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Big Ten Preseason Media Poll

27 media members were polled to determine the projected Big Ten preseason rankings, and unsurprisingly, Ohio State led the way with 21 of 27 first-place votes.

Following Ohio State is conference newcomer Oregon, Penn State, consecutive 3-time conference champion Michigan, and Iowa.

Other conference newcomers, USC (6), Washington (10), and UCLA (15) are scattered throughout. And perhaps most fun, Rutgers is 9th, which is likely the first time the Scarlet Knights have been this high up in the Big Ten preseason poll in a long while.

Dillon Gabriel Named Big Ten Preseason OPOY

The Oklahoma and UCF transfer, Dillon Gabriel, has been named the Big Ten Preseason Offensive Player of the Year.

Gabriel transferred into Oregon after Bo Nix was the 12th overall selection in the 2024 NFL Draft. Gabriel was a unanimous All-Big 12 1st Team selection with Oklahoma, where he racked up 3,660 passing yards and 30 TDs to go with 373 rushing yards and 12 more rushing TDs.

Will Johnson Named Big Ten Preseason DPOY

Michigan CB Will Johnson has been named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. This is following an All-American 1st Team and All-Big Ten 1st team selection following last season’s title run where Johnson was a leader of the defense.

Johnson is entering his true junior season, after he started 11 of 12 games in 2023 with 27 tackles, 1 TFL, and 4 INTs.

In 2022, as a true freshman, he made 5 starts in 14 appearances for the Wolverines, and he put up 27 tackles, 2 TFLs, and 3 INTs.

Michigan State Transfer RB Jalen Berger Expected to Transfer to UCLA

Running back Jalen Berger has committed out of the transfer portal to join UCLA. Berger previously was with fellow Big Ten programs Michigan State and Wisconsin, spending two seasons with each program.

Most of Berger’s production in his career came during the 2022 season, where he ran for 683 yards and caught an additional 19 passes for 128 yards for the Spartans. Unfortunately, an injury kept him off the field for over half the 2023 season, and now a coaching change has contributed to the desire for another program change from Berger.

Berger has one season of eligibility left for the Bruins.

Dan Lanning Named Big Ten Preseason Coach of the Year

New to the conference, Oregon Coach Dan Lanning was voted Preseason Coach of the Year by the media.

Lanning is in only his 3rd season at the helm for the Ducks, where he is a combined 22-5 in his first 2 seasons.

In 2023, his Oregon team made it to the Pac-12 championship, where the Ducks ultimately lost to a Washington team which made a National Championship appearance. He is also 2-0 in bowl games, with wins in the Holiday Bowl and a thorough domination in the Fiesta Bowl.

Florida State’s Mike Norvell Identifies Defenders Ready to Step Up

Florida State’s Mike Norvell shared some of the defensive players on the Seminoles roster that he believes are primed to step up in a big way.

Edge Pat Payton was someone Norvell mentioned, despite being former Rookie of the Year in the ACC and an all-conference performer, Norvell believes there is another step for Payton to take.

DL Josh Farmer is someone Norvell believes will be All-ACC, and LB DJ Lundy is someone Norvell is poised to take over as a leader of the defense.

As for the DBs, Norvell highlighted Fentrell Cypress and Azareye’h Thomas as guys who have All-American caliber upside.

Norvell also pointed out the depth of the defense, as he pointed out four newcomers he thinks could make an impact: Marvin Jones Jr., Sione Lolohea, Cam Riley, and Earl Little.

ACC Commissioner: We Will Fight to Protect the ACC

ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips took some time at ACC Media Days to address the future of the ACC and the lawsuits it has with both Clemson and Florida State.

He made his stance clear: every member of the conference willingly signed the Grant of Rights, and the collective membership of the conference deserves better than this, to defend itself against lawsuits like this.

Phillips said he believes that it’s important for him to lead the group of universities in the correct direction by focusing on the overall success of the conference, and compartmentalizing the lawsuit in a way that it does not derail the conference.

Phillips said, “[t]his is a really important time for the conference and either you believe in what’s been signed or you don’t. We are going to do everything we can to protect and to fight for the league… This conference is bigger than any one school or schools.”

SMU’s Coach Rhett Lashlee: Plans for Both QBs

Newcomer to the ACC, SMU, is coming off of an American Athletic Conference Championship and is participating in its first ACC Media Days.

Head Coach Rhett Lashlee and the SMU program brought along not one, but two QBs for Media Days – Preston Stone and Kevin Jennings – which is uncommon, to say the least.

Stone started throughout the regular season last season before breaking his fibula later on in last season’s rout of Navy. Jennings, a redshirt freshman then, made his first start in the AAC Championship, winning a true road game against a ranked Tulane team in fairly convincing fashion.

Lashlee is not sure how, yet, but he expects both Stone and Jennings to play a role – they were both necessary to win a conference championship, and now they’ll both be necessary in some way to help the Mustangs adjust to its first power conference season of football in almost 30 years.

ACC Commissioner: Partnership with ESPN Not Going Away

ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips was asked about the ACC’s relationship with ESPN, and if that was in jeopardy in some way, but Phillips remains optimistic for the conference’s relationship with the Worldwide Leader in Sports.

He described the conference and ESPN as “50/50 partners” on trying to grow the product and increase revenues. Ultimately, Phillips understands the the product on the field will be the strongest indicator with television exposure and how much ESPN is able to help the conference financially: “[w]hen you play well, you get rewarded,” he said.

Netflix Announces “Sign Stealer” Documentary

Netflix has announced that they are planning on releasing a documentary surrounding Michigan’s sign stealing scandal, with Michigan’s Connor Stalions telling his side of the story.

The last time Stalions made any public comments were when he resigned, but Netflix will be releasing a documentary including his perspective on August 27th, 3 days after Week 0 starts off the 2024 season.

Other Commitments/Decommitments

3-Star ATH Nigel Pringle commits to Arkansas

3-Star WR Terrence Davis commits to North Texas

Unranked RB Julyon Jordan commits to South Alabama