Off the field, there’s uncertainty and controversy surrounding the Michigan State football program. On the field, the first two weeks have gone pretty smoothly for the Spartans.
Michigan State football took care of business with a 45-14 win over Richmond on Saturday, but it is the news surrounding Mel Tucker that is catching headlines nationally. Tucker has been suspended indefinitely due to sexual harassment allegations and there’s a chance he has coached his final game at Michigan State.
Buy Spartans TicketsHow does that impact the Big Ten power rankings for this week and where I have the Spartans? See where I have the Spartans listed amongst their appears in our updated batch of Big Ten power rankings below:
14
Northwestern
Record: 1-1 (1-1 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. UTEP
Next Game: at Duke on Sept. 16
Northwestern is on the board! I wasn’t sure if the Wildcats would pick up a victory this year after what I saw last week, but they surprised me with a blowout win over UTEP this weekend.
13
Nebraska
Record: 0-2 (0-1 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Loss at Colorado
Next Game: Northern Illinois on Sept. 16
It has not been a good start to the Matt Rhule era in Lincoln. The Cornhuskers were blown out at Colorado and look like a team that will struggle to make a bowl game. I expected more from Nebraska this year.
12
Illinois
Record: 1-1 (0-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Loss at Kansas
Next Game: Penn State on Sept. 16
Illinois has come back to earth this fall — that is pretty clear in the first two weeks. The Jayhawks easily handled the Fighting Illini this week, and the competition will only get tougher this week when Penn State comes to town.
11
Indiana
Record: 1-1 (0-1 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. Indiana State
Next Game: Louisville on Sept. 16
Indiana took care of business against in-state Football Championship Subdivision rival Indiana State for the easy win on Friday night. There’s not much we can take from that game, but this week’s neutral site matchup with Louisville should be more telling of how good (or bad) Indiana truly is.
10
Purdue
Record: 1-1 (0-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win at Virginia Tech
Next Game: Syracuse on Sept. 16
Purdue rebounded from a season-opening loss to Fresno State with a road victory over Virginia Tech. This was an early season must-win for the Boilermakers to make up for the disappointing loss in the opener.
9
Rutgers
Record: 2-0 (1-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. Temple
Next Game: Virginia Tech on Sept. 16
Rutgers picked up another convincing win this week against Temple to improve to 2-0. The competition continues to pick up for the Scarlet Knights; they’ll host a solid Virginia Tech squad this weekend.
8
Minnesota
Record: 2-0 (1-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. Eastern Michigan
Next Game: at North Carolina on Sept. 16
Minnesota is 2-0 but hasn’t looked particularly impressive in either win. The defense has been a bright spot for the Golden Gophers, and that unit will get a good test this upcoming weekend against Heisman contender Drake Maye and North Carolina.
7
Maryland
Record: 2-0 (0-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. Charlotte
Next Game: Virginia on Sept. 15
Maryland overcame a slow start to handle Charlotte for a second straight blowout win. The Terps haven’t been tested this year, and the competition will not get much harder this week either. Maryland has a home tilt against Virginia.
6
Wisconsin
Record: 1-1 (0-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Loss at Washington State
Next Game: Georgia Souther on Sept. 16
It might be time to pump the brakes on the Wisconsin hype train. The Badgers went across the country and were dominated by the Washington State Cougars. Wisconsin still could be very good, but it isn’t the potentially dominant team we thought they could be.
5
Michigan State
Record: 2-0 (0-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. Richmond
Next Game: Washington on Sept. 16
For now, Michigan State looks like one of the better teams in the conference. But that of course could change quickly with the Tucker suspension. I’m going to continue to power rank the Spartans appropriately as it’s not fair to drop them until we see how they look without Tucker — but this time next week things could look a lot different in these power rankings for the Spartans.
4
Iowa
Record: 2-0 (0-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. Iowa State
Next Game: Western Michigan on Sept. 16
Iowa looks to be the same team we’ve gotten used to: great defense and below-average offense. That very well could be good enough to win the Big Ten West Division this year, but it will not be enough to compete with the three big boys at the top.
3
Ohio State
Record: 2-0 (1-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. Youngstown State
Next Game: Western Kentucky on Sept. 16
Ohio State looked better in its four-touchdown victory over Youngstown State this week but still wasn’t up to the normal Buckeyes standard. Ohio State gets one more tuneup game before a massive road game against Notre Dame.
2
Penn State
Record: 2-0 (0-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. Delaware
Next Game: at Illinois on Sept. 16
Penn State made easy work of FCS foe Delaware this week in a blowout victory. The Nittany Lions will hit the road for the first time next week at Illinois. This will be an intriguing test for Penn State, which has looked extremely impressive through two games.
1
Michigan
Record: 2-0 (0-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. UNLV
Next Game: Bowling Green on Sept. 16
The Wolverines again took care of easy competition and J.J. McCarthy looked impressive for Michigan. This week will be another walk in the park for Michigan before it begins conference play against Rutgers.
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