The Big Ten has been on quite a run when it comes to college football national championships.
In fact, the Big Ten can claim superiority over the SEC in this most recent era of college football, and that’s saying something. After all, in the SEC, “it just means more.”
The Big Ten doesn’t have the catchphrase, but perhaps it can grandfather in the “Conference of Champions” slogan from the old Pac-12. After all, the conference essentially swallowed up the Pac-12 when it brought in Oregon, Washington, UCLA and USC in the last round of conference expansion.
Either way, the numbers don’t lie. The last three national champions, Michigan (2023), Ohio State (2024) and Indiana (2025), have represented the Big Ten.
In the 12-team College Football Playoff era, which is admittedly young, the Big Ten is 2-of-2 in CFP titles. Notably, there’s also a realistic chance the Big Ten can three-peat.
At the very least, Brad Crawford of CBS Sports is betting on the Big Ten heading into the 2026 college football season. In fact, in a piece making guarantees for the 2026 CFP, Crawford is guaranteeing that either Oregon, Ohio State, or Indiana will walk away with the trophy.
“If someone offered me Oregon, Ohio State and Indiana against the field this fall, I’d confidently take that trio,” Crawford wrote. “Dan Lanning has the best roster he’s assembled at Oregon, while the Buckeyes may boast the nation’s most prolific quarterback-wide receiver combination. The Hoosiers need no introduction after what they accomplished under Curt Cignetti, who enters the season with a strong argument as the sport’s top coach.”
Indiana, Ohio State and Oregon lead the Big Ten heading into 2026
It’s truly incredible to think that Indiana is being mentioned with the “big dogs” of the Big Ten, but that just underscores how great Curt Cignetti has been for the Hoosiers. Crawford is right. He very well may be the best coach in college football with Nick Saban enjoying retirement, and he’ll go from Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza to TCU transfer and redshirt senior Josh Hoover.
Hoover should be considered an offseason favorite to be a Heisman finalist, considering what Cignetti was able to do with Mendoza. In four seasons at TCU, Hoover threw for 9,629 yards and 71 touchdowns with 33 interceptions.
Speaking of Heisman Trophy finalists, Julian Sayin was one in his first season as the starting quarterback in Columbus. He also has arguably one of the most physically imposing wide receivers in college football history to throw to in Jeremiah Smith. Ohio State is going to be a force.
And yet, Dan Lanning and the Ducks can’t be counted out either. Quarterback Dante Moore threw for 3,565 yards and 30 touchdowns last season (10 interceptions) and decided to skip the 2026 NFL Draft to come back for one more year of seasoning. He’ll be itching to make good on that gamble, and Lanning has put an elite team around him talent-wise.
That’s not to count out Lincoln Riley at USC, a sneaky-dangerous Michigan program under new head coach Kyle Whittingham or the always-competent Iowa Hawkeyes. These may not be true contenders, but each of the programs above can knock out an SEC opponent in the CFP.
How it shakes out is anybody’s guess, but Crawford is shooting this one straight. The Big Ten seems more likely than not to walk away with another CFP title.
