Big Ten Power Rankings: What We Learned in Week 11

Do you know how I know the Big Ten sucks this year?  The conference is poised to get ten teams eligible for bowl games.

You might not agree.  "Ten bowl eligible teams is a sign of strength and depth," you might counter.  "It would be worse to have only six teams qualify for bowl games."  

Valid points, all of them.  And maybe "suck" is a strong word.  Perhaps the right word is something more like parity.

This is the most evenly matched the Big Ten has been in years.  There is no ruling class of dominant teams, no opposing powers lording over the rest of the meek conference.  Everyone can beat everyone else, and quite often do.  Consider:

Michigan State, the closest the conference has to a title game favorite, has a wholly uncompetitive loss to Nebraska on its resume (not to mention another bad loss to Notre Dame) as well as a last-second Hail Mary victory over Wisconsin.

Wisconsin has lost two games on last minute touchdown passes.  The rest of its wins have been by 20 or more points.

Nebraska got beat down by Wisconsin, and then beat down both teams that beat Wisconsin.  Then Nebraska lost to Northwestern, a team everyone has beaten.

Michigan has taken four conference teams to the woodshed, only to look completely lost in its two conference losses to Michigan State and Iowa.

In back to back weeks Iowa lost to a one-win Minnesota team and beat a one-loss Michigan team.

Is all of this good for us, the viewers?  Yes.  Absolutely.  Big Ten football is downright unpredictable this year.  

Who could have imagined that Purdue would beat Ohio State last weekend?  Or that Minnesota would take Michigan State into the fourth quarter the week before?  Or that Wisconsin would lose in back-to-back weeks?  Or that Penn State would start the conference season 5-0?  Or that Ohio State would set out to destroy the concept of the forward pass?

So, what's the problem?  Nobody outside the Rust Belt cares.  The Big Ten hasn't been in the national title or Heisman race since Wisconsin lost its first game back in October, and from that point on the conference's performance on a week to week basis has been judged to be about as important as that of the ACC or Big East.  

"We'll let them play by themselves for a few more weeks, then pick one to get beat up in a BCS bowl."

Parity is great.  It makes for exciting games (or defensive snoozers, ahem, Penn State), and provides a steady stream of upsets. But, it doesn't help the conference's perception as second-class to the SEC, Big 12 and Pac-12.

We are, however, still stuck with it.  So all we can do is sit back, relax and wait for someone else to lose to Minnesota.

No. 12: Indiana (1-9, 0-6) (12)

Last Week: Bye

The Hoosiers got the week off after playing the first ten weeks without a bye.  The break was late, but much needed for the young team that has been in a backslide since very early in the season.

Indiana this year looks a lot like the Indiana team that was pushed around the last few years: weak defense, inconsistent ground game and lots of big losses with a couple surprisingly competitive games mixed in.  

However, Indiana is showing signs of improvement in the first year under Wilson.  

First, after playing quarterback roulette for the first half of the season, Indiana has finally stumbled on a solid building block for the future in freshman Tre Roberson.  Roberson's athleticism has been a welcome addition to the backfield, and he has thrown the ball as well as or better than his competition in Bloomington, while providing a solid rushing option.  

Opposite him, running back Stephen Houston has begun to make an impact and show signs of being the consistent running back the Hoosiers have needed for a while.

If Wilson can begin to build a solid defensive identity for this team over the next couple years—something that has been a problem long before he arrived—Indiana could crawl out of the conference's basement and toward regular bowl appearances.  

This kind of turnaround would make Wilson a very well-liked man around town, and a very sought after name elsewhere in college football.

Next Week: at Michigan State

No. 11: Minnesota (2-8, 1-5) (11)

Last Week: Lost to Wisconsin 42-13

After back-to-back weeks of improvement across the board that included a win over one of the conference's middle class teams, and a near upset of a conference favorite, most fans were probably expecting a fall back to earth.  

I doubt anyone thought it would be this violent.

Wisconsin is doing its best to prove that the two game skid in the middle of the season was just an anomaly, and the statistical beatdown that Minnesota was subjected to proves this point.  

The Gophers gave up nearly twice as many yards per rush (3.3 to 6.3), and three times as many yards per pass attempt (3.2 to 10.4) to Wisconsin en route to one-third of Wisconsin's total yardage (156 to 462).

Minnesota managed just one offensive touchdown while allowing Wisconsin to score six.  Montee Ball was able to score three by himself, and his 167 yards rushing are more yards than the Gophers gained in total.

MarQueis Gray's regression was brutally complete against a pass defense that isn't anywhere as tough as Michigan State's (a team that gave up almost 300 yards passing to Gray).  Gray finished with just six of 14 passes complete for 51 yards, a sack and an interception.  He was the only Gopher back to run for more than 20 yards, but his 68 yards came on 19 attempts (3.6 ypc).  Running backs Duane Bennett and Donnell Kirkwood combined for 32 yards and less than three yards per carry.

It was easy to imagine Minnesota not having much of a chance in this one.  

Wisconsin has the best offense in the league and isn't mistake prone against anything less than elite defenses.  However, given the production of the last two weeks, and the fact that the game was at home, it wasn't out of the question that Minnesota would be able to at least make the game interesting for a while.  

Instead, Wisconsin was able to score on its first three drives and Minnesota gained a total of -1 yards on six plays over its first two drives.

This game is just more evidence that Jerry Kill's squad has a long way to go before being able to compete on a week-to-week basis.  Thankfully, the last two games both offer opportunities for wins as Minnesota visits Northwestern then plays at home against Illinois.  

