Big Ten Media Days fact, fiction: Will experience be enough to fix Nebraska's November woes?

Under Matt Rhule, the Huskers are 16-8 in the first three months of the season, but just 2-10 in November Jul 30, 2026 at 4:56 pm ET • 7 min read Big Ten Media Days concluded Thursday with one final dose of offseason optimism. By the time coaches reach the last day in Chicago, the talking points have been polished.The trick, as it's been all week, is figuring out which of those lines will hold up once the pads come on and which were built for the podium and nothing else. Some claims were backed by returning production and recent success. Others required a little more faith.With that in mind, we examined a few quotes from each Big Ten coach on the final day of Big Ten Media Days and determined whether they were fact or fiction. Indiana: Josh Hoover doesn't need to be Fernando MendozaReplacing a Heisman Trophy winner and national championship-winning quarterback would seem like an impossible task. But Indiana coach Curt Cignetti doesn't view Josh Hoover's job that way. Rather than asking Hoover to replicate Fernando Mendoza's production, Cignetti believes the Hoosiers' system is designed to let each quarterback succeed in his own way. "We're not going to put the ball in his hand and say, 'Go out and win the game and outscore people,'" Cignetti said. "We're going to give him a run game and defense and special teams."Hoover arrives in Bloomington from TCU, where he ranks in the top five in program history in yards passing, completions and touchdowns. Cignetti complimented Hoover's accuracy and ability to process quickly, traits he believes fit seamlessly into Indiana's complementary style of football.If Indiana plays the way it did during last year's title run, Hoover won't need to be Mendoza. He'll just need to be the next quarterback to thrive in Cignetti's system. Verdict: Fact Maryland: The tough times are overMike Locksley is out runway entering Year 9. Back-to-back 4-8 seasons with just two Big Ten wins in that span has the Maryland coach squarely on the hot seat. But the fix he's selling in Chicago is simple: returning production, particularly across both lines."I've learned that the only way you win a lot and have success in the Big Ten is in the trenches," Locksley said. "We feel really good about the depth that we've been able to create. We feel that the tough times are behind us now as this inexperienced group now has gained experience."He's not wrong there. The Terrapins return three starters on the offensive line and rank 24th nationally in overall offensive line snaps entering 2026. The defensive line isn't quite as seasoned, but it also returns three starters, headlined by edge rushers Zahir Mathis and Sidney Stewart, who combined for 13 sacks a year ago. Program-wide, Maryland brings back 14 starters, tied for the second-most in the FBS, including eight on defense alone -- the most in the country. But returning production doesn't guarantee results. It tells you a team won't be starting from scratch. It says nothing about whether the players coming back are actually good enough to win."When you bring back that production, some people would say that's the production of a 4-8 team," Locksley said. "Those were losses a year ago, but for us, the last six months, they've been a lesson."Locksley is right about one thing: continuity does matter. But until Maryland turns those losses into wins and climbs out of the bottom tier of the Big Ten, it's hard to say the difficult days are over. Verdict: Fiction Michigan: Bryce Underwood's poor spring game doesn't matterBryce Underwood's most recent public appearance in a Michigan uniform fueled plenty of offseason debate after the sophomore quarterback struggled through parts of the spring game in April. It was the first extended look at Underwood under new coach Kyle Whittingham and coordinator Jason Beck, and the uneven outing was enough to get Michigan fans nervous heading into this season."We didn't put a lot of stock in that," Whittingham said. "What we saw from the first 14 practices was steady improvement day to day. We feel Bryce is on the right track."Whittingham noted Underwood wasn't surrounded by Michigan's full complement of starters in the spring game, calling it more of a showcase for fans than a true evaluation. "He's gonna fit just fine," Whittingham said. "Jason Beck, our offensive coordinator, is superb at getting people in the right spots to be successful, tailoring things, particularly to the quarterback and what he does well. That's what we were finding out in the spring, with some film study as well last season. But Jason's hard at work getting the offense set up where Bryce can be successful."That confidence is backed by the results he produced with Devon Dampier, who was one of the best mobile quarterbacks in the FBS the past two seasons at New Mexico and Utah. If Beck successfully builds the same kind of offense around Underwood that he did around Dampier, few people will remember what happened in April.Verdict: Fact Nebraska: Experience will fix November strugglesSince Matt Rhule took over in Lincoln, the Cornhuskers are 2-10 in the month of November. That's the fourth-worst win percentage (.167) among Power Four conference teams. It's a stark contrast to the rest of the season, where Nebraska is 16-8 (.667) in August, September and October under Rhule. The program has repeatedly faded down the stretch when games carry the most weight. "We have to be better in November," Rhule said. "We've gotten off to good starts. Champions are made in those winning moments in the cold, on the road, late in the season."Rhule believes the answer is experience. Nebraska enters 2026 with one of the more veteran rosters in the country, ranking 14th nationally in returning snaps and 11th in career starts. The Huskers have players who have been through the growing pains of the rebuild and, according to Rhule, understand what it takes to finish a season."We'll win in November with our guys up front. We'll win with a great offensive line," Rhule said. "We'll win with quarterbacks who make plays, receivers who go take that ball. We'll win with Jacory Barney returning a punt for a touchdown." But experience alone won't determine whether Nebraska finally flips the script. Three of the Huskers' final four games are on the road, where they're just 4-10 (.286) under Rhule, and the lone home game comes against Ohio State.Verdict: Fiction Northwestern: Chip Kelly is a transformative hireIt might be the easiest "Fact" on the board. Northwestern didn't just hire one of the most accomplished offensive coordinators in college football. The Wildcats also brought in quarterbacks coach Jerry Neuheisel and landed signal caller Aidan Chiles, who has yet to be officially named the starter. Combined with Chip Kelly's arrival, it's an offensive reset few programs in the country can match."Ultimately, I felt like Northwestern's offense needed a transformative change, and my goodness is hiring Chip Kelly a transformative change," coach David Braun said. "It's the experience that he brings. It's his outside-the-box thinking. It's his understanding of how we can position our guys to suit their strengths within an offense." Northwestern improved offensively last season, posting its highest scoring average in five years, but the Wildcats still finished 14th in the Big Ten in that department. Incremental progress wasn't enough. Kelly's scheme alone won't guarantee results, but pairing one of the sport's most innovative offensive minds with a new quarterback and revamped staff gives Northwestern a legitimate opportunity to change the trajectory of an offense that has long been at the bottom of the Big Ten.Verdict: Fact Washington: 'Everything's cool' after Demond Williams Jr. dramaWashington's relationship with Demond Williams Jr. became one of the biggest offseason storylines in January when the star quarterback announced his intention to enter the transfer portal just days after agreeing to a new revenue-sharing deal with the Huskies. After a whirlwind 48 hours that included reports of tampering, legal threats and Williams ultimately reversing course, coach Jedd Fisch insists the saga is firmly in the rearview mirror. "Everything's cool. We are good to go," Fisch said.That's the answer everyone expected, and it may very well be true inside the building. But outside the program? The perspective could be different. If Williams struggles early or Washington falls short of expectations, the January drama will resurface immediately. Fair or not, the only thing that will truly silence the conversation is consistent winning this fall."I'm just excited for the way that he's leading our team right now," Fisch said. "And our boys, they're following his lead and I think that'll give us a nice championship run opportunity."Verdict: Fiction