2026 Season Previews.
By-the-numbers previews: projected records, the games that decide the season, and exactly what the model can and can't see.
The 2026 NFL Season, Simulated 20,000 Times: Standings, Super Bowl Odds, and Award Races
Way-too-early predictions, on the record before a single camp opens: projected standings and Super Bowl odds from 20,000 season simulations built on de-vig market priors and a drive-level Markov engine, award races from a model trained on a decade of actual voting — and exactly how all of it works, including what it can't see.
Rams 15.8% SB · Allen 23% MVP · Garrett three-peat bid · 20,000 sims02NCAAF · Season PreviewReload in Lincoln: Nebraska's 2026 Season, by the Numbers
Nebraska is coming off back-to-back bowls for the first time since 2015–16 and a coach locked up through 2032 — then lost quarterback Dylan Raiola to Oregon and All-American back Emmett Johnson to the NFL Draft. BBMI grades the Huskers 37th nationally, 10th of 18 in the Big Ten, and a projected 6–6 (3–6): about 6.2 expected wins, a cupcake non-conference tray, a vicious back half, and a Black Friday trip to Iowa where the model makes them an 8-point underdog.
#37 nationally · 10th of 18 Big Ten · 6–6 base case · Iowa ~34% (8-pt dog)03NCAAF · Season PreviewRow the Boat, Again: Minnesota's 2026 Season, by the Numbers
Minnesota is coming off 8–5 and a bowl win with almost everyone back — the coach, the quarterback, the star running back. BBMI grades the Gophers 50th nationally, 12th of 18 in the Big Ten, and a projected 7–5 that sits right on the six-win bowl line: about 6.0 expected wins, four true toss-ups, a defense reloading after losing an All-America safety to Oregon, and a fall of three rivalry trophies capped by an Axe game the model calls the closest on the schedule.
#50 nationally · 12th of 18 Big Ten · 7–5 base case · Axe ~53–47 MN04NCAAF · Season PreviewCan the Badgers Climb Off the Floor? Wisconsin's 2026 Season, by the Numbers
Wisconsin is coming off a 4–8 collapse, the Air Raid finally buried, and a coach on the hot seat. BBMI has started modeling college football and the Badgers are one of the first teams up: 67th nationally, 17th of 18 in the Big Ten, and a projected 5–7 (3–6) that's softer than the record looks: about 5.5 expected wins, four true toss-ups short of a bowl, and a season-closing Axe game that grades as the closest call on the schedule.
#67 nationally · 17th of 18 Big Ten · 5–7 base case · Axe ~53–47 MN