Next up in my super-early week-by-week preview of the 2013 Big Ten football schedule: Week 8. This is a week light on marquee matchups, with predicted Big Ten title contenders Michigan and Ohio State taking on Indiana and Iowa, respectively, and Nebraska and Penn State on byes. Get all the storylines, matchups and my game rankings for Week 8 in this post.

Schedule strength will become more vital beginning in 2014, when a four-team playoff is started. Why? Because a major component of the playoff team selection process figures to be schedule strength, which is one of the reasons why the Big Ten is going to a nine-game league slate in 2016 and phasing out games with FCS.

The 2013 football season may still be two-plus months away, but that won’t keep me from taking an (early) in-depth look at each and every week’s top matchups and storylines. Oh, and I’m also offering my rankings of every week’s slate of games. Up now: Week 7, highlighted by Northwestern’s trip to Wisconsin.

Another day, another opportunity to take an in-depth look at the 2013 football season. Today, it’s all about Week 6 in my early week-by-week series. The first week of full Big Ten play, the slate offers some intriguing battles, including Northwestern hosting Big Ten favorite Ohio State. Get all the storylines, matchups and my game rankings for Week 6 in this post.

At 8 p.m. ET tonight, BTN/BTN2Go will air a special 2013 NBA Draft edition of “The Journey: Big Ten Basketball.” Go behind the scenes with Illinois’ Brandon Paul, Michigan’s Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway Jr. and Ohio State’s Deshaun Thomas, as they prepare for this month’s draft.

Sporting News and BTN correspondent Mike DeCourcy has been busy compiling his top 10 position lists. With all the talent the Big Ten returns in 2013-14, it’s only fitting that the conference boasts its share of representatives.