Ranking All 14 Big Ten Homecoming Games: Who's Brave And Who's Scared?
Homecoming games.
They're fun, they're packed with rowdy students of the past, present and sometimes even future. They're a great time for all of the fans.
Most importantly, though, they're football games that you better win as the home team. Or else.
It's no secret that every Power Five team tries to schedule a homecoming game they will be favored to win. No one wants to throw a big party to lose to Ohio State 56-7. So most homecoming games feature a non-conference opponent who was paid to come lose in the host's stadium, or a conference cellar dweller the home team easily defeat.
With the opening of the 2023 college football season days away, I ranked every Big Ten team's homecoming game for this season based on how brave they were in their choice. For clarity purposes, No. 14 on the list is the most cowardly choice for a homecoming game, while the No. 1 spot was reserved for the conference's bravest team.
14. Northwestern
Homecoming: Oct. 7 vs Howard
No disrespect to the Howard Bison, who I'm sure have a fine football team.
However, Northwestern is the only Big Ten team to schedule an FCS opponent as its homecoming opponent for 2023. It has to be ranked as the most cowardly choice in the conference on principle.
Yet it might be the most rational choice. The Wildcats were beaten by an FCS team last season and are most likely going to be the worst team in the conference in 2023. Even Howard is not a guaranteed victory.
No one wants to lose on homecoming, and this might be the only way Northwestern can avoid that.
13. Penn State
Homecoming: Oct. 14 vs UMass
UMass isn't an FCS team, though many an FCS team have beaten the Minutemen in the past few seasons.
Don Brown's team has gone 1-11 in each of its last two seasons and is considered perhaps the very worst team in all of FBS by metrics and media alike. UMass has only beaten one FBS opponent since 2020.
This is an unbelievably easy win for coach James Franklin and Penn State. One could argue it's more cowardly than Northwestern's, because Penn State should be able to beat better teams than UMass.
12. Minnesota
Homecoming: Sept. 30 vs Louisiana
Minnesota is the third and final Big Ten team to schedule a non-conference game. Louisiana, though, is a credible opponent.
The Ragin' Cajuns made a bowl in 2022, and two years ago under now Florida coach Billy Napier, Louisiana finished 13-1 and ranked No. 16 in the country. Minnesota and coach P.J. Fleck should win this game, but it's possible they don't. Heck, they lost to Bowling Green last year.
Louisiana might even be a tougher opponent than some of the Big Ten opponents further down on this list. But on principle, as a home game against a Group of Five team, Minnesota's homecoming gets the 12th spot.
11. Michigan
Homecoming: Sept. 23 vs Rutgers
10. Wisconsin
Homecoming: Oct. 7 vs Rutgers
9. Indiana
Homecoming: Oct. 21 vs Rutgers
We've now reached the portion of the list I've dubbed, "The Rutgers Triangle."
No Big Ten team is scheduled to play in more homecoming games in 2023 than coach Greg Schiano's Scarlet Knights. Reading between the lines, it's the rest of the conference telling Rutgers they think of them as the Washington Generals to their Harlem Globetrotters.
Yes, Rutgers beat Indiana in each of the past two seasons and frustrated Michigan in prior years. But by and large, Rutgers is the conference cellar dweller that teams like to bank a win against.
As the Big Ten favorite, Michigan ranks the most cowardly out of this trio. Sure, Jim Harbaugh and Co. didn't have many options, as their other midseason conference home games are against Indiana and Purdue. But it still feels like there's a little bravery lacking in the No. 2 team in the country not facing someone stronger.
The same logic applies to Indiana being ranked as the slightly braver team than Wisconsin. The Hoosiers very well could lose to Rutgers on Oct. 21, while Wisconsin is the favorite in the Big Ten West and has an Oct. 28 home game against Ohio State.
If Luke Fickell and the Badgers would have made their Halloween weekend game against the Buckeyes their homecoming, they would automatically be the bravest team in the Big Ten. But alas.
