Where do Jeremiah Smith, Drew Allar rank? The 25 best players in the Big Ten in 2025

Is the Big Ten the best conference in college football? Not according to the NFL Draft.

The SEC is still king.

But the Big Ten did set a new league record with 71 players selected in 2025.

And yes, adding four teams did help inflate the number, but it still would have been a record (52) if we include only the 14 programs that have been in the league since 2014.

Advertisement Once again, the conference is stacked with talent.

The top programs are still recruiting at a very high level, and the entire league is taking advantage of the transfer portal.

Here are the 25 best players in the Big Ten in 2025.

Its hard not to start this list with the highest-rated player in the EA Sports College Football 26 video game.

Smith, the top-ranked recruit in the Class of 2024, caught 76 passes for 1,315 yards and 15 touchdowns en route to earning first-team All-America honors and winning a national title as a freshman.

Its scary to think the 6-foot-3, 225-pound South Florida native turned 19 last November and is just getting started.

Few would argue the defending champions have the best returning offensive and defensive players in the league.

Downs, who starred as a freshman at Alabama before transferring to Ohio State, tallied 82 tackles, 7 1/2 TFLs, six pass breakups and two interceptions and also scored on a punt return in 2024.

The Athletic s Dane Brugler projects Downs to be a top-10 pick in next years draft .

Here's the Caleb Downs punt return TD, Ohio State's first since 2014 #B1GFootball x @OhioStateFB pic.twitter.com/pgL5CORcXA Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) November 23, 2024 There have been only six NFL running backs drafted in the first round over the last five years.

Singleton would not have been a Day 1 selection had he left after his junior season, but he certainly wouldnt have lasted very long on Day 2.

The 6-foot, 224-pound Pennsylvania native is fifth all-time at Penn State with 32 rushing touchdowns and has also proven to be a dynamic threat in the passing game.

He caught 41 passes for 375 yards and five touchdowns last season.

The 6-7, 270-pound Polynesian earned first-team All-Big Ten honors after leading the league with 10 1/2 sacks in the regular season.

He finished with 38 tackles, including 12 1/2 for loss, and two forced fumbles as a sophomore and returns as one of only three full-time starters for what will be a revamped Oregon defense.

The fifth-year senior from Virginia, who followed coach Curt Cignetti from James Madison to Bloomington, didnt let the jump in competition from the Sun Belt faze him last season.

He earned first-team All-Big Ten honors, producing 15 tackles for loss and 10 sacks while leading the FBS in total pressures (68), according to Pro Football Focus.

Advertisement Allar is showing up in the top five in early mock drafts.

The 6-5, 238-pound senior didnt look good in the second half of Penn States season-ending loss to Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff, but he still put up solid numbers as a junior.

He is one of five quarterbacks in the Big Ten with more than 20 career starts.

Who is the best linebacker in the Big Ten? In todays pass-happy game, you can make the argument that the 6-4, 235-pound former safety has all the ingredients needed to fill the role.

The second-team All-Big Ten selection produced 100 tackles, including 10 1/2 for loss and six sacks, and tied for fifth among all Power 4 linebackers with 16 coverage stops last season, according to PFF.

He doesnt wear gloves, shops for his clothes at thrift stores and squats close to 700 pounds.

The 6-5, 316-pound senior is everything you love about gritty right tackles.

Hes started 25 games in his career, including 11 last season on the way to a second-team All-Big Ten selection.

Perich joined Smith as the only two freshmen to earn first-team All-Big Ten honors in 2024.

He started only three games in 2024 but still finished with 46 tackles and five interceptions.

Perich was also a key contributor on special teams, becoming the first freshman since 1976 to record 100 punt return yards, 100 kick return yards and five interceptions in a season.

Reminder: Freshman Koi Perich led the @bigten in INTs last season Relive all 5 of the @GopherFootball star's picks #B1GFootball x @koiperich3 pic.twitter.com/pxNXkLJqih Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) June 30, 2025 The Nittany Lions probably have the best offensive line in the league, and the 6-4, 330-pound Polynesian is a big reason why.

Ioane, a redshirt junior, was the piledriver in the middle of last years unit as the starting left guard.

Penn State led the league with 202 rushing yards per game and lost only one starter right guard Sal Wormley from its O-line.

Advertisement The former three-star recruit from Cincinnati was a third-team All-Big Ten pick as a sophomore at Purdue before leaving for Columbus in late December.

