10-win Big Ten football non-CFP team coined by ESPN's Heather Dinich as Indiana equivalent this fall

The college football season will be here before long. In spite of that, pundits are already beginning to figure out which teams are the pretenders, contenders and the elite of the Big Ten.

Last year's league outlook saw a plethora of surprises, which included an emphatic turnaround in Curt Cignetti's first season as coach of the Indiana Hoosiers. The Hoosiers nearly went from worst to first but wound up still making the College Football Playoff before losing in the inaugural 12-team playoff to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the opening round.

Fast-forward to the fall outlook: ESPN's Heather Dinich was a guest on Tuesday's edition of "The Pat McAfee Show" and asked which team may raise eyebrows this fall.

For those who closely follow the conference, Dinich answered without hesitation.

"I really like what [Bret] Bielema has coming back," Dinich said about the Illinois Fighting Illini. "They got a QB, they got 18 starters, they got all their stars back on the offensive line, and they don’t play Oregon, Michigan or Penn State.”

Dinich then took it a step further, drawing a direct comparison to last year's Hoosiers team. 

"So think about that schedule like Indiana has last year, so look out for the Illini.”

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Illinois does draw a favorable schedule in many respects, but three games at minimum could define the season: defending national champion Ohio State, USC and a road game against Washington. Illinois hasn't defeated the Buckeyes since 2007, while the Washington Huskies have Bielema's ex-defensive coordinator, Ryan Walters, after a failed stint at Purdue as its head coach. Meanwhile, USC is on the upswing under coach Lincoln Riley after winning a bowl game and doing immense work on the recruiting trail.

Last season, Illinois improved its win total by five games and lost only one game (Minnesota) at home. Its other two defeats came at the expense of the Oregon Ducks and Penn State Nittany Lions, as both teams wound up in the conference title game, with Oregon prevailing 45-37.

Bielema has been vocal about wanting to create the Illinois program in his image without letting past program hurdles get in the way of long-term success.

“I really do care what’s happened in the past [here] — but I don’t care,” Bielema said in January. “I am very respectful of everything that's been built to come here, but I also think we’ve been weighted down by the past.”

Entering his fifth season, Bielema's team may become America's obsession. If Illinois does reach that feat, Dinich's comments may come true indeed.

The Illini will have a chance to prove they can replicate Indiana's success from last season by kicking off the conference schedule with a win in Bloomington Sept. 20, a potential benchmark for how far they might go.

For now, August awaits.