Power Ranking Big Ten Football Teams Post Week 6
We're halfway through the 2015 regular season, and the Big Ten has arguably been the most pleasant surprise in the country when it's come to the nation's Power Five conferences. After entering the year with three preseason Top 25 teams, the Big Ten had five teams ranked in the most recent AP Top 25, with all five teams ranking in the poll's Top 20.
Perhaps more impressively, all five of the Big Ten's ranked teams seem to still be alive in the hunt to make the College Football Playoff, a process that will play out with no shortage of intriguing matchups in the coming weeks.
The league hasn't just become top-heavy either, as depth appears to be building throughout. Ten of the conference's 14 teams currently possess winning records, including some programs that have historically been viewed as Big Ten walkovers.
Its only the midway point of the regular season, but there's already been a lot to like about the Big Ten this year. With that in mind, let's take a look at our conference power rankings following the sixth week of the season.
1. Ohio State
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College football's defending national champion, Ohio State has maintained its preseason No. 1 ranking through the first six weeks of the season, despite sluggish outings on offense and a defense that at times has been inconsistent.
But while the Buckeyes have seen their tally of first-place votes in the AP Top 25 drop from a unanimous 61 to just 27 in the most recent poll, Urban Meyer believes his team may have hit a turning point in its 49-28 win over Maryland over the weekend. It was there that Meyer implemented a true two-quarterback system between Cardale Jones and J.T. Barrett, who each finally seemed to regain their national-championship-season forms.
"I think there was," Meyer said when asked if Ohio State saw a breakthrough in its most recent victory. "I'm very happy with it. I'm into good kids. I'm into good people that are committed to our program. To see a smile on those guys' face and to see they worked hard...it's a unique situation."
Whether or not the Buckeyes' new approach when it comes to their quarterbacks will be sustainable remains to be seen. But for now, Ohio State remains atop not just the Big Ten but the entire country in a year that's yet to see any truly elite teams emerge at the midway point of the regular season.
2. Michigan State
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While the enigmatic nature of the Ohio State offense has garnered most of the headlines, Michigan State's own relative struggles this season have flown under the radar. Still, the Spartans find themselves ranked seventh in the most recent AP Top 25 and control their own destiny when it comes to crashing the College Football Playoff.
Only doing so doesn't seem as simple for Michigan State as it did a month ago, when the Spartans were still riding high over a Week 2 win over preseason No. 7 Oregon. That was enough to move Michigan State up to No. 2 in the polls for a couple of weeks, but the Spartans have since responded with a pair of close calls against Purdue and Rutgers in their past two outings.
"Bottom line is you win. The bottom line is you need to win. I don't feel frustration," MSU head coach Mark Dantonio said following his team's 24-21 escape against the Boilermakers. "I don't care how you get there, we played well before and not won. So bottom line is do you win?"
With the Spartans headed to Ann Arbor for a highly anticipated showdown with No. 12 Michigan, style points certainly won't matter for Michigan State for at least one more week. With the Wolverines on the rise and the Spartans struggling to maintain their status as one of the Big Ten's top two teams, this weekend could prove to be a pivotal turning point in the direction of both programs.
3. Michigan
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After an offseason that possessed no shortage of hype and headlines, one could argue that Jim Harbaugh's debut season at Michigan has already exceeded expectations. After losing to Utah by seven points on the road in their season opener, the Wolverines have responded with five straight wins—and have done so in dominating fashion.
Currently enjoying a three-game shutout streak in wins over No. 22 BYU, Maryland and No. 13 Northwestern, Michigan has outscored its past three opponents by a combined margin of 97-0 and its past five opponents by a score of 160-14. The Wolverines rank second in the nation when it comes to total defense, having allowed an average of just 181.3 yards per game to opponents.
"They’re doing a heck of a job. Said it many times, really every week, but this team likes to work. They enjoy each other’s company. Whether it’s meetings, whether it’s practice, whether it’s film study, lifting," Harbaugh said of his squad. "I mean, they like to work and get after it. That’s all you can ask as a coach."
