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Big Ten Preseason Poll: Nebraska Football Picked in Top Half

The Nebraska Cornhuskers are picked to have their best finish in Big Ten Conference play in several seasons.

Kaleb Henry

Nov 11, 2023; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers head coach Matt Rhule during the third quarter against the Maryland Terrapins at Memorial Stadium.
Nov 11, 2023; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers head coach Matt Rhule during the third quarter against the Maryland Terrapins at Memorial Stadium. / Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports
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Nebraska football is expected to be in the top half of the expanded Big Ten Conference this fall.

That's according to the preseason Big Ten football poll from Cleveland.com. This is the 14th year the outlet has released a preseason poll.

This is the first year the league has featured 18 teams. With 27 voters, the picks varied for some teams, though Ohio State was the runaway favorite with 21 votes to win the league.

Members of the Nebraska football team celebrate with the trophy after beating Iowa, 24-17, on Friday, Nov. 25, 2022.
Members of the Nebraska football team celebrate with the trophy after beating Iowa, 24-17, on Friday, Nov. 25, 2022, at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City. / Bryon Houlgrave/The Register / USA TODAY

Nebraska is slotted to finish No. 8 in the Big Ten. By all accounts, that would be a good final spot for the Big Red, who never finished above fourth in the West Division over the last seven seasons.

The last time NU finished in the top half of the Big Ten was 2016, when the Huskers went 9-4 overall and 6-3 in league play. That team was third in the West behind Wisconsin and Iowa while three teams in the East posted at least seven conference wins.

Newcomer Oregon picked up six first place votes and is preseason No. 2. The full ranking is below.

  1. Ohio State
  2. Oregon
  3. Penn State
  4. Michigan
  5. Iowa
  6. USC
  7. Wisconsin
  8. Nebraska
  9. Rutgers
  10. Washington
  11. Maryland
  12. Minnesota
  13. Illinois
  14. Northwestern
  15. UCLA
  16. Michigan State
  17. Indiana
  18. Purdue

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Kaleb Henry

KALEB HENRY

Kaleb Henry is an award-winning sports reporter, covering collegiate athletics since 2014 via radio, podcasting, and digital journalism. His experience with Big Ten Conference teams goes back more than a decade, including time covering programs such as the Nebraska Cornhuskers, Oregon Ducks, and USC Trojans. He has contributed to Sports Illustrated since 2021. Kaleb has won multiple awards for his sports coverage from the Nebraska Broadcasters Association and Midwest Broadcast Journalists Association. Prior to working in sports journalism, Kaleb was a Division I athlete on the Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville Track and Field team where he discussed NCAA legislation as SIUE's representative to the Ohio Valley Conference Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. 

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