2024 PREVIEW: Five Most Difficult B1G Football Schedules

football season is never too far away and I was looking at the 2024 fall football schedule for the Big 10 because that's what I do in my opinion Wisconsin Michigan and three of the four pack 12 teams coming over have brutal schedules I'll tell you which ones they are and why lockdown Big 10 starts right now you are locked on big 10 your daily podcast on the Big 10 conference part of the locked on podcast Network your team every [Music] day welcome to lockdown Big 10 I'm Craig shiman thank you for making us your first listen each and every day we're free and available wherever you get your podcast and on YouTube it's part of the lock on podcast Network your team every day today's episode is brought to you by game time download the game time app create an account and use the code locked on for $20 off your first purchase so I'm going to tell you what I think the five toughest schedules are the schools with the five toughest records in the Big 10 this season are for football again looking ahead to football already um and some coaching news that does not involve Jim Harbaugh how about that that's new and our picks going into the weekend with college basketball be sure to subscribe and follow lockdown Big 10 for free wherever you get get your podcast that way you get the latest episode of this podcast as soon as it becomes available each and every day we are in the middle of the basketball season and Michigan football hasn't finished cleaning the confetti out of its shorts yet and they don't even know who their head coach is going to be next season to be honest with you and spring football just a few weeks away but speaking of next season I was looking into the Big 10 conferences football schedules just so just for fun just kicking it around five schools stood out to me as extremely difficult uh schedules that they had and I'm going to share them with you um first of all I will tell you I think Wisconsin may have the teams that are currently in the Big Town Wisconsin may have the toughest schedule Michigan's is up there too and I know a lot of you say well Michigan schedule was well last year I see your argument it was this upcoming year it's going to be difficult uh USC the newcomer might have the difficult most difficult schedule out of all of them and UCLA is no picnic either I want to look at all those and then yes obviously I will have to have a comment about Ohio State since I'm talking about Michigan we'll get to all that right here uh let me start you off with Wisconsin okay Luke fickle he had mixed results his first year at the Helm of the Badgers but overall I thought it was a successful season now I think fickle was a victim of his own hype a little bit came into Camp Randall with a great reput ation he had Ohio State ties which impressed everybody and he woned Cincinnati which impressed everybody and if he wanted Cincinnati he can win at Camp Randall at at Wisconsin right well the problem is he and offensive coordinator Phil Longo came in and they promised an exciting Air Attack Just G to start flinging the ball all over the place well that'd be a big change anywhere from uh the grounded pound running game that the Badgers and their fans are used to and have been used to for a long time and Frank that roster was still built for the one he inherited that would require a big change in personnel and even with the transfer portal and whatnot that's a lot to do in your first year unless you're Dion and just gonna rip the Band-Aid off of everybody and start over but um you know some people do it some don't uh that quickly but um look they have uh they got a lot going on there at Wisconsin with a big running game a big offensive lineman and they brought in Tanner morot who had some interesting passing stats elsewhere but for whatever reason he never got that going as quarterback of the Wisconsin Badgers he had his strengths at QB he was a tough kid but he was not an aired out quarterback by any stretch so I think they kind of tapped the breaks on that they adjusted as the season went on and um they get a new quarterback this upcoming year 2024 they've got the Miami Hurricanes transfer Tyler van djk coming to Madison to play quar back now historically quarterbacks from Miami they get everybody real excited they used to be known as quarterback you they haven't been that in a while and Van Dyke is a roller coaster ride on the football field up and down up and down I've seen him play here down in Florida down south Florida but change is never easy but an easy schedule can help a transition period for anybody unfortunately for the Badgers they might have one of the toughest top three schedules in the Big 10 this fall so they're not going to be able to hide in the Western Division anymore uh the Lesser Division if you will because we're getting rid of Divisions so and that's funny because the teams from the West actually have a pretty pretty tough schedule I think it's a problem for some of them um look Wisconsin they face both Oregon at home they