With two statement wins already written on its resume, this weekend will provide Michigan with the opportunity to pick up a victory that would define the start of the Harbaugh era in Ann Arbor. If the Wolverines can knock off the Spartans, they will establish themselves as the biggest threat to Ohio State's national championship hopes—and will likely find themselves in the playoff picture until their annual meeting with the Buckeyes in November.
Not bad for a team coming off a 5-7 campaign just a season ago.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
4. Iowa
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While the majority of the preseason chatter in the Big Ten West centered around Wisconsin, Nebraska and Minnesota, Iowa has emerged as the unlikely front-runner to represent the division in this season's conference championship game. Sitting at 6-0, the Hawkeyes are one of just three undefeated Big Ten squads remaining and the only one to hail from their side of the conference.
Iowa's surprise success this season has largely been because of the quarterback-running back tandem of C.J. Beathard and Jordan Canzeri, the latter of whom tallied 271 total yards and two touchdowns in the Hawkeyes' 29-20 win over Illinois over the weekend. Carrying the ball 43 times against the Fighting Illini, Canzeri has proved to be a vintage Iowa workhorse and the type of offensive weapon that's been missing in Iowa City in recent years.
"I think we all saw something really special there with Jordan Canzeri," Hawkeyes head coach Kirk Ferentz said after the game. "That was just a tremendous performance."
Ranked 17th in the most recent AP Top 25, Iowa will have a chance to make another jump this week with an unlikely Top 25 matchup against No. 20 Northwestern. The winner of this weekend's battle in the West could very well determine the division winner and send an unexpected playoff candidate to Indianapolis in December.
5. Northwestern
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There may not be a tougher team in the Big Ten to get a read on at the moment than Northwestern, who rose to as high as No. 13 in the AP Top 25 following a 5-0 start to the season that included an opening-weekend win over No. 21 Stanford.
But the way the Wildcats picked up their first defeat of the season—a 38-0 defeat at the hands of Michigan last weekend—has left many wondering just what the ceiling for this year's Northwestern team really is.
Perhaps Northwestern just ran into an emerging defensive juggernaut at the wrong time, and Saturday's shutout was more about the Wolverines than it was about the Wildcats. Or maybe Northwestern's season is about to take a tailspin, much like two years ago when a 4-0 Wildcats squad lost to Ohio State in Evanston, the start of what would be a 1-7 finish to the 2013 season.
For now, the Wildcats remain ranked, but this weekend will prove to be a turning point for Pat Fitzgerald's team in one way or another. In a game that could very well determine this season's winner of the Big Ten West, Northwestern will take on Iowa, giving the Wildcats their second straight shot at a ranked Big Ten opponent.
But for Northwestern, this weekend's matchup could determine a lot more than who will win its division.
6. Penn State
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In a season that possessed no shortage of expectations heading into the year with the return of a full allotment of 85 scholarships, Penn State got off to a rocky start with a 27-10 defeat at the hands of Temple. The Nittany Lions, however, have bounced back with five consecutive wins, the most recent of which was a decisive 29-7 showing against Indiana.
This weekend will give James Franklin's program the opportunity to make a much louder statement, as Penn State heads to Columbus to take on No. 1 Ohio State. The Nittany Lions took the Buckeyes to double overtime in Happy Valley a season ago but couldn't prevail, and they will undoubtedly be looking for revenge for last year's disappointing outcome.
Whether Penn State will prove capable of doing just that will likely hinge on the play of quarterback Christian Hackenberg, who has been up-and-down thus far through the first half of the 2015 season. The junior signal-caller has completed 53 percent of his passes for 1,086 yards, seven touchdowns and two interceptions through the first six games of the season and will have his hands full with a Buckeyes defense that might be as talented as any in the nation.
If Penn State is going to pull off an upset, Hackenberg is going to need to be the reason why. Unless that happens, the Nittany Lions will remain a step behind Ohio State, Michigan State and Michigan.