He caught 51 passes for 685 yards and four touchdowns, including 34 receptions that went for first downs.

He could be the biggest beneficiary of all the double teams Smith draws in Brian Hartlines offense.

With Abdul Carter off to the NFL, the Nittany Lions are counting on the 6-5, 265-pound senior from Delaware to perform at the high level he displayed in the College Football Playoff.

The former five-star recruit produced 4 1/2 of his 8 1/2 sacks in the postseason.

He finished the year with 42 tackles, including 13 for loss, and 45 QB pressures.

The 6-3, 275-pound senior and former three-star recruit from Florida was a third-team All-Big Ten pick last season.

Jacas racked up 74 tackles, 13 TFLs, eight sacks and 44 QB pressures.

Sarratt was among the most productive of the 13 players Cignetti brought with him from James Madison.

The Virginia native earned third-team All-Big Ten honors, catching 53 passes for 957 yards and eight touchdowns in helping Indiana reach the CFP.

WAFFLE HOUSE!! Relive @IndianaFootball WR Elijah Sarratt's 8 TD grabs from last season #TouchdownTuesday pic.twitter.com/Cvn7Qv1ppp Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) June 10, 2025 At 5-9, 170 pounds, Ponds is hardly a physically imposing cover man.

But the South Florida native was a first-team All-Big Ten selection in 2024 after breaking up nine passes, intercepting three (he returned one for a touchdown) and racking up 57 tackles in his first season in Bloomington.

Like Kamara and Sarratt, he played for Cignetti at James Madison.

The 6-1, 191-pound junior transferred from Georgia last year and started 15 games, earning third-team All-Big Ten honors after finishing with 48 tackles, five pass breakups and one interception in his first season in Happy Valley.

The former top-100 recruit from Alabama is a potential first-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.

The 5-11, 190-pound senior from Florida was a first-team All-Big Ten pick last season.

He started 13 games for a 10-win team and tallied 49 tackles, four interceptions, six pass breakups and one forced fumble.

Advertisement The 6-5, 320-pound sixth-year senior started 25 games for USC at left guard over the last two seasons.

The Ducks have to replace four starters on their offensive line, and the former unranked high school prospect who started his career at Wyoming is the most experienced among the replacements.

The 6-1, 233-pound senior from Virginia became the first All-America linebacker in program history last season.

He was another James Madison transfer who leveled up in the Big Ten, finishing with 118 tackles and four pass breakups.

The Ducks need to replace a lot of offensive firepower from last seasons 13-1 team and will be counting on Hughes to be highly productive running the ball.

He rushed for 2,779 yards over the last two seasons at Tulane, the most over that stretch by any returning FBS back by nearly 500 yards.

The 6-4, 209-pound junior started all 13 games last season and ranked second on the Huskies with 834 receiving yards and nine touchdowns on 63 catches.

Hes viewed as a strong NFL prospect.

Boettcher was a 13th-round pick of the Houston Astros in 2024 but elected to return for one final football season with the Ducks.

He was a second-team All-Big Ten pick in 2024 and also won the Burlsworth Trophy, awarded to the top player in college football who began his career as a walk-on.

He led the Ducks with 94 tackles and added four pass breakups and one interception.

The 6-4, 300-pound homegrown senior started all 13 games for the Hawkeyes last season, tallying 33 tackles, eight TFLs, six sacks and three forced fumbles.

Hes considered one of the best interior pass rushers in the country.

The 6-3, 293-pound sixth-year senior squats 705 pounds and earned first-team All-Big Ten honors in 2024.

Hes started 38 games over the last three seasons.

Advertisement The 5-11, 195-pound junior and former top-100 recruit started only six games but still led the Trojans with 52 catches for 764 yards and three touchdowns.

He was also valuable on kickoff returns.

26.

Dillon Thieneman, S, Oregon 27.

Derrick Moore, edge, Michigan 28.

Kaytron Allen, RB, Penn State 29.

Zane Durant, DL, Penn State 30.

Jonah Coleman, RB, Washington 31.

Isaiah World, OT, Oregon 32.

Caleb Tiernan, OT, Northwestern 33.

Darius Taylor, RB, Minnesota 34.

Nico Iamaleava, QB, UCLA 35.

Fernando Mendoza, QB, Indiana (Photo of Jeremiah Smith: Adam Cairns / USA Today Network via Imagn Images).

This article has been shared from the original article on theathleticuk, here is the link to the original article.