got Southern Cal on the road those are two tough games right there plus plus I don't know if you're aware they have a game against Alabama this year that's in week three now uh we can have ago I would have told you wow that's tough but now a new coaching change in Alabama 20 to 25 kids have left in the transfer portal at Alabama recruits are not coming that said they were it's kind of a mess down there in Tuscaloosa all of a sudden so kayin debor has got his hands uh full trying to keep it together over there so maybe just maybe Wisconsin will catch a break with this they still have plenty of talent at Alabama don't get me wrong so so look we're just the one season in the books for Luke fickle at Madison but um you got those three games I just told about Oregon Southern Cal Alabama throwing some home games against Penn State and a road trip at toughest Nails Iowa that's always tough that's a beat your brains in type game suddenly you got a pretty tough schedule if you're the Wisconsin Badgers and you're trying to change things up and air it out and and get things going offensive so I think that's a pretty tough schedule Southern C though may have the toughest again get used to me talking about southern cal in terms being a big 10 team they're coming um Lincoln Riley gonna have to go into the season without his former Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams they have dates against LSU that's in Las Vegas by the way they host Michigan they host Wisconsin Penn State and they play at Washington UCLA and notor Dame that's a big schedule that's a big schedule and as far as Chip Kelly and UCLA goes you know they got a early season luau against Hawaii and they play Indiana but um that gets tough they got dates against LSU Penn State at Penn State and at Washington and they host Southern Cal and two other very pesky teams at Fresno State and Iowa look Chip Kelly is under pressure I don't I can use the term Hot Seat maybe it is he's under pressure to win I think UCLA you know there were some Rumblings there on and off the past couple years about coaching change but they they've kept Chip Kelly he is going to guide them into the next era into the Big 10 for at least one season but he does have some pressure now the good news is for UCLA no Michigan and no Ohio State on that schedule then there's Jed fish gonna make his debut at Washington taking over a team that made it to a national championship game it's gonna be tough because he takes over that that team loses a ton of talent they're going to the NFL he's going to have to rebuild start things over with this I don't know what isong roster is going to look like he does have a rematch against Michigan on October 5th that's at Washington at least it'll be a home game for him but Washington also has home dates against USC Penn State and UCLA a lot of great games on this schedule uh at Oregon as well and they have the uh annual rivalry with their former conference mate Washington state which is still ticked about being the last man standing in the Pack 12 they're going to want to take it out on Washington that's a rivalry game anyway they've already got that one circled on their calendar speaking of Michigan just a moment ago and whoever their head coach is their non-conference schedule a lot tougher than last year remember this past season if you wanted to knock Michigan I mean they went 15 and0 won a national championship and they pounded everybody okay it was a complete team don't take anything away from them you could argue that their first three non-conference games were not that tough and they the first half of their schedule in the Big 10 was pretty light and the teams got a little more difficult as it went on with the Penn States and the marylands and of course Ohio State to close it out they beat everybody they beat Iowa in the championship they beat Alabama they beat Washington look they got a they've got a lot of quality wins on that schedule but the preseason schedule for Michigan is a lot tougher this particular year like I mentioned Fresno State earlier always good Fresno State always a tough team um but Texas Texas comes to the big house this year that's the big one that's the big game the big one at the Big House Michigan also hosts Southern Cal and Oregon they've got that Washington rematch I just told you about and of course they close it out at Ohio State this year so pretty tough schedule for Michigan um as far as Michigan when I talk about them I gotta talk about Ohio State in case you're wondering about them uh Buckey fan this is not a knock don't don't take it on like that on their schedule I think Ohio State schedule in 2024 uh is an image a mere image of what Michigan just had this past year they've got three fairly easy non-conference games and then a slow roll into the more difficult teams later in their schedule it it really is very similar to the schedule Michigan just played and I think that's to Ohio State's favor this year because I just told you about these other five schools and the brutal schedules they have