7. Wisconsin
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After the surprising showings from Iowa and Northwestern, there's been a significant drop-off in the play of the Big Ten West, and perhaps even more surprisingly, that drop-off starts with Wisconsin. The Badgers currently lay claim to a 4-2 record on the year but are lucky to not be .500 at the midway point of the 2015 season, thanks to an unlikely escape with a 23-21 win over Nebraska last weekend.
On the bright side, however, Wisconsin's two defeats have come to then-No. 3 Alabama in its season opener and an Iowa team that remains undefeated halfway through the season. The Badgers also face a favorable schedule from here on out and are very much still in contention when it comes to the Big Ten West.
But in order for Wisconsin to make good on its promise as the preseason division favorite, the Badgers are going to need to get more consistent play from quarterback Joel Stave (1,386 yards, eight touchdowns, four interceptions) and a running back by committee that's yet to replace 2014 Heisman Trophy runner-up Melvin Gordon III. That will start this weekend when Wisconsin welcomes Purdue, in what could be a confidence-builder for a Badgers team in need of just that.
8. Illinois
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When Illinois fired head coach Tim Beckman just one week prior to the start of the 2015 season, this year's campaign appeared to possess all of the makings of a potential disaster for the Fighting Illini. But Illinois' first six weeks under interim head coach Bill Cubit have been anything but that, as the Illini have put together a 4-2 record, thanks in large part to the nation's No. 31 scoring defense, which has allowed just 19.7 points per game.
It also hasn't hurt that Illinois has received strong play from quarterback Wes Lunt (1,424 yards, nine touchdowns, two interceptions) and wide receiver Geronimo Allison (40 receptions, 601 yards, three touchdowns). On the ground, Ke'Shawn Vaughn and Josh Ferguson have emerged as one of the Big Ten's best two-headed duos, combining for 773 yards and six touchdowns.
With games remaining against Penn State, Ohio State and Northwestern, the Fighting Illini have their work cut out for them. But for now, it's hard not to be impressed with the work of Cubit, in what could have been an otherwise disastrous situation in Champaign this season.
9. Indiana
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Jumping out to a 4-0 start to the season, Indiana has had a chance to make some noise in the past two weeks but failed to capitalize on opportunities against Ohio State and Penn State. It won't get any easier for the Hoosiers from here on out either, with games against Michigan State and Michigan still remaining on their schedule.
But regardless of what happens for Indiana record-wise when it comes to what's left of its season, it's hard not to be impressed by the star power that Kevin Wilson's squad has shown so far. UAB transfer Jordan Howard has rushed for 709 yards and four touchdowns on the year, while quarterback Nate Sudfeld has thrown for 1,277 yards, seven touchdowns and just one interception.
Despite losing both players to injury early in their matchup with the Buckeyes, the Hoosiers had the defending national champions on the ropes but failed to make the most of a last-minute drive that could have either tied the game or given Indiana the lead.
Unable to pull off the upset then, the Hoosiers still have two opportunities left on their schedule to make good on a statement win. At the very least, Indiana looks in good shape when it comes to becoming bowl-eligible, which would certainly be a step in the right direction for Wilson's program.
10. Minnesota
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One of three teams projected as a potential representative for the Big Ten West in the conference championship game, it's hard not to be disappointed by Minnesota's 4-2 start to the season, which included a 27-0 shutout defeat at the hands of Northwestern two weeks ago. The Golden Gophers' other loss, however, is much easier to overlook, a 23-17 defeat to preseason No. 2 TCU in the season's opening week.
With just one conference loss on its record, there's still plenty of time left for Minnesota to reinsert itself in the conversation as a Big Ten West contender. The coming weeks, however, possess a potentially hellacious three-week stretch of games against Michigan, Ohio State and Iowa.
If the Golden Gophers are going to live up to their preseason expectations, they may need to pull off not just one but two upsets along the way. That will be no easy task for a Minnesota squad that's been inconsistent and has already shown the ability to fold when the going gets tough in a game.
