Where every Big Ten team lands in ESPN’s preseason Football Power Index rankings
Spring ball is wrapping up and it’s officially time to start looking ahead to the 2022 season this fall. That means we have preseason rankings to start reviewing, with Michigan State expected to once again be one of the top teams in the country.
ESPN released its Football Power Index (FPI) rankings this past week, which is a formula to predict how many games each team will win. For those unaware, the Football Power Index officially “measures a team’s true strength on net points scale; expected point margin vs. average opponent on a neutral field.”
With the rankings released for every FBS team, I took a look at where all the Big Ten teams came in. Here’s a breakdown of each Big Ten team from the lowest-ranked team to the highest-ranked team:
Rutgers
Vincent Carchietta/USA TODAY Sports
FPI ranking: 83
Projected record: 4-8
Northwestern
William Howard/USA TODAY Sports
FPI ranking: 82
Projected record: 4-8
Illinois
Mike DiNovo/USA TODAY Sports
FPI ranking: 73
Projected record: 5-7
Indiana
Mike Carter/USA TODAY Sports
FPI ranking: 66
Projected record: 4-8
Purdue
Mike Carter/USA TODAY Sports
FPI ranking: 44
Projected record: 7-5
Maryland
Jesse Johnson/USA TODAY Sports
FPI ranking: 43
Projected record: 6-6
Minnesota
Jeffrey Becker/USA TODAY Sports
FPI ranking: 40
Projected record: 8-4
Iowa
Jeffrey Becker/USA TODAY Sports
FPI ranking: 38
Projected record: 7-5
Nebraska
Jeff Hanisch/USA TODAY Sports
FPI ranking: 35
Projected record: 8-4
Wisconsin
Jeff Hanisch/USA TODAY Sports
FPI ranking: 21
Projected record: 8-4
Michigan State
Mike Carter/USA TODAY Sports
FPI ranking: 16
Projected record: 8-4
Penn State
Matthew O’Haren/USA TODAY Sports
FPI ranking: 12
Projected record: 8-4
Michigan
Jasen Vinlove/USA TODAY Sports
FPI ranking: 7
Projected record: 10-2
Ohio State
Greg Bartram/USA TODAY Sports
FPI ranking: 2
Projected record: 12-0
Complete Rankings
Nick King/Lansing State Journal
List of every Big Ten team with projected record:
No. 2 – Ohio State (12-0)
No. 7 – Michigan (10-2)
No. 12 – Penn State (8-4)
No. 16 – Michigan State (8-4)
No. 21 – Wisconsin (8-4)
No. 35 – Nebraska (8-4)
No. 38 – Iowa (7-5)
No. 40 – Minnesota (8-4)
No. 43 – Maryland (6-6)
No. 44 – Purdue (7-5)
No. 66 – Indiana (4-8)
No. 73 – Illinois (5-7)
No. 82 – Northwestern (4-8)
No. 83 – Rutgers (4-8)
Click here to see complete ESPN FPI rankings
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