Ohio State look they the pre-conference is akan Western Michigan and Marshall they have games at Oregon that'll be tough and at Penn State and then they host Michigan at home I think that's the toughest part of their schedule this is a very um navigable schedule for Ohio State to slip in there and make a run at a big 10 Championship not a knock just an observation so what do you guys think love to hear from you as always don't forget you can follow us on Twitter or X at talk big1 also on our website talkig 101.com and on YouTube as well love to hear from me on all this maybe uh maybe I didn't talk about your team and its schedule maybe you think your team schedule is tough enough to be on this top five list love to hear from you on all of that all right we also have some coaching news going on in the Big 10 uh sort of uh and we we'll get it doesn't involve Jim Harbaugh okay something different we're gonna check in um with a couple of uh coaches and and a strength coach of Michigan that has disappeared just disappeared I mean he's there but he's disappeared I'll have all the details on that coming up in a minute right here on lock down Big 10 I want to tell you about FanDuel the NFL postseason is rolling right got four more games this weekend I always tell you take the unders defense cold weather all that sort of stuff uh I but one game that's indoors I really like the Lions minus 6 and a half over the Buccaneers just a tip from me to you if you want some action go for it they beat the they were underman in Tampa and beat the Bucks by two touchdowns this year they're full strike now ready to go at home it's gonna be insane easy I think I think it's not a science it's an educated guess anyway um you could go check out FanDuel America's number one sports book right now new customers get 150 in bonus bets guaranteed when you place a $5 bet it's 150 bucks of bonus bets win or lose the app is easy to use many different ways to bet like their same game parlays you can find bets in the new explore tab make a parlay in the parlay Hub very organized best way to find the popular parlays there and more so visit fanduel.com lockon and make your first bet a layup FanDuel official partner of the NFL want to thank everybody for making lockdown big 10 your first listen each and every day especially you every dayers out there they just keep coming back every day it helps us tremendously thank you meanwhile be sure to subscribe if you haven't uh share and follow and like lockdown Big 10 no matter where you get it lockdown big 10 your team every day talking about the Wisconsin Badger schedule uh just a minute ago and of course their former coach was Paul Chris remember him of course they got rid of him and they bring in Luke fickle The Following Season Paul Chris has been out there if you've lost track with them he's been a offensive uh he's been an analyst for Texas and Steve sarkeesian um out there this past season anyway he was a finalist for the Iowa hawkey offensive coordinator job to replace Brian ference however after weighing his options he has decided to return to the Texas Longhorns uh in the same position offensive vandalist and Special Assistant to coach sarkeesian now I actually think this is a smart move um Texas is loaded and they're gonna have a chance at a national championship they're almost certain to make the playoffs meanwhile Iowa may still win a lot of games but I wouldn't count on you know whoever the offensive coordin coordinator is there at Iowa to turn a lot of heads with their offense and explosive offense um and so if Paul Chris is trying to get a head coaching job at some point in the future and get himself noticed would he be better off being an offensive coordinator to Iowa where people just you know they love to pile on if they don't score more than 15 points and then that becomes a narrative nationally um you stay at Texas and you're on the train that's rolling to a national championship perhaps you're gonna get a lot of attention and maybe he could get a lot of lot of choices a lot of people interviewing him for jobs maybe maybe that's the the theory there anyway if that's the goal that's what he's doing he's 58 years old still relatively young he's got probably another head coaching job stop in him somewhere you know he's the head coach of the Badgers the Midway point of 2022 they got rid of him after a two and three start there so he went he found a fresh start at Texas and he's gonna stay there all right um do you remember a story that we talked about uh was a couple weeks ago maybe a little more than that it's back in December when Michigan basketball coach Jan Howard you know he got in that dispute with John Sanderson the team strength and conditioning coach for the past 15 years goes back to the beine days there so uh Johan Howard inherited him well the two rep poorly got into a heated dispute right before that road trip to Iowa in December sanderson's regarded as one of the the best uh best in the business strength coaches for basketball in the business everybody respects this