The Top 10 Best Big Ten Football Teams That Didn’t Win the Conference in the Playoff Era
JR Rhoades
Top 10 Teams To Not Win A Conference Title
By JR Rhoades from The Big Ten Huddle
Since 2014, the Big Ten has been a conference of great competition. The East never lost to the West in the Big Ten Championship game, but notable teams every year fell short. Some years, even a team that didn’t make the Big Ten Championship game would make the playoffs.
Who could forget the classic year of 2016 when Penn State won the Big Ten, but Ohio State, who didn’t even make the Big Ten championship game, made the playoffs? Buckeye fans don’t want to hear more about what happened in their next game against Clemson. However, let’s look at the list. These are the ten best football teams in the Big Ten who did not win the conference.
10. The 2018 Michigan team was a force to be reckoned with, going 10-3 on the season and 7-1 in Big Ten play. The Wolverines showcased an exceptional pass defense that ranks 3rd in opponents passing yards allowed per game among every Big Ten defense since 2014. However, what was most impressive about this team was when they won 3 straight games vs. top 25 teams, including a throttling of Penn State at home (42-7) when they rushed for more yards (259) than total yards that Penn State gained on the day (186). However, Michigan would ultimately only reach 10th on this list due to its losses to Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Florida. All were double-digit win teams, but they would have been nice wins to add to their resume.
9. The 2023 Penn State team was a team many were picking as a dark horse to win the Big Ten but ultimately fell short with close losses to Ohio State, Michigan and a bowl game loss to Ole Miss. This team also saw their offensive coordinator get fired, but the defensive coordinator got hired for a head coaching job. Some might say that 2023 Penn State never won their big games, and they don’t deserve a spot, but let’s look at some stats. Of all Big Ten teams since 2014, this 2023 Penn State defense allowed the least amount of yards per game, the second lowest amount of rushing yards per game, and the third least points per game allowed. But what’s crazy is that the two teams ahead of 2023 Penn State’s defense in points per game allowed were 2023 Ohio State and 2023 Michigan. So yeah, Penn State didn’t win their biggest games, but remember, those games were against. three of the top ten teams in the nation and two of the best defenses we have seen in the Big Ten since 2014.
8. The 2023 Ohio State team gains the edge over Penn State, and rightfully so. This team featured the second-best defense in the nation that year and allowed the fourth-lowest number of passing yards per game by a Big Ten team since 2014. Unfortunately, the offense could never seem to catch up with the defense despite having the best wide receiver in the nation on their team, Marvin Harrison Jr. The issues all year were with the quarterback, Kyle McCord, the offensive line, and the team’s inability to move the ball in short-yardage situations. However, the team was still incredible, led by Jim Knowles’s spectacular secondary and Marvin Harrison Jr’s refusal to be denied of catching the ball. Wins over Notre Dame and Penn State helped define their season and Ryan Day’s quest to build a tough football team.
7. The 2017 Wisconsin team is the only one on this list that won 13 games and only lost one. It just so happened that the game was in the Big Ten championship. With star players like Jonathan Taylor and Ryan Connelly, Wisconsin was able to feature an incredible rushing attack and defense. The only problem is that this Wisconsin team played one of the easiest schedules we have seen for a Big Ten team in the playoff era. They didn’t have to face a single ranked team on the road all year, and the ranked wins they did get in the regular season ended up being 8-5 teams that were not ranked at the end of the year. But for me, the win over Miami in the Orange Bowl and the close game vs. Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship game deserves plenty of credit, especially since they were Paul Chryst’s best team he fielded in his eight years at Wisconsin.
6. The 2022 Penn State team is very similar to the previously ranked 2023 Penn State team. With a worse defense but a better offense led by Sean Clifford, this Penn State team lost to Ohio State and Michigan but won the Rose Bowl. This Penn State team also showcased the second-best backfield duo in the nation that year: Kaytron Allen and Nick Singleton. The season started in question, winning a close game vs. Purdue, but the team gained more confidence by blowing out an SEC team in Auburn and eventually ending the year by being ranked 7th in the AP Poll. And if not for a superhuman performance by JT Tuimoloau, we might be talking about a Penn State team that is a couple of spots higher.
5. The 2016 Michigan team did have three losses, but all three came in their final four games and lost by a combined six points. Not to mention the heartbreaking, inconclusive ball placement in overtime vs Ohio State. Despite that, this team stayed in the AP Poll’s top 10 all year. Of all Big Ten teams since 2014, this 2016 Michigan defense allowed the least passing yards per game, the 5th lowest total yards per game, and the 5th least points per game. This was also the year that Jabrill Peppers finished 5th in the Heisman voting. Ultimately, if not for one inconclusive ball placement and two late-game field goals, this Michigan team could’ve been the start of what we saw Michigan do in 2021.
