Sharpen the Point conference previews: Big 10, Part 1 -- Illinois Fighting Illini, Indiana Hoosiers, Iowa Hawkeyes, Maryland Terrapins, Michigan State Spartans, Michigan Wolverines, Minnesota Golden Gophers, Nebraska Cornhuskers, Northwestern Wildcats

We’re closing in on Florida State opening the new college football season in Ireland and the hosts of Sharpen the Point, a college football gambling and daily fantasy sports podcast on the Everything Noles podcast channel, are getting you set for the year ahead.

Expanded playoffs and conference realignment puts more teams, more games and more players in FSU’s path to the College Football Playoff. As ACC champ or contending for an at-large bid, the Noles will face some of the best of the rest to get back to the top of college football. Leading up to the start of the year, Brian Pellerin and Chris Tyndall preview the group of five and each conference’s CFP contenders with a Florida State lens in mind. It’s a lot to keep track of, but we’re helping consolidate it all in one place for you.

So far, they’ve covered the top Group of 5 playoff contenders, including the Seminoles’ Sept. 14 opponent — the Memphis Tigers, broke down the ultra-competitive Big 12 and took a look at the SEC to see who could be standing in the way come December.

On today’s Big Ten preview, the first of two parts, they take a deep look into the first half of the Big Ten alphabetically — Illinois through Northwestern. Can Michigan weather the loss of Jim Harbaugh, Blake Corum and J.J. McCarthy through a tumultuous offseason to make the College Football Playoff once again? Can Nebraska turnaround their close losses from a year ago and be a dark horse for the Big Ten title game?

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