5 Takeaways From Day One of Big Ten Media Days

Day one of the Big Ten Media Days in Indianapolis featured Ryan Day speaking on the uncertainty of the Ohio State quarterback situation, Mel Tucker describing the way the Michigan State has changed its practice, Kirk Ferentz on the Iowa student-athlete gambling investigation and so much more.

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Seven Big Ten head football coaches took to the stand inside Lucas Oil Stadium on Wednesday, including Ohio State's Ryan Day, Penn State's James Franklin and Michigan State's Mel Tucker.

Here are five takeaways from day one of the 2023 Big Ten Preseason Media Days:

1. Ohio State Needs a Quarterback to Step Up

Day would not name a starting quarterback during his media availabilities, as almost no head coach without an incumbent starter ever will. However, Day appeared more unsure of the quarterbacks in his room than other coaches inside Lucas Oil. 

The coach entering his fifth season at the helm at Ohio State said he didn't know who the Buckeyes' starter would be in their season opener against Indiana. Additionally, Day didn't rule out the possibility of playing two quarterbacks during the game in Bloomington on Sep. 2. 

"You would like to see someone emerge so that you can name them the starter, but if that doesn't happen [during fall camp], then maybe it is the case that you try that [and play two quarterbacks," Day said. 

Day, however, also said later that Ohio State would like to avoid having to flip-flop between starting quarterbacks, reminiscent of the Buckeyes not being able to decide between Cardale Jones and J.T. Barrett back in the 2015-16 season. 

The two Ohio State quarterbacks in prime contention for the starting job are redshirt sophomore Kyle McCord and true sophomore Devin Brown. McCord has been the presumed favorite to inherit the job since the departure of C.J. Stroud, but according to Day's remarks, the Philadelphia native has not done enough to separate himself from the pack just yet. 

Day also spoke on true freshman quarterback Lincoln Kienholz and said that the Ohio state coaching staff has been impressed with his approach in preparation to be a quarterback at the collegiate level. 

2. Penn State Needs Help at WR, DB to Contend

In fairness to the aforementioned Day, Franklin also maintained that the job of starting quarterback is up for grabs in Happy Valley. However, given the immense hype that has followed Drew Allar since he set foot in State College last year, it's hard to envision a world where redshirt freshman Beau Pribula beats the former five-star out for the job. 

Penn State is expected to be not only a Big Ten contender but a national title contender in 2023-24. The Nittany Lions return projected NFL first-round draft pick Olu Fashanu at left tackle and are loaded at nearly every position with both experience and elite physical talent. 

That is except for two position rooms — the wide receivers and the secondary. Franklin said that Penn State is still searching to solidify its wide receiver depth behind KeAndre Lambert-Smith. Even being the the leading returning pass-catcher for PSU in 2023-24, Lambert-Smith only caught 24 passes for 389 yards in 2022-23. The trio of Liam Clifford, Kaden Saunders and Christian Driver needs to take major steps this season to reload the Penn State wide receiver corps. 

On the defensive side of the ball, Franklin expressed confidence in his front seven, but stressed that the secondary needs to be figured out following the loss of NFL Draft pick Joey Porter Jr. 

Sophomore Kalen King is a high profile returner, but in order for Penn State to finally topple Ohio State and Michigan in the final year of the East division, another safety and/or cornerback will have to rise to the occasion in 2023-24.

3. Michigan State Changing How They Practice

To his credit, Tucker did not shy away from the fact that Michigan State disappointed in 2022-23. Everything the fourth-year head coach said at Media Days indicated that the Spartans want to learn from the mistakes they made last season and improve on them in 2023-24. 

Specifically, Tucker said the Spartans were far too banged up last season, and that the team practiced differently this spring in order to reduce the number of injuries sustained. 

"Football is a game of attrition, so we had to modify the way we practice, because we want to make sure we can get our players to the game," Tucker said. "We changed the way we did some things in spring ball — how we hit, when we hit, how often we hit — and we a much better job of staying off the ground. Our studies showed that when players are on the ground at practice, that's when they get hurt the most. We did some things in spring ball that helped us keep our guys more healthy, and I think that's going to be a huge benefit for us moving forward." 

During player availabilities, Michigan State offensive lineman J.D. Duplain added more on how injuries hurt MSU in 2022-23, and how the team has addressed it for this upcoming season. 

"I think last year was tough, because we went through a bunch of injuries, you know, [even though] I think we had a talented roster last year," Duplain said. "We always adapt. Our strength coaches, Coach Tucker — he always adapts to, you know, whatever we need as a team. We're going to be a lot more fresh going into fall camp this year and prevent those unfortunate injuries we had."

4. Three Competing For Northwestern Starting QB Job

Practically everyone, from Illinois head coach Bret Bielema to Big Ten commissioner Tony Petiti, was asked a question about the Northwestern hazing scandal. 

Recently promoted head coach David Braun gave the longest opening statement of all seven coaches that took the podium on Wednesday. He focused on his journey toward taking the job first as Northwestern's defensive coordinator, now as its head coach, and said that his players are working hard toward to having a successful 2023-24 season. 

In one of the few questions Braun answered, he mentioned that there were not just two, but three quarterbacks battling for the starting role in Evanston. Brendan Sullivan, who started four games for the Wildcats last year, and Cincinnati transfer Ben Bryant have been considered the two favorites for the job, but Braun made sure to mention redshirt freshman Jack Lausch as well. 

Braun was also asked about the recent lawsuit filed against Northwestern that named defensive backs coach Matt MacPherson, along with other current members of the Northwestern coaching staff, but he declined to speak on the allegations. 

5. Kirk Ferentz Unsure What Will Happen in Iowa Gambling Investigation

Kirk Ferentz was asked what the expected fallout might be from the investigation into gambling violations committed by Iowa student-athletes. The 67 year-old coach said that he did not know what would happen and that he's never really paid attention to gambling in sports prior to this year.

He added that he was surprised when his middle son — James Ferentz — told him earlier this year that ESPN College Gameday talks about college football betting lines as a part of its Saturday pregame show. 

The initial announcement from the University back in May said that 26 Iowa student-athletes across five sports — baseball, football, men's basketball, wrestling and men's track and field — were suspected of wagering on sports in violation of NCAA rules. 

"We live in a real different world right now, and I think what the NFL has done with their [gambling] rules makes a lot of sense," Ferentz said. "I'm hopeful this is an opportunity for the NCAA maybe to reconsider two things: what the "punishments" or penalties might be that are fair and relevant to the world we're living in right now, nd then probably the bigger thing, is [that] there's an opportunity right now for a lot better education process." 

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