Ranking all 18 Big Ten safety duos from worst to first

The Big Ten Conference boasts some of college football's best talent at several key positions. Penn State's Drew Allar is one of the sport's top quarterbacks entering the 2025 season, Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith is arguably the single best wide receiver, Penn State's Nicholas Singleton could be the top running back, and so on.

While the conference's collection of high-level talent is seen all over the field, there is no greater concentration at a single position than at safety.

Ohio State star Caleb Downs returns after an All-American campaign in 2024, helping to lead the Buckeyes to a national title. Oregon headlined its offseason by landing Purdue transfer Dillon Thieneman -- the No. 11 overall transfer prospect and No. 1 safety. Behind that duo, Minnesota returns freshman All-American Koi Perich, star veteran Rod Moore returns from a knee injury to headline the Michigan defense and former five-star recruit Xavier Nwankpa is poised for a breakout year as one of Iowa's top defenders. That collection of safety talent is better than any in the nation. None should be surprised when those players lead the headlines when their respective defenses find success.

With the 2025 Big Ten football season just around the corner, we've ranked nearly every position group in the conference. It's no surprise that the projected top teams all rank well across the board.

Position Previews: Defense -- Offense -- Quarterbacks -- Running Backs -- Wide Receivers -- Tight Ends -- Offensive Line -- Defensive Line -- Pass-Rushers -- Inside Linebackers -- Cornerbacks

To finalize those individual position rankings, before looking at each team's secondary, special teams unit, coordinators and overall coaching staff in early August, here is a full preview of every safety duo in the Big Ten.

18. Northwestern Wildcats

Starters: Damon Walters, Dillon Tatum (transfer)

Walters, a redshirt sophomore, emerged as a starter toward the back half of 2024. He finished the year with 42 tackles, four for loss, one interception and two pass deflections. Tatum transfers in from Michigan State after missing most of 2024 due to injury. 247Sports slotted him as the No. 875 overall transfer prospect and No. 73 safety. Walters should take a further step forward in 2025, while Tatum is a bit of a question.

17. UCLA Bruins

Starters: Croix Stewart, Key Lawrence (transfer)

UCLA's safety duo is one of the biggest questions on its defense. Stewart is set to claim one starting role after totaling just 12 tackles in limited action in 2024. Lawrence, meanwhile, transfers in from Ole Miss after appearing in only four games in 2024; he sat out in order to maintain eligibility and transfer elsewhere. He previously started parts of three seasons at Oklahoma from 2021-23, totaling 149 tackles, 11 for loss, three interceptions, 12 pass deflections and six forced fumbles during that time. He was 247Sports' No. 966 overall transfer and No. 85 safety this offseason.

Get more (UCLA) news, analysis and opinions on UCLAWire

16. Purdue Boilermakers

Starters: Hershey McLaurin (transfer), Crew Wakley (transfer)

Purdue's safety tandem is just like the rest of its defense: full of transfers. McLaurin transfers in from Houston after tallying 50 tackles, eight for loss, 1/2 sacks, one interception, three pass deflections and one forced fumble. He was 247Sports' No. 1,411 transfer prospect and No. 122 safety. Wakley, meanwhile, started at BYU during each of the last two seasons. His 2024 campaign included 44 tackles, one for loss, one sack, two interceptions and one pass deflection. He is the higher-ranked of the two transfers, finishing the cycle as the No. 539 overall transfer and No. 33 safety.

15. Rutgers Scarlet Knights

Starters: Kaj Sanders, Jett Elad (transfer)

Sanders is set to lead a Scarlet Knights' safety room that lost multi-year starters Flip Dixon (77 tackles, four for loss, one sack, two interceptions, seven pass deflections) and Shaq Loyal (62 tackles, one interception, four pass deflections) after the 2024 season. Sanders tallied 43 tackles and four pass deflections in limited action last season. Elad transfers from UNLV after a terrific 84-tackle, five-for-loss, one-sack, one-interception and six-pass-deflection season. He was 247Sports' No. 710 overall transfer prospect and No. 57 safety. This is a fine group on paper, though it may struggle to recreate Dixon and Loyal's production.

