The college football season is passing us by quickly folks, and each week we see some interesting and surprising things that make us reassess our Big Ten football power rankings.
What we thought we know early in the season has been turned upside down, aside from maybe Ohio State and Michigan setting the pace still. We now know the strength of the league seems to reside in the East with the Buckeyes, Wolverines and Nittany Lions, but in what order? All three are undefeated.
Meanwhile, if we head to the West division, it feels like a coin flip every week on who will win each matchup. It’s anyone’s guess who will head to Indy and the Big Ten football championship game with a chance to knock off the champion of the East division.
Here’s where we believe things stand with the power of the Big Ten after six weeks in the books. And, yeah, we’re sure it’ll all look much different in a couple of weeks from the middle to the bottom because that’s just how things are going this season.
14
Northwestern Wildcats (1-5, 1-2)
Last Week
Lost to Wisconsin, 42-7
| Previous week | Change |
| 14 | no change |
It’s becoming increasingly clear that Northwestern’s Week 0 win over Nebraska was a fluke and was more Irish luck across the pond. The Wildcats have yet to win in the good ol’ U.S.A., and that’s a problem when you play the game of American football.
At this point in the season, despite the head-to-head win, there’s little doubt the Cornhuskers are moving in a positive direction after two straight wins, while Northwestern is sinking fast.
Next Up
IDLE
13
Indiana Hoosiers (3-3, 1-2)
Last Week
Lost to Michigan, 31-10
| Previous week | Change |
| 13 | no change |
After a 3-0 start to the season and a lot of optimism, Indiana has lost three straight, and football fans are thinking about turning their attention to the basketball season. So, basically, the universe is back in cream and crimson balance.
The Hoosiers played Michigan to a stalemate through one half of football but then remembered that they are in fact, the Hoosiers, surrendering 21 points in the second half and failing to score any of their own. It looks to be downhill from here.
Next Up
vs. Maryland
12
Rutgers Scarlet Knights (3-3, 0-3)
Last Week
Lost to Nebraska, 14-13
| Previous week | Change |
| 11 | -1 |
Rutgers is another team on a slide after a promising 3-0 start to the season. In its case, injuries and uncertainty at the quarterback position have played a major part. The competitive level is there, the talent just isn’t.
The Scarlet Knights simply had to beat the Cornhuskers this weekend if they wanted to continue to entertain thoughts of a bowl game, but couldn’t quite seal the deal because of an offense that couldn’t get out of its own way. Unfortunately, it looks like that might be the story the rest of the way.
Next Up
IDLE
11
Nebraska Cornhuskers (3-3, 2-1)
Last Week
Won at Rutgers, 14-13
| Previous week | Change |
| 12 | +1 |
Nebraska is 2-1 after firing Scott Frost and seems to be figuring some things out at least against the bottom part of the league. The offense is still a work in progress, but the team is finally starting to find ways to win close games.
The game against Rutgers could have gone the other way, but the ‘Huskers punched back against recent history and found a way to wrestle victory from the jaws of defeat — as “corny” as that sounds.
Next Up
at Purdue
10
Michigan State Spartans (2-4, 0-3)
Last Week
Lost to Ohio State, 49-20
| Previous week | Change |
| 9 | -1 |
You could make a case for the Spartans tumbling even further than this after four straight losses, but we’ll take into account the schedule of the last few weeks. Still, there are some serious issues in East Lansing.
Ohio State did almost anything it wanted on offense Saturday and even pulled the reins back a little. Otherwise, the 49-20 score could have been even more lopsided. There have been a number of injuries on defense, and the depth just isn’t there at this point to absorb those kinds of losses against the upper crust of the Big Ten.
Next Up
vs. Wisconsin
9
Iowa Hawkeyes (3-3, 1-2)
Last Week
Lost at Illinois, 9-6
| Previous week | Change |
| 8 | -1 |
It’s official. Watching paint dry, water boil and grass grow are all more exciting than enduring four hours of watching the Iowa offense operate. Between poor quarterback play, a vanilla game plan and a lack of weapons on offense, there’s not much to like in Iowa City.
It was more of the same against Illinois on Saturday. The Illini won in a field goal fest, 9-6. I mean, that’s about as on-brand that Hawkeye football can get, and, unfortunately, the team is going to have an awful time stringing any kind of win streak together with an offense that is just a preview to a special teams gala.
Next Up
IDLE
8
Wisconsin Badgers (3-3, 1-2)
Last Week
Won at Northwestern, 42-7
| Previous week | Change |
| 10 | +2 |
It’s hard to really figure out what Wisconsin is right now. The offensive line hasn’t been as solid as it normally is, and the defense has sprung more leaks than we’ve seen in years past. The inconsistency and poor performance led to the firing of Paul Chryst midseason.
