Ohio State football voted unanimous 2021 Big Ten favorite in cleveland.com preseason poll Ohio State football begins the season with a first-time quarterback, an unsettled running back situation, and new starters at over half of its defensive positions. Those unknowns do not lower the Buckeyes’ expectations within the Big Ten Conference. Ohio State is the unanimous preseason favorite in the 2021 cleveland.com Preseason Big Ten Poll. All 34 members of our voting panel picked the Buckeyes — the four-time defending champions — to win the Big Ten East and the championship game. The voters picked Wisconsin as the West favorite with 29 first-place votes. Second-place Iowa received the other five first-place votes. Cleveland.com picked up the responsibility for organizing the poll for posterity when the Big Ten dropped it 11 years ago. The panel included at least one beat writer from all 14 Big Ten teams and a few who cover the entire league or have a national perspective.
