Five takeaways from Big Ten media days on Tuesday

1. Michigan's QB options

On its way to winning the Big Ten championship last year, Michigan started Cade McNamara at quarterback and gave backup J.J. McCarthy plenty of reps. Coach Jim Harbaugh believes he has two capable starters. "Cade McNamara is going to be really tough to beat out for the starting quarterback job,'' Harbaugh said. "J.J. McCarthy is going to be really tough to beat out for the starting quarterback job.''

2. Huskers, Wildcats prep for Ireland

The 2022 Big Ten season starts Aug. 27 when Nebraska and Northwestern meet in Dublin, Ireland. Cornhuskers coach Scott Frost certainly isn't treating the game like a tourist excursion. "Our players understand that it's not a bowl trip. We didn't earn it,'' said Frost, whose Cornhuskers were 3-9 last season and didn't make a bowl in his first four seasons as Nebraska's coach. "We're going over there to play a football game, and that's got to be the focus.''

3. Hawkeyes stay focused

Iowa is seeking its second consecutive West Division title, but coach Kirk Ferentz isn't approaching it that way. "We really don't talk about that. We flipped the calendar in January. More importantly, we flipped our team,'' Ferentz said. "… We lost some good players off that ballclub, so we've got some work to do there.''

4. Hoosiers seek 2020 form

Indiana was a dark-horse pick to win the East Division in 2021 but instead finished 0-9 in the conference and 2-10 overall. Coach Tom Allen isn't looking back. "We talk about earmuffs and blinders in our program, and that's part of it,'' he said. "I get it, we earned it. ''

5. In Taulia he trusts

Taulia Tagovailoa passed for 3,860 yards and 26 touchdowns last season for Maryland, which went 7-6 with a Pinstripe Bowl win. Coach Mike Locksley believes Tagovailoa is underappreciated. "I don't think there's a more underrated player in the country than Taulia Tagovailoa, and I'll continue to say it, as he's a guy that has really been the catalyst to making us go on offense.''