Ranking the Big Ten: Offensive Guard
As the 2024 college football season quickly approaches, it is time to look at the top players at each position in the Big Ten.
We continue our annual Ranking the Big Ten series with the offensive guards. Plenty of the usual suspects among Big Ten programs have representation on this list.
Ranking the Big Ten: QB | RB | WR | TE | OT
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1. Donovan Jackson, Ohio State
Ohio State’s offensive line is anchored by Donovan Jackson, who enters his senior season as one of the top offensive lineman in the country. He is twice a First-Team All-Big Ten selection and has started 26 consecutive games for the Buckeyes. Last year, Jackson tied teammates Josh Fryer and Josh Simmons for the most plays from scrimmage (845) in 2023.
The 6-foot-4, 320-pound native of Bellaire, Texas, posted a 72.7 pass blocking grade and a 69.9 offensive grade according to Pro Football Focus. CBS Sports projected Jackson as a mid-first round selection to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the 2025 NFL Draft.
2. Connor Colby, Iowa
Connor Colby has accomplished a lot throughout his four seasons in Iowa City.
In 2021, he earned Freshman All-American recognition from the Football Writer’s Association of America. Colby started 11-of-14 games at right guard becoming the first freshman to start on Iowa’s offensive line since 2017.
The Cedar Rapids, Iowa, native was a third-team All-Big Ten selection last season and started 13 games at right guard. Phil Steele put Colby on his preseason fourth-team All-Big Ten squad. He finished last season with a 70.6 offensive grade from PFF and a 73.0 in run blocking. The latter metric was the best among returning Big Ten guards while his 52.1 pass blocking grade finished inside the top ten worst grades.
3. Josh Priebe, Michigan
After four years as a left guard at Northwestern, Josh Priebe is heading to Michigan for his final season of eligibility.
The 6-foot-5, 305-pound graduate student hails Niles, Michigan, and was a part of the Wildcats’ Big Ten West Championship in 2020 as a freshman. He appeared in eight of the team’s nine games that season. Priebe’s Northwestern career culminated in consensus All-Big Ten third-team honors this past season after he started 12 games at left guard and earned his fourth varsity letter.
He was also a team captain.
Priebe’s PFF grades weren’t particularly impressive. All of his offensive as well as pass and run blocking grades were in the low 60s. He also allowed four sacks which is the second-most among returning Big Ten offensive guards.
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Still, his experience and the strong pedigree of offensive line development in Ann Arbor should make for an excellent swan song.
4. Tanner Miller, Michigan State
Mark this down as another player who followed his head coach from one school to another. Tanner Miller chose to join Jonathan Smith at Michigan State for the last chapter of a career that began in 2019.
Turn the page back to 2023, and you’ll find a redshirt junior season that would line up as one of the best for any offensive lineman in the nation. Miller started all 13 games at Oregon State (10 right guard, three at center) for a total of 815 snaps. ESPN selected him as a second-team All-American and the AP awarded him first-team All-Pac-12 honors. The Beaver offensive line was nominated for the Joe Moore Award, too.
All of this came one year removed from a sophomore campaign in which he made his first career start.
Only unanimous first-team All-American Zak Zinter (76.7) managed a higher offensive grade among Big Ten guards than Miller last season (73.5) according to PFF.
5. Joe Huber, Wisconsin
Joe Huber started all 13 games for the Badgers last season on 826 offensive snaps. His first season in the Big Ten marked a position switch as well. The 6-foot-5 native of Dublin, Ohio, transferred from Cincinnati last season and made the transition from right tackle to left guard in the process.
Huber was incredibly durable and no other returning Big Ten guard played as many snaps in 2023 as he did. He also posted a career-high pass blocking grade of 76.2 which was the 17th-highest among all Big Ten lineman and the seventh best among those who are returning next season. He did not allow a sack in 475 pressure opportunities.
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