4. The 2016 Ohio State team also did not win the Big Ten. However, they went to the playoffs only to be embarrassed in a 31-0 loss to Dabo’s Clemson Tigers in the Fiesta Bowl. Still, this was one of Urban Meyer’s best pass defenses he ever had, and on offense, he chose to run his QB, JT Barrett, over 200 times, which was more than anyone else on the team that year and the 7th most of any player in the Big Ten that year. But for all their faults, they still had four ranked wins, including a 62-3 demolition of a Nebraska team that was 9th at the time they played. It was inconsistency that hindered the Buckeyes. They had big wins over Michigan and Oklahoma that impressed the AP voters, but it was a head-scratching loss to Penn State and games that were far too close, like Northwestern and Michigan State, that ultimately led them to be 4th best.
3. The 2014 Michigan State team was arguably Mark Dantonio’s best team he ever fielded at Michigan State. The Spartans had one of their best Mark Dantonio offenses in 2014, averaging the 8th most yards per game and the 5th most points of any Big Ten team since 2014. The 2014 Spartans had an offensive trio that too often is forgotten: Tony Lippett, Connor Cook, and Jeremy Langford. Cook threw for 3,000+ yards while Langford rushed for over 1,500 yards, and Lippett caught 11 touchdowns for nearly 1,200 yards. As a team, statistically, they came out to averaging the best yards on offense and defense, and I did consider making them first. However, third was as high as I could go with a weaker schedule and only two ranked wins. However, I can’t drop them too low, considering both of their losses came against the national champion and the College Football Playoff runner-up. If this team could’ve found a way to take care of the Buckeyes at home, it is not ridiculous to think that this Michigan State team could’ve won it all.
2. The 2022 Ohio State team was all about CJ Stroud’s greatness and a Jim Knowles defense that couldn’t deliver in the most significant moments. With two wide receivers who gained over 1,000 receiving yards and CJ Stroud throwing the ball all over the field, the Buckeyes looked like an unstoppable offense that is 4th best in points per game among all Big Ten offenses since 2014. But as it was in 2021, the defense would be their kryptonite. All season, only one team scored over 30 points against the Buckeyes until they came to Ann Arbor, Michigan. The Buckeyes’ offense stalled out in the second half, and the defense opened the floodgates, allowing 45 points. But what saved them was their performance in the playoffs. The Buckeyes were gifted a second chance because of an unlikely loss to Utah by USC, but it would be on New Year’s Eve against the defending champion juggernauts, the Georgia Bulldogs. If Ohio State had just made a field goal, they would have easily won the national championship and be number one on this list. However, questionable play calling by Ryan Day at the end of the game forced the 5th-year senior kicker, Noah Ruggles, to attempt a 50-yard field goal for the win. The kick would’ve been Ruggles’ longest field goal of his career, but he missed it as the clock struck midnight and as the 2023 ball dropped in New York, so did the hearts of Buckeye fans around the nation.
1. 2015 Ohio State: Coming off their national championship the year before, the Buckeyes returned plenty of key contributors and were the preseason number-one team in the nation. But just like how the Buckeyes spoiled Michigan State’s hopes the year before, the 2015 Michigan State Spartans would spoil the hopes of the 2015 Buckeyes. All season long, the Buckeyes knew their season would be defined by the two teams up north, which just happened to be their final two games. While it wasn’t the most remarkable statistical year for the Buckeyes because of a QB controversy and a new offensive coordinator hire that might have been the worst of Urban Meyer’s career, it was incredible to watch them dominate teams. The only team until Michigan State who even gave them a threat was Indinaa, who they beat by seven, but Ezekiel Elliott did have three 55+ yard rushing touchdowns on the day. This Buckeye team would have five first-round NFL draft picks in the next draft, and twelve players drafted overall, setting a record for the most first-round picks and overall draft picks of any Big Ten team of all time that didn’t win the conference. Star players like Joey Bosa, Ezekiel Elliott, Eli Apple, Taylor Decker, Darron Lee, Michael Thomas, Vonn Bell, Braxton Miller, Joshua Perry, and Cardale Jones will always be remembered as those who got it done in 2014 but couldn’t repeat the following year in the national championship or the Big Ten championship.
About The Author
