Every year, certain Big Ten teams face criticism for certain teams having easy non-conference schedules.

Even after switching to a nine-game conference schedule, it’s becoming increasingly important to have a big-time non-conference foe.

On Sunday, ESPN’s Chris Low ranked the 10 easiest non-conference schedules in the country, and three Big Ten squads made the cut. Wisconsin leads the way at No. 2, followed by Rutgers and Indiana later on the list:

  • No. 2 — Wisconsin (vs. Western Kentucky, vs. New Mexico, vs. BYU)
  • No. 4 — Rutgers (vs. Texas State, at Kansas, vs. Buffalo)
  • No. 8 — Indiana (at FIU, vs. Virginia, vs. Ball State)

Wisconsin has faced this criticism before, as the Badgers were undefeated heading into the Big Ten title game last year, but didn’t have a real chance of making it to the College Football Playoff without a win over Ohio State (which didn’t happen).

Perhaps in the future, more teams will improve their non-conference schedules, but for now, these slates are pretty manageable, to say the least.