The Big Ten has put a team in the College Football Playoff in each of the first two installments of the new postseason, with Ohio State claiming it all in 2014 and Michigan State falling short in the semifinal a year later.
Both the Buckeyes and the Spartans lost loads of talent after the 2015-16 season but will try to piece a playoff run together. But it's the chief rival for each team—Michigan—that has the pieces in place to contend, with nine starters returning on offense and six on defense.
Those three teams will battle for Big Ten East Division supremacy, while Wisconsin, Nebraska and Northwestern will try to unseat reigning West Division champion Iowa.