Indiana remains the top team in the Big Ten Power Rankings while Iowa is this week’s biggest riser after both teams made big statements with blowout wins in Week 9.
While Ohio State had the weekend off, Indiana continued to bolster its résumé with a 56-6 shellacking of UCLA, snapping the Bruins’ three-game winning streak in blowout fashion. Iowa, meanwhile, stole all of the momentum Minnesota had from its win at Nebraska by earning a 41-3 win over the Golden Gophers, making the case that it’s one of the four best teams in the Big Ten.
On the other end of the spectrum, Illinois is this week’s biggest faller as the Fighting Illini – who were slotted at No. 4 entering the week – suffered a playoff-eliminating third loss of the season in decisive fashion at Washington.
With just one month to go in the regular season, our Big Ten Power Rankings take a look at how all 18 Big Ten teams stack up with one another based on their play through the first two months of the year. Overall records, conference records, head-to-head results, who each team has beaten and lost to and how decisively teams have won and lost their games were all taken into consideration when determining where each team should be ranked.
1. Indiana (8-0, 5-0)
Wins: Old Dominion (27-14), Kennesaw State (56-9), Indiana State (73-0), Illinois (63-10), at Iowa (20-15), at Oregon (30-20), Michigan State (38-13), UCLA (56-6)
Losses: None
Last Week: 1
Indiana made the case that it’s not only the best team in the Big Ten but the best team in college football with its 50-point throttling of UCLA on Saturday. With a perfect 8-0 record that includes five wins of 25-plus points and a pair of road victories at Oregon and Iowa, the Hoosiers have the nation’s best résumé and are establishing themselves more and more each week as a true national championship contender.
2. Ohio State (7-0, 4-0)
Wins: Texas (14-7), Grambling State (70-0), Ohio (37-9), at Washington (24-6), Minnesota (42-3), at Illinois (34-16), at Wisconsin (34-0)
Losses: None
Last Week: 2
Ohio State remains the betting favorite to win the national championship and a no-doubt playoff team with college football’s best defense, but the Hoosiers hold the edge in the head-to-head résumé battle right now. Ohio State didn’t have the opportunity to make its case for the No. 1 spot while Indiana dominated in Week 9, and its season-opening win over Texas lost a little more cachet as the Longhorns needed overtime to beat an unranked opponent (Mississippi State) for the second week in a row.
3. Oregon (7-1, 4-1)
Wins: Montana State (59-13), Oklahoma State (69-3), at Northwestern (34-14), Oregon State (41-7), at Penn State (30-24), at Rutgers (56-10), Wisconsin (21-7)
Losses: Indiana (30-20)
Last Week: 3
Beating Wisconsin by only 14 points at home was an underwhelming result for the Ducks, who’ve built their 7-1 record by beating up on a lot of bad teams this season. Northwestern remains the only FBS team with a winning record that Oregon’s defeated this year. But the Ducks are the only team in the Big Ten with just one loss on their overall record, making them the clear No. 3 team in the conference rankings right now.
4. Iowa (6-2, 4-1)
Wins: Albany (34-7), UMass (47-7), at Rutgers (38-28), at Wisconsin (37-0), Penn State (25-24), Minnesota (41-3)
Losses: at Iowa State (17-14), Indiana (20-15)
Last Week: 7
The Hawkeyes made a big statement in the battle for the Floyd of Rosedale on Saturday, outscoring Minnesota 31-0 in the first half on their way to a 38-point win over the Golden Gophers. Iowa’s defense outscored Minnesota 7-3 while forcing three turnovers and holding the Gophers to 133 yards, and the Hawkeyes have had one of the nation’s best defenses all year. They’ve played Indiana closer than anyone else has this season, they’ve won all of their other conference games, and they were just as dominant as Ohio State against Wisconsin and Minnesota. All of that moves Iowa into the top four of the Big Ten Power Rankings for the first time this year.
5. USC (5-2, 3-1)
Wins: Missouri State (73-13), Georgia Southern (59-20), at Purdue (33-17), Michigan State (45-31), Michigan (31-13)
Losses: at Illinois (34-32), at Notre Dame (34-24)
Last Week: 5
The Trojans’ decisive head-to-head win over Michigan keeps USC in the top five following their second bye week of the season. After a week to lick their wounds from their loss to Notre Dame, USC heads to Nebraska looking to earn its first road win of the season over an opponent that’s beaten a Power 4 team.