But for one week, with interim head coach Jim Leonhard calling the shots, the Badgers gave a super wedgie to the Northwestern Wildcats on the road. Wisconsin is not the first team to do that this year — and somewhat surprisingly — it was quarterback Graham Mertz leading the way with five touchdown passes and one yard shy of 300 for the game.
Next Up
7
Illinois Fighting Illini (5-1, 2-1)
Last Week
Won vs. Iowa, 9-6
| Previous week | Change |
| 7 | no change |
Illinois isn’t winning any beauty pageants, but it keeps on notching wins and is already one game away from bowl eligibility. Running back Chase Brown might be the best running back in the league this year, and the defense has been outstanding.
Now, before we get ahead of ourselves, there really hasn’t been a game against a team that is considered one of the best in the league, but from what we’ve seen from Illinois over the last few years, there has definitely been improvement. The game against Iowa was ugly and more, but it was a win and that’s better than dropping a game in the unpredictable West.
Next Up
vs. Minnesota
6
Maryland Terrapins (4-2, 1-2)
Last Week
Lost to Purdue, 31-29
| Previous week | Change |
| 4 | -2 |
If you’ve followed this free Buckeye homer site for long, you know what we always say about Maryland. The narrative has always been that the Terps look great in the nonconference but don’t have the depth and toughness to hold up once the Big Ten gets crankin’.
Three weeks into the Big Ten part of the schedule for Maryland and it’s starting to look like a rerun. We think things are a little different this year with more skill at wide receiver and with quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa playing at a pretty high level, but a loss to Purdue and Michigan does nothing to dispel what we’ve seen in recent history.
Next Up
at Indiana
5
Minnesota Golden Gophers (4-1, 1-1)
Last Week
IDLE
| Previous week | Change |
| 6 | +1 |
Minnesota didn’t play this week but still moves up because of Maryland’s woes. We have to remember the Golden Gophers were without running back Mohamed Ibrahim in their only loss of the season to Purdue, but we also can’t ignore the result.
This team might still be the class of the West if it can stay healthy, and the game next week against Illinois is a battle for first place. We’ll know a lot more about both teams after that result.
Next Up
at Illinois
4
Purdue Boilermakers (4-2, 2-1)
Last Week
Won at Maryland, 31-29
| Previous week | Change |
| 5 | +1 |
Purdue has made a serious move over the last couple of weeks with wins against Minnesota and Maryland. The string of victories against two division foes puts the Boilermakers in the driver’s seat more than any other team in the West.
Aidan O’Connell is arguably the best quarterback in the Big Ten not named C.J. Stroud after a 360-yard performance on the road vs. the Terps. If the defense can continue to just be average, this team has a real shot at heading to Indianapolis to try and win a conference championship.
Next Up
vs. Nebraska
3
Penn State Nittany Lions (5-0, 2-0)
Last Week
IDLE
| Previous week | Change |
| 3 | no change |
Do we really know how good Penn State is? There wasn’t anything to go on this week with the bye, but from what we’ve seen so far, the team is talented enough to have a say in the Big Ten East, especially since Ohio State has to travel through Happy Valley.
You still have to worry about the up-and-down play of quarterback Sean Clifford, but he has a chance to build on his reputation and career under center in those plain-Jane uniforms when the Nittany Lions travel to the Big House for a titanic clash with Michigan.
Next Up
at Michigan
2
Michigan Wolverines (6-0, 3-0)
Last Week
Won at Indiana, 31-10
| Previous week | Change |
| 2 | no change |
After running through the first part of the schedule without much adversity, Michigan has found a little more resistance over the last three weeks once the competition level of the opponent has gotten a little better. The offense has started to spring a few leaks but the record is still an unblemished one.
Though the Wolverines pulled away from Indiana late, the final score is not indicative of the struggles we saw from Jim Harbaugh’s crew Saturday. We’ll see what happens when Penn State comes to Ann Arbor and if they are really as good as many think or if the chinks in the armor are real.
Next Up
vs. Penn State
1
Ohio State Buckeyes (6-0, 3-0)
Last Week
Won at Michigan State, 49-20
| Previous week | Change |
| 1 | no change |
Now that we are halfway through the season, Ohio State has separated itself as the most complete and talented team in the Big Ten, and maybe even in the country. The offense is humming along even with Jaxon Smith-Njigba sidelined and with both running backs in and out with some bumps and bruises. C.J. Stroud continues to do C.J. Stroud things.
But it’s the defense that’s got everyone excited because the frontline is playing at a high level and making things awfully difficult on opposing offenses. Ohio State now gets the benefit of an off week to hopefully get everyone healthy for a stretch run that begins with Iowa at home in a couple of weeks. Then, it’s time for Penn State and Michigan just off on the horizon.
Next Up
IDLE
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