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Ranking the Big Ten's Nonconference Schedules: Oregon Ducks Middle of the Pack
Nov 24, 2023; Eugene, Oregon, USA; Oregon Ducks defensive back Tysheem Johnson (0) celebrates after making a tackle on a kickoff return during the second half against the Oregon State Beavers at Autzen Stadium. Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports

The Big Ten Conference has expanded to 18 teams with the additions of the Oregon Ducks, UCLA Bruins, USC Trojans, and Washington Huskies. That means even tougher matchups within the league, but those are only nine games out of the 12 in the regular season.

Below, we rank the toughest nonconference slates for all 18 Big Ten teams.

18. Indiana Hoosiers

Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK

Aug. 31 vs. FIU
Sep. 6 vs. Western Illinois
Sep. 21 vs. Charlotte

17. Ohio State Buckeyes

Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

Aug. 31 vs. Akron
Sep. 7 vs. Western Michigan
Sep. 21 vs Marshall

16. Northwestern Wildcats

Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Aug. 31 vs. Miami (OH)
Sep. 6 vs. Duke
Sep. 14 vs. Eastern Illinois

15. Washington Huskies

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Aug. 31 vs. Weber State
Sep. 7 vs. Eastern Michigan
Sep. 14 vs. Washington State

14. Maryland Terrapins

Steve Roberts-USA TODAY Sports

Aug. 31 vs. UConn
Sep. 14 at Virginia
Sep. 21 vs. Villanova

13. Minnesota Golden Gophers

Dale Young-USA TODAY Sports

Aug. 29 vs. North Carolina
Sep. 7 vs. Rhode Island
Sep. 14 vs. Nevada

12. Nebraska Cornhuskers

Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

Aug. 31 vs. UTEP
Sep. 7 vs. Colorado
Sep. 14 vs. Northern Iowa

11. Michigan State Spartans

Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

Aug. 30 vs. Florida Atlantic
Sep. 14 vs. Prairie View
Sep. 21 at Boston College

10. Rutgers Scarlet Knights

Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Aug. 29 vs. Howard
Sep. 7 vs. Akron
Sep. 21 at Virginia Tech

9. Iowa Hawkeyes

Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

Aug. 31 vs. Illinois State
Sep. 7 vs. Iowa State
Sep. 14 vs. Troy

8. Oregon Ducks

Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK

Aug. 31 vs Idaho
Sep. 7 vs. Boise State
Sep. 14 at Oregon State

7. Illinois Fighting Illini

Ron Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

Aug. 29 vs. Eastern Illinois
Sep. 7 vs. Kansas
Sep. 14 vs. Central Michigan

6. Penn State Nittany Lions

Matthew O'Haren-USA TODAY Sports

Aug. 31 at West Virginia
Sep. 7 vs. Bowling Green
Sep. 21 vs Kent State

5. Wisconsin Badgers

Matt Pendleton-USA TODAY Sports

Aug. 30 vs. Western Michigan
Sep. 7 vs. South Dakota
Sep. 14 vs. Alabama

4. Purdue Boilermakers

Alex Martin/Journal and Courier / USA TODAY NETWORK

Aug. 31 vs. Indiana State
Sep. 14 vs. Notre Dame
Sep. 21 at Oregon State

3. Michigan Wolverines

Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK

Aug. 31 vs. Fresno State
Sep. 7 vs. Texas
Sep. 14 vs. Arkansas State

2. UCLA Bruins

Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports

Aug. 31 at Hawai'i
Sep. 21 at LSU
Nov. 30 vs. Fresno State

1. USC Trojans

Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

Sep. 1 vs. LSU (Vegas Kickoff Classic, Allegiant Stadium)
Sep. 7 vs. Utah State
Nov. 30 at Notre Dame

Oregon Ducks Rank No. 3 In AP Top-25 College Football Poll

This article first appeared on Oregon Ducks on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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