Post-spring power rankings in the Big Ten indicate a clear separation between the top three and the rest of the conference.
1. Ohio State
Though they lost 14 players to the NFL, the Buckeyes return the two of the best players in the country in wide receiver Jeremiah Smith and safety Caleb Downs.
Lincoln Kienholz had a better spring and has pulled ahead of 5-star redshirt freshman Julian Sayin in the quarterback competition, though a starter won't be decided until August camp.
The Buckeyes lost just four players in the spring transfer portal, all walk-ons:
running back TC Caffey, wide receiver Reis Stocksdale, punter Anthony Venneri and long snapper Morrow Evans. Meanwhile they added a potential starter in Beau Atkinson (DE, North Carolina) and a developmental offensive lineman, Justin Terry of West Virginia.
Atkinson piled up 7.5 sacks for the Tarheels last season to go along with 35 tackles. He's 6-6, 266. Terry is a massive offensive tackle, 6-5, 338 who redshirted last season as a true freshman.
As defending national champions who recruit in the top five nearly every season, the Buckeyes didn't need to add much in the spring. They'll be formidable again, preseason No. 1 in most polls.
2. Penn State
James Franklin and the Nittany Lions are all-in for 2025, trying to follow a formula used by Michigan and tOSU in their successful national championship runs over the last two seasons.
Key players are back. Quarterback Drew Allar and twin 1000-yard running backs Kaytron Allen and NIcholas Singleton passed up the NFL draft to run it back. Linebacker Dominic DeLuca joined them.
Franklin added wide receiver help in the portal to bolster the offense after losing versatile tight end Tyler Warren to the NFL, a first-round pick of the Indianapolis Colts, 14th overall.
PSU plucked Kyron Hudson from USC, 1,000-yard receiver Devonte Ross of the Troy Trojans and Syracuse standout Trebor Pena, who caught 84 passes for 941 yards and nine touchdowns last season, best in the ACC.
Their biggest loss in Spring NCAA free agency was linebacker Ta'Mere Robinson, a 6-3, 230 outside linebacker from Pittsburgh who was a Top 200 recruit in 2023. He moved on to USC.
3. Oregon
Oregon lost three players in the spring transfer portal, a backup punter, a third-team cornerback, and a walk-on slot receiver.
They picked up one, Boise State punter James Ferguson-Reynolds, All-Mountain West and a Ray Guy semi-finalist in 2023.
Ferguson-Reynolds has a booming leg, with a kick as powerful as a kangaroo defending all three of her vaginas. He averaged 49.7 yards a punt in 2023, 43.5 last season. All of Oregon's punters were under 40 in the spring game.
Rodrick Pleasant is the biggest loss for the Ducks, a promising defensive back who broke the California state 100 meters record as a prep with a time of 10.14, the fastest player on the team and the fastest since Samie Parker and Pat Johnson.
He played seven games in his true freshman year in 2023, posting an 88.0 coverage grade from Pro Football Focus. Though only 5-9, 180, he possesses real talent and a willingness to hit along with his speed.
He's finishing his track season at UO before transferring to UCLA for 2025 football.
Walk-on wide receiver/running back Preston Alford elected to seek a new opportunity after two seasons in Eugene. The 5-10, 200-pound running back from Dripping Springs, Texas has picked up offers from Stephen F. Austin and Abilene Christian.
Backup punter Luke Dunne fled the Webfoots to punt for the Washington Huskies. He has three years to play and averaged 43 yards a kick for the Ducks in a part-time role last year.
Improving their situation at punter was a priority for Dan Lanning and the Ducks after inconsistency last season and a weak performance in the spring game. The ball flew like they had been deflated for Tom Brady.
The Ducks stood pat in other areas, notably at linebacker. This is a talented roster that required minimal refinements, though it'd be beneficial to identify a third tight end in fall camp among freshman Vander Ploog, North Medford redshirt freshman A.J. Pugliano and Roger Saleapaga, the four-star sophomore from Orem, Utah who played in 11 games last year but is rehabbing from a knee injury.
The best and the rest
Carter Bahns of 247Sports ranked the rest of the conference this way going into the summer, keeping in mind the portal is still open for players who entered but have not yet chosen a school.
No. 4 Illinois The Illini return 76% of last year's production this season, according to ESPN's Bill Connelly and have a favorable schedule. Luke Altmyer returns at quarterback, a two-year starter who threw for 2,717 yards and 22 touchdowns last season.
No. 5 Michigan The Bryce Underwood era begins, a five-star freshman quarterback from Beileville, Michigan. Sherrone Moore and his staff have brought in two big targets for him in freshman Jamar Browder and veteran Indiana transfer Donovan McCulley.
Linebackers Ernest Hausmann and Jaishawn Barham lead what should be a stout defense. The Wolverines have a new offensive coordinator in Chip Lindsey from North Carolina.