11. Rutgers
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All things considered, the 2015 season could be going much worse for Rutgers.
Among a bevy of preseason arrests and subsequent dismissals, an investigation and subsequent suspension for head coach Kyle Flood and the loss of star receiver Leonte Carroo for two games for the Scarlet Knights, one would assume that Rutgers would be in much worse shape. But with a 2-3 record, the Knights have hardly been a disaster, although games with Ohio State and Michigan remain on their schedule.
The return of Carroo, however, will only help Rutgers' cause, as was evidenced in the team's 31-24 defeat to Michigan State last weekend. Carroo accounted for seven receptions, 134 yards and three touchdowns and didn't appear to possess any rust from his two-week break.
With that type of game-breaking ability, Carroo could help the Scarlet Knights make the most of what's left of their season. Being just bowl-eligible may not have been the goal prior to the start of the season, but given the adjusted expectations, it'd be hard to view getting six wins this season as a disappointment for the Scarlet Knights.
12. Nebraska
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It's not just that Nebraska is losing; it's how it's losing.
With a 2-4 start to the Mike Riley era, it'd be tough to find any more heartbreak for the Cornhuskers than what they've found through the first half of the 2015 season. It started with a Hail Mary loss to BYU in the season opener and continued until a last-second field goal by Wisconsin gave the Badgers a win in Lincoln last weekend.
As improbable as it may be to believe, all four of Nebraska's losses this season have come on their opponents' final offensive plays of the game, an unlucky, if not alarming, sign for the Huskers.
"I'd have to look back a ways, but I don't think I've really seen this before," Riley said after his team's loss to Wisconsin. "But we are in it. When you have games like we've had, you'll look at many different circumstances on how, playing or coaching, you could make a difference."
Nebraska still has six games left to turn its season around but will face three currently ranked opponents in that span in Michigan State, Northwestern and Iowa. The Huskers' season couldn't have gotten off to a much more disappointing start, but the opportunities are still there for Riley to add some highlight to his debut season in Lincoln.
13. Purdue
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At times this season, Purdue has looked like a program ready to hit a turning point under the direction of head coach Darrell Hazell.
Those moments, however, simply haven't been enough.
With a 1-5 record at the midway point of the regular season, the Boilermakers appear to be on their way to another losing season and potentially another head coach. Purdue simply isn't putting a competitive product on the football field at the moment, with four of its five losses this season having come by way of double digits.
Perhaps the Boilermakers' highlight this season was a 24-21 defeat at the hands of Michigan State, which saw Purdue fight back on the road against its highly touted opponent after trailing 21-0. Moral victories, however, don't count in the standings, and Purdue appears to be in for another long finish to an already disappointing campaign.
14. Maryland
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With a 2-4 record, Maryland has earned the title of the Big Ten's most disappointing team this season, and the Terrapins administration knows it. That's why Maryland's 49-28 loss to Ohio State last weekend was Randy Edsall's last game on the Terrapins sideline, as the school made the decision to remove him from his position as head coach.
"It started back in the second game of the season," Maryland athletic director Kevin Anderson said in a press conference Sunday, referencing a loss to Bowling Green. "When we looked at how we played and questions as we progressed or did not show progress in the way we were losing. It was brought to my attention then it may need to be addressed."
The evaluation resulted in Edsall's firing and a likely search for a big-name coach to fill his void at the end of the season. For now, the Terrapins will turn to interim coach Mike Locksley on the sideline to navigate their second half of the season.
That's a stretch that will include games against two currently ranked opponents in Iowa and Michigan State. What Maryland can accomplish in its next six games, however, is already irrelevant, as the program's future will ultimately be determined by whom it hires as its next head coach.
Ben Axelrod is Bleacher Report's Big Ten lead writer. You can follow him on Twitter @BenAxelrod. Unless noted otherwise, all quotes were obtained firsthand. All statistics courtesy of cfbstats.com. Recruiting rankings courtesy of 247Sports.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