14. Washington Huskies

Starters: C.J. Christian (transfer), Makell Esteen

Christian transfers in from FIU after an 80-tackle, three-for-loss, one-interception, three-pass-deflection, one-forced fumble season in 2024. He was 247Sports' No. 630 overall transfer recruit and No. 48 safety. Esteen, meanwhile, is set to step into a leadership role after starting five of 10 appearances for the Huskies in 2024. He recorded just 44 tackles and two for loss in that time. On a defense with the potential to be one of the Big Ten's best, this group is a major question.

Get more (Washington) news, analysis and opinions on Huskies Wire

13. Maryland Terrapins

Starters: Jalen Huskey, Lavain Scruggs

Huskey leads arguably the strength of the Maryland defense after a 45-tackle, three-for-loss, three-interception, one-pass-deflection season in 2024. Scruggs is in line to claim the free safety role after starting four of 12 appearances last season, finishing with 43 tackles, one for loss, one interception, two pass deflections and a forced fumble. Maryland's defense has questions up front and at cornerback. But its inside linebacker and safety groups appear to be real strengths.

12. Indiana Hoosiers

Starters: Louis Moore (transfer), Amare Ferrell

Moore transfers back to Indiana after a one-year sabbatical at Ole Miss. He tallied 82 tackles, one for loss, three interceptions, one pass deflection and three forced fumbles with the Hoosiers in 2023, before recording just 36 tackles, two for loss, 1/2 sack and one pass deflection in a limited role with the Rebels last season. 247Sports listed him as just the No. 1,092 overall player in the transfer class and No. 92 safety. Ferrell, a returning starter, is less of a question. He was second in the Big Ten with four interceptions in 2024, along with totals of 49 tackles, four for loss, 1 1/2 sacks and one pass deflection. This group will rise if Moore recreates to his 2023 production.

11. Michigan State Spartans

Starters: Malik Spencer, Nikai Martinez

Spencer brings significant experience to the table -- he's started 17 of 21 total appearances over the last two seasons, totaling 116 tackles, three for loss, one interception, eight pass deflections and a forced fumble. Martinez, a former UCF transfer, is another returning starter. He recorded 51 tackles, three for loss, two interceptions and two pass deflections lined up across from Spencer. This is a high-floor group with a ton of proven production.

Get more (Michigan State) news, analysis and opinions on Spartans Wire

10. Michigan Wolverines

Starters: Rod Moore, T.J. Metcalf (transfer)

Michigan gets defensive leader Moore back in the lineup after he missed the entire 2024 season with a knee injury. The former All-Big Ten safety was a major contributor on Michigan's national title team in 2023, as well as its Big Ten champion and College Football Playoff team in 2022. He should be one of the conference's better safeties if he can return to 100%. Metcalf, meanwhile, transfers in from Arkansas after a solid 2024 campaign (57 tackles, one for loss, three interceptions, seven pass deflections and one forced fumble). Given the question of Moore's health and Metcalf's status as a transfer, this group has a significant difference between its ceiling and floor.

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9. Wisconsin Badgers

Starters: Preston Zachman, Austin Brown

Wisconsin is tasked with replacing multi-year starter Hunter Wohler in its safety room. Zachman is the group's clear leader after starting all 12 games last season, finishing with 58 tackles, three for loss, two interceptions and four pass deflections. While the Badgers landed two highly coveted transfer safeties in Matt Jung and Matthew Traynor, hybrid cornerback/safety Austin Brown will be the group's leader next to Zachman. The senior, who finished 2024 with 51 tackles, two for loss, one sack, three pass deflections and a forced fumble, has a real chance to lead Wisconsin in tackles. Expect many three-safety looks with Zachman, Brown and Jung/Traynor.

8. Nebraska Cornhuskers

Starters: Marques Buford Jr., DeShon Singleton

Nebraska returns a pair of impact starters at safety in Buford and Singleton. Buford, a hybrid corner/safety, tallied 35 tackles, one for loss, one interception and five pass deflections in 2024. Singleton, meanwhile, finished second on the team in tackles (71), in addition to tallying a tackle for loss, an interception and three pass deflections. This is a high-floor group with significant proven production.

