ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit has proclaimed two two-loss Big Ten teams as possible College Football Playoff sleepers to reach the 12-team field.
With how deep the league's top half has gotten, Herbstreit said Monday not to be surprised if the Wolverines are in the conversation by season's end should they win out. Alongside Michigan, in Herbstreit's viewpoint, is the lone conference team it lost to: the USC Trojans.
"If we look at those three, Indiana, Ohio State, and Oregon — the next two are USC and Michigan," Herbstreit said on his YouTube channel. "Michigan has probably the best opportunity because they still have Ohio State to play. I think we would all agree, with an opportunity at 9-2, if they beat Ohio State at home to get to 10-2, they’re in. You know, I don’t know who’s out, but Michigan would be impossible to not put in."
The Wolverines travel to Wrigley Field in Chicago (noon ET, FOX) to play a Northwestern Wildcats team attempting to snap a two-game slide and reach bowl eligibility for the first time since the 2023-24 season, which would mark the second appearance for coach David Braun. Northwestern then finishes its season with the bowl-bound Minnesota Golden Gophers (Nov. 22, Wrigley Field) and Illinois Fighting Illini (Nov. 29, Gies Memorial Stadium) in the season's final two weeks.
The Trojans, meanwhile, hold the head-to-head tiebreaker against the Wolverines from a Week 7 contest earlier this season. Despite that, Herbstreit said he wouldn't be surprised to see them slip up once more, potentially against coach Dan Lanning's Oregon Ducks in Week 13 in Eugene next Saturday.
"But you also look, USC has a shot, and they play Oregon," Herbstreit said. "When we talk about who can be the fourth team, if there is a fourth team, there’s going to be teams with an opportunity to make that argument."
Herbstreit suggests the Iowa Hawkeyes' College Football Playoff hopes are dead, leaving room for parity by season's end.
"Iowa just had their opportunity, came up a little short," Herbstreit said. "USC is going to play Oregon. Ohio State has to go play Michigan. So, both those teams are going to have a chance to at least get into the conversation."
Regardless of what happens down the stretch, the Big Ten race could get interesting fairly quickly, starting with Week 12's slate.