No. 6 Indiana Google them. Curt Cignetti brought in Cal's Fernando Mendoza to take over for Kurtis Rourke. They're bringing in a mammoth recruiting class of 42 players including 19 transfers. The schedule is harder with road games at Iowa, Oregon and Penn State.
No. 7 Nebraska Tom Fornelli of CBS Sports pegs the Huskers as a possible breakout team in the Big Ten this season. They're at Penn State but the rest of the schedule is manageable, facing neither OSU or the Ducks.
Dylan Raiola enters his second year as a starter after throwing for 2,819 yards and 13 touchdowns last season. Matt Rhule got him help by acquiring Rocco Spindler (offensive lineman from Notre Dame), Elijah Pritchett (offensive tackle from Alabama), and Dasan McCullough (edge rusher from Oklahoma) in the portal.
No. 8 USC The Trojans have been busy after a second mediocre season under Lincoln Riley, 7-6 last year after a win over Texas A&M in the Las Vegas Bowl.
Riley brought in 15 transfers for 2025 including Notre Dame safety Kenny Urlacher, Michigan State cornerback DJ Harvey and Kentucky defensive tackle Keeshawn Silver.
No. 9 Iowa The Illini place their trust in South Dakota State dual-threat quarterback Mark Gronowski and return five starters on defense.
No. 10 Minnesota Like their namesake, the Gophers are pesky. They feature one of the best running backs in the country in Darius Taylor, but projected starter at quarterback Drake Lindsey has thrown just five career passes.
P.J. Fleck have been active in the portal with 38 transfers coming and going.
No. 11 Washington Falling to 6-7 in 2024 and just barely making a bowl, the Huskies hope to rebound this fall with transfer acquisitions like cornerback Tacario Davis of Arizona and Penn State wide receiver Omari Evans. A whopping 36 players have left the program as Jedd Fisch continues to overhaul the roster.
No. 12 Michigan State In year two Jonathan Smith has been active in the portal adding 15-20 players, hoping to improve on last year's 5-7 season. They miss Ohio State and Oregon this year and have Penn State at home.
No. 13 Rutgers The Scarlet Knights dipped into the transfer portal for 15 players and suffered 26 departures. They picked up two defensive ends and three defensive tackles, so there's a definite move to shore up the defense.
Greg Schiano returns four starters on the offensive line and Athan Kaliakmanis returns at quarterback after throwing for 2,696 yards last season with 18 touchdowns. He boasts three capable receiver targets in KJ Duff, Ian Strong and North Texas transfer DT Sheffield.
No. 14 Wisconsin The Badgers face a brutal schedule in 2025 with eight ranked opponents including road games at Alabama, Oregon and Michigan, an October 18 home game against Ohio State.
In the portal Luke Fickell added
quarterback Billy Edwards Jr., and Ohio State wide receiver Jayden Ballard to the offense, and he brought in Kansas offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes to run the unit.
There are 18 newcomers on defense, including edge rusher Tyreese Fearbry and linebacker Antarron Turner, safety Matt Jung from Baylor University.
No. 15 UCLA DeShaun Foster's second season includes road games at Ohio State and USC, a home date with PSU.
He's brought in Pittsburgh tight end Jake Renda, Michigan State edge rusher Anthony Jones, Oregon cornerback Rodrick Pleasant and most famously, Tennesee quarterback Nico Iamaleava to help turn around last year's 5-7 season.
No. 16 Maryland The Terps snap into 2025 without quarterback Billy Edwards but they don't play Oregon, Ohio State, Penn State, and USC in 2025. They were 4-8 last year, missing a bowl for the first time since 2020.
A defensive tackle, 6-5, 320 Joel Starlings of North Carolina is their biggest transfer addition, literally and figuratively. Sadly, the flow out was far greater than the flow in overall, though head coach Mike Locksley did pick up quarterback Justyn Martin from UCLA, the projected starter.
No. 17 Northwestern The Mildcats won 36 games from 2015 to 2018 and went 7-2 in 2020, and went 8-5 in 2023, so there's a history of overachieving that's impressive given their academic standards and budget constraints.
They face even bigger challenges in the NIL/portal era, an annual siphoning off of their most promising athletes. Theran Johnson went to the Ducks. Linebacker Kenny Soares bolted for North Carolina State.
The most exciting transfer in is SMU quarterback Preston Stone, who started for SMU in 2023 and took them to a bowl game, throwing for 3,197 yards and 28 touchdowns.
No. 18 Purdue Oregon snatched up Dillon Thieneman from the Boilermakers, who also lost tight end Max Klare to Ohio State. New head coach Barry Odom mined the portal for 29 transfers, including a pair of receivers from Georgia, Nitro Tuggle and Michael Jackson III, who hopefully can prove to be explosive thrillers.