6. Michigan (6-2, 4-1)
Wins: New Mexico (34-17), Central Michigan (63-3), at Nebraska (30-27), Wisconsin (24-10), Washington (24-7), at Michigan State (31-20)
Losses: at Oklahoma (24-13), at USC (31-13)
Last Week: 6
Michigan let Michigan State hang around for four quarters as Bryce Underwood threw for just 86 yards in the in-state rivalry game, but the Wolverines ultimately grinded their way to a two-score win thanks to a 276-yard, four-touchdown day running the ball. Nothing has been pretty for the maize and blue this season, but they’ve still found a way to win most games with their running game and defense, which makes them a dangerous team in November as they look to earn their way into the CFP and continue their winning streak in The Game.
7. Washington (6-2, 3-2)
Wins: Colorado State (38-21), UC Davis (70-10), at Washington State (59-24), at Maryland (24-20), Rutgers (38-19), Illinois (42-25)
Losses: Ohio State (24-6), at Michigan (24-7)
Last Week: 9
Washington has looked like a completely different team against bad defenses than it has against good defenses. After getting shut down by Michigan the same way it did against Ohio State, Washington’s offense returned to its explosive form against Illinois as the Huskies put up 42 points on 449 yards on their way to a three-score win. Their poor performances against Ohio State and Michigan seem more indicative of what they’re able to do against top teams, but their decisive victory over the Illini kept their CFP hopes alive.
8. Nebraska (6-2, 3-2)
Wins: Cincinnati (20-17), Akron (68-0), Houston Christian (59-7), Michigan State (38-27), at Maryland (34-31), Northwestern (28-21)
Losses: Michigan (30-27), at Minnesota (24-6)
Last Week: 10
Having to battle to get back in the win column against Northwestern wasn’t the most impressive performance for Matt Rhule’s squad, but it was at least better than the Cornhuskers’ loss to Minnesota one week earlier. Securing bowl eligibility by the end of October is an accomplishment for a program that went nine years without making a bowl game before last season, and their season-opening win over Cincinnati keeps looking stronger by the week. But their performance in Big Ten play keeps leaving a lot to be desired, with a pivotal game against USC on the horizon next week.
9. Illinois (5-3, 2-3)
Wins: Western Illinois (52-3), at Duke (45-19), Western Michigan (38-0), USC (34-32), Purdue (43-27)
Losses: at Indiana (63-10), Ohio State (34-16), at Washington (42-25)
Last Week: 4
Losing to Indiana and Ohio State was forgivable, even in lopsided fashion, but a 17-point loss to Washington proved the Fighting Illini aren’t the College Football Playoff team that many (myself included, I’ll admit) thought they were entering the year. A sieve of a defense has been Illinois’ downfall, as the Illini have allowed at least 27 points in all five of their Big Ten games on an average of 448.6 yards per game.
10. Northwestern (5-3, 3-2)
Wins: Western Illinois (42-7), UCLA (17-14), UL Monroe (42-3), at Penn State (22-21), Purdue (19-0)
Losses: at Tulane (23-3), Oregon (34-14), at Nebraska (28-21)
Last Week: 10
Northwestern saw its four-game winning streak come to an end at Nebraska, but the Wildcats still looked the part of a solid mid-pack Big Ten team by taking the Cornhuskers to the wire in Lincoln. There aren’t any easy games left on their schedule (USC, Michigan, Minnesota and Illinois), but they’ve shown the grit to find a way to win at least one of them and make a bowl game.
11. Minnesota (5-3, 3-2)
Wins: Buffalo (23-10), Northwestern State (66-0), Rutgers (31-28), Purdue (27-20), Nebraska (24-6)
Losses: at California (27-14), at Ohio State (42-3), at Iowa (41-3)
Last Week: 8
After making a big move up the rankings with its Week 8 win over Nebraska, the Gophers crashed back down to earth hard with their blowout loss to Iowa. With three bad losses on their résumé compared to just one impressive win, the first two months of the season have been an undeniable disappointment for P.J. Fleck’s squad. Despite its head-to-head win over the Cornhuskers with the same conference record, Minnesota couldn’t stay in the top 10 of the power rankings with how terribly it played against the Hawkeyes.