8. Ohio State
Homecoming: Oct. 7 vs Maryland
7. Rutgers
Homecoming: Oct. 14 vs Michigan State
6. Michigan State
Homecoming: Sept. 23 vs Maryland
Given that all the teams hosting Rutgers for their homecomings are ranked next to each other, it's fair to ask why Ohio State and Michigan State are separated by two spots.
Two reasons:
a) Maryland is just better than Michigan State, the same way Ohio State is just better than Maryland. Being an underdog in your homecoming indicates at least some level of bravery.
b) Rutgers is hosting Wagner on Sept. 30 just two weeks before its scheduled homecoming game vs Michigan State. The Scarlet Knights could have taken the easy way out like Northwestern and just given themselves the free win over the FCS team. Instead, they're at least willing to put the homecoming victory on the line against another bad Big Ten East team. Kudos to you Rutgers, kudos to you Michigan State.
5. Iowa
Homecoming: Oct. 7 vs Purdue
4. Nebraska
Homecoming: Oct. 28 vs Purdue
Purdue is the reigning Big Ten West champion, but no one expects the Boilermakers to be as good as they were the past two seasons. They lost coach Jeff Brohm to Louisville and long-time starting quarterback Aidan O'Connell. It's probably going to be a rebuilding year in West Lafayette for new coach Ryan Walters.
So why do Iowa and Nebraska both crack the top five in bravery for picking Purdue as their homecoming games?
Because there is nothing Purdue loves to do more than randomly upset a good team. Everyone remembers their stupid record of having upset the No. 2 ranked team in the country nine different times while themselves being unranked. Inviting Purdue into your stadium for a game you really don't want to lose is like standing atop your roof and asking to be struck down by lightning.
Nebraska gets the slight edge over Iowa in bravery for its game being on Halloween weekend, adding to the scare factor already present with Purdue.
3. Maryland
Homecoming: Oct. 14 vs Illinois
2. Purdue
Homecoming: Sept. 30 vs Illinois
It's really hard to tell just how good Illinois will be in 2023. They lost the No. 5 overall pick in the NFL Draft in Devon Witherspoon, along with their starting quarterback. However, a lot of good talent returns, highlighted by Jer'Zhan Newton, and coach Bret Bielema seems to have things rolling out in Champaign.
Maryland and Illinois have only played twice since the Terrapins joined the conference in 2014, with Maryland winning both matchups. Still, for the team that's the consensus pick for fourth in the division behind the three giants of the East, this is a pretty bold homecoming choice from Maryland. The matchup in College Park against Illinois appears to be the fourth toughest game on its 2023 schedule. Should Maryland win, it could mean an unprecedented 9-3 season for the Terrapins in the Big Ten.
The Boilermakers already start the year with four reasonably difficult games prior to playing Illinois, and will likely be home underdogs in the game. Purdue's other three midseason home games are against Wisconsin, Ohio State and Minnesota, meaning any choice for a homecoming game likely would have been "bold."
But still, the defending Big Ten runner-up gets respect for the tough homecoming day matchup. Speaking of Wisconsin ...
1. Illinois
Homecoming: Oct. 21 vs Wisconsin
Without a doubt, coach Bret Bielema's Illinois football team has the bravest homecoming game in 2023. Wisconsin has returned to being the West favorite after hiring away coach Luke Fickell from Cincinnati and bringing in transfer quarterback Tanner Mordecai.
Once again, there's a good chance Illinois is an underdog in its homecoming game and welcoming a ranked Badger team into its backyard.
But the real icing on the cake is the intertwined history at play, with Bielema being a former coach at Wisconsin, and one of the most successful in its history.
Last season, the Illinois coach asserted dominance over the school he once left for Arkansas, beating Wisconsin so badly that the Badgers fired coach Paul Chryst almost immediately after the loss.
This was already going to be a big game between two teams expected to contend for the final West division title in Big Ten history. All the bad blood between the coaching staffs and teams just make it that much more exciting, and an incredibly brave homecoming choice from the Illinois Fighting Illini.
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