Power ranking Big Ten defensive coordinators entering 2025 season

The countdown to the 2025 college football season continues. Only three weeks remain until Iowa State and Kansas State kick off Week 0 in Dublin, Ireland. Just five days later, on Thursday, Aug. 28, Wisconsin will begin its 2025 campaign with a home matchup against Miami (OH).

The list of storylines persisting through Wisconsin’s preseason preparation is almost too long to count. Questions exist surrounding the program’s new-look offensive scheme, its transfer-heavy defensive front seven and, most notably, whether roster upgrades are enough for the team to contend against the nation’s toughest schedule.

One under-the-radar story is the program’s overall defensive performance. Head coach Luke Fickell and defensive coordinator Mike Tressel each have long track records of success on that side of the football. While that history gives the coaches the benefit of the doubt, their unit’s form plummeted as the 2024 season continued. The headline of those struggles: allowing a total of 110 points in losses to rivals Iowa, Nebraska and Minnesota. That’s 36.67 points allowed per game to three of the Big Ten’s bottom-tier offenses.

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Coaching Staff Previews:Head Coaches — Offensive Coordinators

Wisconsin will need a resurgent season on the defensive side of the football for the team to have any chance at eclipsing its win total from a season ago. Now, before that quest begins, where does Tressel rank compared to the rest of the Big Ten’s defensive coordinators?

After analyzing offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes’ Big Ten standing earlier this week, here is how…

Source link : https://badgerswire.usatoday.com/story/sports/college/badgers/football/2025/08/03/big-ten-defensive-coordinator-rankings-2025/85465530007/

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Publish date : 2025-08-03 11:20:00

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