Year in and year out, the Big Ten conference has been home to some of the best college football players in the nation, as evident by the NFL Draft. Each year, new faces and names break out in massive ways that eventually end up as household names. Marvin Harrison, Jr. broke onto the scene with his massive three-touchdown game in the Rose Bowl and quickly caught fire, for example.
There are some mainstays in the conference like most of Michigan’s Big Ten-winning offense. For some of the other programs, there are some new players looking to make their own impact in 2023.
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5 Big Ten Players Looking to Breakout This Season
Drew Allar, Penn State
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The newest leader of the Penn State offense is set to break out in a massive way in 2023. He will have his name up in all kinds of create.vista.com/templates/letterhead/ signs and billboards in College Park. In the lead up to the season, the hype was real. Allar was the third-highest rated quarterback recruit in the 247Sports history of the program. Each and every time last year’s starter Sean Clifford struggled, there were calls for the Medina, Ohio native.
As a recruit, Allar was lauded as the top overall recruit from Ohio, the top quarterback in the nation, and third-best recruit nationally regardless of position. He even has comparisons to the likes of Josh Allen. As a freshman, Allar appeared in 10 games and completed 58.6% of his passes for 344 yards and four scores. Even in a small sample size, Allar has shown that the hype is real and is breaking out in 2023 to lead Penn State to contend for its first College Football Playoff appearance.
Heinrich Haarberg, Nebraska
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From one quarterback to another, Heinrich Haarberg is an interesting player for the Cornhuskers. With the regime change in Lincoln, there is a real opportunity for the six-foot-five in-state quarterback to make his mark with a rebuilding program.
As a recruit, Haarberg was a three-star quarterback that stacked up as the sixth-best player from Nebraska and the 40th-ranked quarterback nationally. Haarberg is a playmaker, notching 631 passing yards and four touchdowns to go with 352 yards and three touchdowns on the ground through Nebraska’s bye week. He’s shown an ability to lead the offense in a way that Jeff Sims could not and many are calling for Matt Rhule to just give him the reins.
Darius Taylor, Minnesota
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With the graduation of Mohamid Ibrahim leaves a massive hole at running back. It take a lot to take over for the program’s greatest running back and incoming freshman Darius Taylor has what it takes.
Minnesota’s offense has forever been running back-friendly and it could take a toll on a lesser player. Through six weeks and only four appearances, Taylor has stepped up and taken over as the team’s top back with 532 yards and four touchdowns. At 6.1 yards per carry and a whopping 133 yards per game, Taylor is Minnesota’s next great back.
As a recruit, Taylor was a humble three-star prospect despite showing off serious play-making abilities. He was compared to the Miami Dolphins’ Jeff Wilson by 247Sports and thus far, it has been an apt description. Get use to hearing the name Darius Taylor, he is bound to lead the Big Ten in rushing when he gets a full season of carries.
Deion Burks, Purdue
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Slow feet don’t eat but after waiting in the wings for two years, Deion Burks is set to feast. In his first two years as a Boilermaker, Burks managed just 175 yards and no touchdowns off of 16 receptions. After six games in 2023, he’s on-pace to royally shatter those marks.
As a recruit, Burks was noted as a receiver on the smaller side but one with legitimate Power 5 upside. One of his greatest strengths is his footwork and route-running ability and he’s already just south of 400 yards and four touchdowns on the year.
As the weeks go by, Burks is going to continue to pile on the stats and will likely end up with some All-Big Ten honors. 16.5 yards per reception will play in the Big Ten and will do incredibly well in the admittedly weaker Big Ten West.
Keandre Lambert-Smith, Penn State
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Finally, of all of the breakout players from the Big Ten, Keandre Lambert-Smith is already known by Big Ten fans as a playmaker. He has a few years of decent production with the Nittany Lions but 2023 will be his coming out party.
Over the last two years, Lambert-Smith played in 26 games and logged 910 yards and seven touchdowns. This year, he has a prime opportunity to do better in just one season. With Allar at the helm, the offense of Penn State is set to be one of the best in the conference even with one of the best running back duos in the nation taking away opportunities.
Through just six games, Lambert-Smith leads the team in receptions and yards by a wide margin. He will be crucial to Penn State’s success as the schedule gets more intense against the other two College Football Playoff contenders.