12. UCLA (3-5, 3-2)
Wins: Penn State (42-37), at Michigan State (38-13), Maryland (20-17)
Losses: Utah (43-10), at UNLV (30-23), New Mexico (35-10), at Northwestern (17-14), at Indiana (56-6)
Last Week: 12
It wasn’t surprising that UCLA’s storybook three-game winning streak ended against Indiana, but it was disappointing that the Bruins allowed the Hoosiers to win by 50 points. With a challenging November schedule consisting of games against Nebraska, Ohio State, Washington and USC, UCLA will have to be much better than it was in Bloomington if it’s going to win another game this season.
13. Maryland (4-3, 1-3)
Wins: FAU (39-7), Northern Illinois (20-9), Towson (44-17), at Wisconsin (27-10)
Losses: Washington (24-20), Nebraska (34-31), at UCLA (20-17)
Last Week: 11
With no game this past weekend, Maryland finishes October with an 0-3 record. The September Terps still have a record above .500 thanks to their 4-0 start to the season, but they have yet to beat an opponent with a winning record this year.
14. Rutgers (4-4, 1-4)
Wins: Ohio (34-31), Miami-Ohio (45-17), Norfolk State (60-10), at Purdue (27-24)
Losses: Iowa (38-28), at Minnesota (31-28), at Washington (38-19), Oregon (56-10)
Last Week: 17
Thanks to a late fumble by Purdue in its own territory that set up a game-winning field goal for the Scarlet Knights, Rutgers extricated itself from the ranks of winless teams in Big Ten play. The Scarlet Knights’ offense got back to its explosive ways in West Lafayette, putting up 543 yards with a 241-yard receiving day for KJ Duff. Barely beating the Boilermakers isn’t enough to pull Rutgers out of the Big Ten’s Bottom Five, but it does move them ahead of the four teams in the conference who still haven’t won a game.
15. Penn State (3-4, 0-4)
Wins: Nevada (46-11), Florida International (34-0), Villanova (52-6)
Losses: Oregon (30-24), at UCLA (42-37), Northwestern (22-21), at Iowa (25-24)
Last Week: 14
An idle week kept Penn State winless in Big Ten play entering its trip to Ohio State next weekend. The Nittany Lions have been more competitive in their Big Ten games than the other winless teams in conference play, but this is the highest they’ll be in the rankings until they find a way to win one.
16. Michigan State (3-5, 0-5)
Wins: Western Michigan (23-6), Boston College (42-40), Youngstown State (41-24)
Losses: at USC (45-31), at Nebraska (38-27), UCLA (38-13), at Indiana (38-13), Michigan (31-20)
Last Week: 15
Michigan State showed more competitiveness against Michigan than it did in its previous Big Ten games, yet still dropped to 0-5 in conference play with all five losses coming by double digits. A lack of discipline and missed opportunities doomed the Spartans in the battle for the Paul Bunyan Trophy, as they committed 12 penalties for 105 yards and turned the ball over on downs twice in the fourth quarter.
17. Purdue (2-6, 0-5)
Wins: Ball State (31-0), Southern Illinois (34-17)
Losses: at USC (33-17), at Notre Dame (56-30), Illinois (43-27), at Minnesota (27-20), at Northwestern (19-0), Rutgers (27-24)
Last Week: 16
Any positives that could be taken away from Purdue’s first two months of the season crumbled away over the past two weeks, as the Boilermakers followed up a shutout loss to Northwestern by blowing a 10-point second-half lead against Rutgers. With a highly difficult November slate of Michigan, Ohio State, Washington and Indiana to finish the season, the Boilermakers are riding an express train to their second straight winless season in Big Ten play.
18. Wisconsin (2-6, 0-5)
Wins: Miami-Ohio (17-0), Middle Tennessee State (42-10)
Losses: at Alabama (38-14), Maryland (27-10), at Michigan (24-10), Iowa (37-0), Ohio State (34-0), at Oregon (21-7)
Last Week: 18
The good news: Wisconsin didn’t get shut out at Oregon and kept the game respectable, unlike its previous two games against Ohio State and Iowa. The bad news: The Badgers still have the second-worst offense in the entire country (ahead of only UMass in both points and yards per game), as they’ve averaged only 5.4 points per game in Big Ten play. Like Purdue, Wisconsin seems well on its way to a 2-10 season with a last-month schedule of Washington, Indiana, Illinois and Minnesota.
