisconsin quarterback battle is that Jack Coan remainsthe No. 1 quarterback and that true freshman Graham Mertz may not be ready to save the Wisconsin offense just yet. In fact, right now, he’s in line to be the Badgers third quarterback.

Non-Conference Opponents:

Idaho:

Unsurprisingly, there is not much out there on Idaho’s fall camp so far but the Vandals did recently complete their first scrimmage of fall camp. You could read a full rundown of that scrimmage here.

Buffalo:

With star quarterback Tyree Jackson gone to the NFL, the Bulls are in search for their new starting signal caller, which is biggest news coming out of their fall camp. It’s a five-quarterback race at this point and with just one quarterback havingg actual game experience, it could be anybody’s job to take.

Pittsburgh:

The biggest news to come out of Pittsburgh’s camp isn’t good news as it lost its star defensive end Rashad Weaver after he tore his ACL during a practice.