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7. Iowa Hawkeyes

Starters: Xavier Nwankpa, Koen Entringer

Iowa deserves a perennial top-tier position in this hierarchy. It holds this standing entering 2025 thanks to Nwankpa, a former five-star recruit who is in line for a breakthrough campaign. He's eclipsed 40 tackles in each of the last two seasons as a regular contributor. Entering 2025, his ascension is dependent on creating more havoc plays as one of the team's defensive leaders. Entringer, meanwhile, is set to claim a starting role after totaling 18 tackles in a reserve role last season. Given Iowa's pedigree at the position, it's reasonable to expect him to develop into a key contributor.

Get more (Iowa) news, analysis and opinions on Hawkeyes Wire

6. USC Trojans

Starters: Kamari Ramsey, Bishop Fitzgerald (transfer)

Ramsey will look to build an argument as one of the Big Ten's best safeties when he takes the field in 2025. The former UCLA transfer excelled with 60 tackles, six for loss, two sacks, one interception, five pass deflections and two forced fumbles in 2024. Fitzgerald, an NC State transfer, also put up terrific numbers last season: 55 tackles, seven for loss, three interceptions, eight pass deflections and one forced fumble. This group's spot at No. 6 indicates the conference's terrific depth of talent at the position.

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5. Illinois Fighting Illini

Starters: Miles Scott, Matthew Bailey

Scott will look for his third consecutive season with multiple interceptions when the 2025 campaign kicks off. He tallied 55 tackles, two picks, four pass deflections and a forced fumble as a full-time starter in 2024. Bailey was a breakout player across from Scott last season, finishing the year with 94 tackles, two for loss, one interception, seven pass deflections and two forced fumbles. This is one of the more underrated safety tandems in the Big Ten -- it could easily rise to the conference's top tier.

4. Penn State Nittany Lions

Starters: Zakee Wheatley, Dejuan Lane

Penn State's safety tandem is another elite group on what is a top-tier defensive unit. Wheatley excelled as one of the team's best defenders in 2024, finishing with 96 tackles, three for loss, three interceptions, four pass deflections and a forced fumble. He has a chance to enter the conversation of the conference's second-best safety, behind Ohio State's Caleb Downs. Lane, on the other hand, appeared in all 16 games as a true freshman in 2024. He'll be expected to take a big leap as the team's starter beside Wheatley.

Get more (Penn State) news, analysis and opinions on Nittany Lions Wire

3. Minnesota Golden Gophers

Starters: Koi Perich, Kerry Brown

Perich should be a household name by the time Big Ten play rolls around in September. The versatile safety was a freshman All-American last season after totaling 46 tackles, three for loss, a Big Ten-leading five interceptions, three pass deflections and one forced fumble. 2025 should see an even further breakthrough from the future first-round NFL draft pick. Brown is set to start across from Perich after delivering strong production as a starter in 2024 (63 tackles, three for loss, two interceptions, four pass deflections). Together, this is one of the better safety duos in the country.

2. Oregon Ducks

Starters: Kingston Lopa, Dillon Thieneman (transfer)

The top two teams on this list shouldn't come as much of a surprise. Oregon headlined its offseason with Thieneman's addition. The Purdue transfer eclipsed 100 tackles in each of the last two seasons, also totaling seven tackles for loss, a sack, six interceptions, nine pass deflections and two forced fumbles in that time. As mentioned, he was 247Sports' No. 11 overall transfer prospect and top safety. Lopa, a four-star recruit in the class of 2024, appeared in six games as a true freshman. Thieneman's excellence should give him plenty of time to develop.

Get more (Oregon) news, analysis and opinions on Ducks Wire

1. Ohio State Buckeyes

Starters: Caleb Downs, Jaylen McClain

Ohio State's Downs should be one of the best players in college football in 2025. The All-American safety recorded 82 tackles, eight for loss, 1/2 sack, two interceptions and six pass deflections in 2024, leading Ohio State to the national title. Just like Oregon, Ohio State has an unknown in McClain set to claim the other starting position. But Downs' ability should give him plenty of time to find his footing.

Get more (Ohio State) news, analysis and opinions on Buckeyes Wire

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This article originally appeared on Badgers Wire: Power ranking Big Ten safety duos from worst to first