THIS IS A WEEKLY BIG TEN POWER RANKINGS, by Luke Maiers.
What did we learn this week in the Big Ten? Iowa and Michigan State are overrated, there are some pillow fight of games coming up in conference play and the Jaylen Waters had the dirtiest hit we will see all year in college football. Let’s get to this week’s power rankings.
1. Ohio State: Holy hell, this team is the most legitimate team in the nation. I have been preaching this all year, but I will say it again. Ohio State is THE best team in the nation, and J.T. Barrett is one of the elite quarterbacks in all of college football. Rutgers is not a good team, but Indiana makes a trip to the Horseshoe this weekend coming off of a good win. With that being said, the Buckeyes will still win this game by 20.
2. Michigan: Now that was a traditional Big Ten Game. Defense on defense. The Badgers gave it their best go, but this Wolverines defense is as advertised. People will say that Wisconsin’s quarterback situation is murky at best, but only giving up seven points is still a big deal. The star of this Michigan team is Jabrill Peppers. He plays on both sides of the ball and he does it with style. He is an explosive, hard hitting player and is a huge factor in Michigan’s success.
3. Nebraska: That state next to Iowa is on a roll. I have gained nothing but respect for this team. The Cornhuskers had five wins all of last year, and this season, they already have five wins. Granted, Nebraska’s schedule has been as hard as my class schedule this year, but they are taking care of their business. If Nebraska was dinged up at all, they have a bye this week to heal up. The 5-0 Huskers. Sounds kind of weird.
4. Wisconsin: If I was a Badgers fan and looked at this schedule, I would make sure that there is a lot of Miller Lite on hand for the next couple of weekends. After losing a tough one against Michigan this past weekend, they face Ohio State, Iowa and Nebraska. The quarterback play will have to step up, especially for the Ohio State game in Madison in two weeks. If that facet of their game does not improve, the Buckeyes will absolute disgrace the Badgers and everyone associated with them.
5. Indiana: The Hoosiers are here, and they are real. Devine Redding had his usual good game with 100 yards on the turf, but the big surprise was Indiana’s quarterback. Richard Lagow threw for 276 yards and two touchdowns in the huge upset win against Michigan State. The schedule doesn’t get any easier as they have Ohio State next on their schedule. This game could be a blowout, or it could not be. I guess we will see after this week.
6. Michigan State: Iowa and Michigan State deserve to be lower, but I still think these teams have the pieces to be good. I think Chris Schneider and I should watch Iowa and MSU games together that way we can both get buzzed and forget about the struggles that our teams are going through. The Spartans have BYU this weekend, so let’s see if they can win a non conference game against an extremely average opponent.
7. Iowa: I don’t even know. Not even the sweet salvation that is Busch Light could have saved from the misery of these last few weeks. The run defense is gross to watch, our offensive line is subpar and if I see C.J. Beathard take one more hit, I will freak out. Lucky for Iowa, the season is young, and the only real threat in the Big Ten that did not lose was Nebraska. Iowa faces the Cornhuskers at the end of the year, but the Hawkeyes need more work than I could have ever imagined.
8. Maryland: The Terrapins are still undefeated, and this team is one of the many surprises in the conference this year. A lot of the games on their schedule can make for some pretty insane pillow fights, but then they will end their year with three ranked match ups. Maryland realistically can reach 8-0 before their nightmare finish.
9. Penn State: I think the Nittany Lions last game against the Gophers was more about Minnesota than Penn State. It is an alright win for a team who has struggled a lot this season, but it isn’t impressive. I am not a huge fan of James Frankin, and I never have been. Penn State will be a subpar team for the rest of the year, so I wouldn’t get to excited about this win.
10. Minnesota: The only highlight from Minnesota’s last game was the hit on the Penn State kicker, Joey Julius, delivered by Jaylen Waters. A completely unnecessary and dirty hit, that personally, really made me mad. There is no need for that in the sport. Waters should be suspended for a game or two. The Gophers next game is against Iowa so they could pull out a win, but if they do win, it won’t be impressive.
11. Illinois: Another Lovie letdown. The Illini have had a tough early schedule but it is still disappointing to see their performance on the field to this point. The offense has been equally as bad, which is surprising since they have a veteran in Wes Lunt at quarterback. The only thing that Illinois has going for them is that they are one of the top party schools in the nation (which is debatable if you have ever been to Iowa City).
12. Purdue: The sad history of Purdue football came out in full force this weekend. Losing 50-7 to a mid-level Big Ten team is enough to make you want to quit watching a game. In fact, if that was my favorite team, there would have been a hole in the TV. Purdue takes on Illinois this weekend which could be another prime pillow fight in the Big Ten. Both teams need a win, but I think I’ll take the over on this game no matter what it is set at.
13. Northwestern: That was a nice looking win for Northwestern and it finally got them out of the basement of my rankings. The brainiacs from the Chicago area finally got a big win and next weekend they take on Michigan State. The Spartans are struggling just as much as the Hawkeyes are, so I think the Wildcats could win another one this weekend.
14. Rutgers: Welcome to the basement Rutgers. The Scarlet Knights last game against Ohio State was close for one quarter, but in the words of Ron Burgundy, “That escalated quickly”. This weekend could get equally as ugly as they take on #4 Michigan.