guy I mean over the years he's been known to take kind of mediocre unimpressive Rive recruits and get them all chiseled up and their bodies all perfect and boom they got NBA careers because of him um you know these strength and conditioning coaches both on football and basketball they have more access to the kids than the coaches do and they you get a good one you keep them and the best ones the best football ones like make like $800,000 a year it's it's an important position and it's U it's an unsung position as well nevertheless Sanderson had a disagreement with Jawan Howard's son Jace Howard before practice one day that turned into an argument with Sanderson and Jan Howard and according to multiple reports the two had to be separated now keep in mind this is three months after Jawan Howard just had open heart surgery I mean he was still easing his way back into the you know being full-time head coach again and um also keep in mind Howard's been known never temper right I mean a lot of coach Coes do but he got into that scuffle a couple years ago one of the opponent's assisted coaches in the handshake line after a game so he's kind of I think on a short rope regarding his temper over there there were some there were some rumors that maybe jwan Howard had stepped in it and he might be gone now that never happened so we're still trying to pece me what happened with this story but Sanderson did not accompany the Wolverines with that road trip as he normally would have done to Iowa I think it was the 10th of December somewhere around there and Sanderson hasn't been seen since um he's the university says Sanderson is still an employee of the athletic department uh his situation will be resolved soon they say nobody's saying anything and so they're not saying what capacity he's in has he been moved over to the volleyball team nobody knows nobody knows very bizarre story over there at Michigan so we thought You' give you the latest update on that because that's out and about also I want to update you on the the fact that the locked on family you we got all these channels locked on all these teams and leagues lock on Big 10 well lockon has also launched the first ever National Sports 247 streaming Channel on YouTube in addition to this one that you're watching you're listening to right now lockdown sports today relatively new channel out there 247 top sports stories of the day local Experts of lockd on plus our national shows covering every single League you can go to lock on sports today on YouTube and subscribe there after you subscribe here subscribe there this show will air on that channel periodically so um and they're all on a rotation like every half hour so we're there it's part of the family go check it out once you're done with us here on locked on Big 10 all right going into the weekend it is time for our picks you know football season it was pig skin picks now we're doing the Basketball picks so that's always fun we got that I'll let you know what I think about the schedule the Friday through Sunday games all right here as we continue in one minute on locked on Big 10 I don't know if you've been to a game lately or an event a comedy show a concert you know if you go to game time and get their app you get all those tickets to everything right there on your phone you don't have to worry about buying tickets to an event ever again game time is the fast and easy way to buy tickets for sports music comedy concerts theater whatever they got it all at game time so check it out you can browse through the game time app and uh find all the events that you're interested in last minute tickets Flash Deals Zone deals uh easy to find and buy tickets for every kind of event in your area they show you the view of your 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off with Indiana at number 11 Wisconsin now Indiana is struggling got blown out by Purdue at home 12 and six frankly the hooers need some sort of Marquee win they don't have one yet and it's getting to be serious you know we're getting I mean March is still a month and a half away but or a little less but still let's go um a win on the road against a ranked team like Wisconsin would Bode very well for the hooers unfortunately they're not playing very well right now Wisconsin just had their close loss at Penn State I watched that game the other night that was the night it was a a snow out a snow night uh school day or snow day at school the kids didn't go to class but they went to that game Wisconsin 13 to4 this game is at 8:30 Friday night on FS1 if you want to check that out um I'm going to I'm I'm G take I'm gonna take Wisconsin I'm GNA take Wisconsin uh I think they're playing a lot better and it's at home I think the Badgers win this game Saturday got Penn State nine- n Ohio State 12 and five that is 12 o'clock on the Big 10 Network I just mentioned Penn State got that nice win against Wisconsin um I I I like the Buckey in this one take the Buckeyes on that game uh being at home should be able to shoot it pretty well when they're at home meanwhile uh number two Purdue 16 two at Iowa 11 and six Zack Edy he's going for his third straight 30o performance he's Unstoppable he's just 74 and just he's huge can't he can sh you know he actually complained after the Indiana game uh that he didn't play that well I thought he played awesome I really did and Fran mcaffrey at Iowa just recently passed Dr Tom Davis as the winning his coach at Iowa and this game is at 2 o'clock on FS1 on Saturday got another Saturday game with Northwestern at Nebraska Northwestern is 13 and4 you know I love boo buoy fun player to watch they're at Nebraska 13-5 2:15 eastern time on the Big 10 Network I have told anybody that'll listen this Nebraska team should be r to the top 25 they will be eventually some they'll come around in my way of thinking eventually this is a good basketball team they they play with they're fundamental they got a lot of good players they got some Shooters but here's the deal at home wow they're they're really good at home they're they're a big 10 best 11 and one at home you know they beat they beat Purdue when they were number one in the country at home just two weeks ago they're phenomenal so give me Nebraska all day long although with boooo here on the other side this is going to be an entertaining game you want to catch this Northwestern at Nebraska 2:15 eastern time on the Big 10 Network that's gonna be a good game all right now let's take a look at the Sunday games got Michigan State they are they improved to 11 and seven they beat Minnesota on Thursday night Tom ISO now couple wins away from 700 for the career getting closer and closer to that Milestone congratulations to him they're taking on Maryland an 11 and s team 12:00 Eastern Time on CBS Sunday afternoon by the way Maryland also very good at home very tough place to play at Maryland uh they're nine and one at home this uh I'm gonna I'm gonna Buck the trend here I know Tom ISO is going for the Milestone I know Michigan State starting to put together but the fact it's at Maryland which is a tough tough place I'm going to pick Maryland in this game all right by the way did I give you a pick on Northwestern Nebraska or did I just talk about it I'm I'm taking Nebraska on that one by the way in case I didn't mention that all right so give me and then Ruckers is at number 14 Illinois Ruckers coming at this one at 10 at seven Illinois had that home loss to Maryland they had the Thursday night game against Michigan I like the fighting a linei at home here so quick recap here all right I'm gonna I'm gonna take Wisconsin over Indiana I'm going to take Ohio State over Penn State I'm taking Purdue over Iowa I don't think I give you the Purdue pick till then there we go I got to get it together man Nebraska over Northwestern I'm gonna take Maryland to somewhat upset Michigan State and I'm gonna take Illinois the home win against Ruckers that's Friday through Sunday Big 10 Basketball I'm feeling it how about you if you disagree let me know hit me up you can hit me up on Talk big1 number 10.com also on Twitter and uh on YouTube YouTube as well so those are my picks and I'm sticking to it for the weekend all right lot of Hoops going on over the weekend I know a lot of you gonna be watching some NFL football it's with the playoffs all that good stuff probably playing with FanDuel a little bit right also don't forget uh and the way the ways to get a hold of me at Twitter at uh talk big 10 that's a number 10 that's X talk big1 also our website talkig 101.com and on uh YouTube I'm going to be thumbing through the uh the messages that you send me over the weekend or back and forth with each other that'll be awesome to hear from you and uh also go to our website got um got some swag information we got some big 10 stuff you can get it there right there at the website talkig 101.com in the meantime do us a favor subscribe that would be awesome thank you very much and follow this podcast right now on your favorite podcast app and you'll get the latest episode of lockdown Big 10 as soon as it becomes available each and every day I've told you before I'll tell you again the audio versions of these podcasts come out at 4 in the morning wherever you get your podcast across the country across the world 4 o'clock AM Eastern Time six o'clock AM for the video portion on YouTube so enjoy that and don't forget lockdown has launched the first ever National Sports 247 streaming Channel on YouTube lockdown sports today again 247 this show will be on that channel as as well as all your other favor in the lockdown family go ahead and subscribe there as well uh lockdown sports today all of our national shows covering every single League all of our local experts everything all right there in one place and anything breaking it's over there you'll be able to check it out so uh would appreciate that I appreciate you joining us here on lockdown Big 10 tell your friends about us especially Big 10 alums and or fans would love to have them try us out as well so for lockdown Big 10 I'm Craig sheeman thanks for checking us out