It is a long shot to expect much, but this team has surprised before.

Next Week: at Northwestern

No. 10: Illinois (6-4, 2-4) (10)

Last Week: Lost to Michigan 31-14

Look, Illinois fans.  Look upon what Ron Zook hath wrought.

As an Illinois fan, you couldn't find a much more disheartening game.  The heralded Illinois defense fell apart immediately and gave up over 200 yards of total offense in the first quarter alone, while the offense had three drives that gained a total of eight yards on nine plays.  

From there things never really got any closer.

The Illinois defense pulled it together after a bad first quarter.  Despite getting ripped for two long touchdown drives early, Illinois held the Michigan offense in check most of the game.  The Illini forced two turnovers (the interception at the end of the half is technically a turnover, but was the game equivalent of a batted down pass), and held the Wolverines scoreless on a number of drives that ended in Illinois territory.

The problem?  This might have been the worst offensive performance of the season for Illinois—and that is saying something.  

While some credit must go to Greg Mattison and the Wolverine defense, the fact of the matter is that the Illinois offense was downright pathetic for most for the game.  The Illinois running game was held to just 50 yards and 1.6 ypc on the day, with all of that coming in the second half due to the Wolverines holding Illinois to -12 yards in the first half.  

The passing game wasn't much more productive.  Nathan Scheelhaase connected on just over half of his 31 passes for 168 yards, but all too often zoned in on receiver AJ Jenkins.  Jenkins finished the day with 102 yards, but was so frequently targeted that eventually Michigan cornerback JT Floyd was able to jump a quick throw to the sideline and return the ball 43 yards to set up the Wolverines third touchdown of the game, and once again push the lead to three scores.

This season is rapidly coming apart for the Illini.  After starting off hot with six straight wins, Illinois has now lost four straight, and looks likely to lose another with a game against Wisconsin up next.  

If Illinois can't survive a trip to Minnesota in the final week of the season, odds are the team plane is going to leave the Zooker stranded on the runway.

Next Week: vs. Wisconsin

No. 9: Northwestern (5-5, 2-4) (8)

Last Week: Beat Rice 28-6

The Wildcats get another crucial victory in the race for bowl eligibility, and do everyone the favor of moving the Big Ten's season record against Rice to .500 (thanks a lot, Purdue).

Dan Persa was back for this one, and played nearly lights out.  The Northwestern quarterback completed his passes at a rate of nearly 80 percent on the way to 372 yards and four touchdowns.  Of the negatives against him there is only one sack and two interceptions.  

However, when one considers just how little help Persa received, it is hard to fault him much for a couple mistakes.  Northwestern only gained 136 yards on the ground and did so at just 3.5 ypc.  

No Northwestern running back ran for more than 40 yards or scored a touchdown.

However, any problems on offense were mitigated by the fact that Northwestern was able to hold Rice to just half of the Wildcats' yardage total.  Rice gained just four yards a carry on the way to 119 rush yards, and just 135 passing yards.

With its last easy non-conference game out of the way, Northwestern has two games left to try and get the sixth win it will need for bowl eligibility.  This week's game against Minnesota is probably their best chance, as the only remaining game is against Michigan State.

Next Week: vs. Minnesota

No. 8: Iowa (6-4, 3-3) (6)

Last Week: Lost to Michigan State 37-21

Almost as soon as the Hawkeyes announced themselves as potential Big Ten challengers with a win over Michigan last week, they stepped gracefully out of the race with a loss to Michigan State.

Iowa never looked like it had any offensive cohesion in first half, and went down big because of it.  Iowa started the game with two turnovers and five punts compared to just a single touchdown.  

The main reason for such paltry offensive performance?  The Big Ten's leading rusher Marcus Coker was held to just 57 yards on 2.7 ypc, which put the game completely on the shoulders of James Vandenberg.  

Vandenberg, for what it's worth, did not respond well.  He completed only 46 percent of his 47 passes for 262 yards (just 5.6 ypc), while being sacked three times and intercepted once.  If it weren't for the superhuman effort of Marvin McNutt (eight catches, 130 yards, one touchdown), Vandenberg's day might have been even worse.

Iowa's defense wasn't helped by the offensive miscues.  The Hawkeyes were forced to punt on three three-and-outs and four drives of four plays, while both turnovers set up Michigan State near the Iowa red zone and led to MSU touchdowns.  

By the time the Iowa defense calmed down in the second half and allowed just two field goals, it was too late for the offense to do anything to come back.

And thus, the story of Iowa's struggles continues.  

Through this point in the season, Iowa seems like the perfect middle-of-the-road Big Ten team.  Not powerful enough on either side of the ball to hang with the conference's best, but good enough most days to beat up on the bottom half.

The Hawkeyes are assured of a bowl game thanks to a win over Michigan last week, but with a trip to Purdue next week and a visit to Nebraska the following week, Iowa isn't guaranteed to go more than .500 on the season.  

Next Week: at Purdue

No. 7: Purdue (5-5, 3-3) (9)

Last Week: Beat Ohio State 26-23 OT

Robert Marve went from villain to hero in the span of just a few minutes against Ohio State. Marve's interception with under a minute left in the tied game killed any chance of Purdue winning in regulation, but Marve would get a chance to make up for it in overtime with a one-yard quarterback sneak for the win.

The Boilermakers started the game out strong, scoring ten points on the first two drives and holding Ohio State to three straight three-and-outs in the first quarter.  

The Buckeyes were able to chip away at the Purdue lead over the rest of the game and scored what looked like the game winning touchdown with under a minute left, but the extra point was blocked.

Part of the reason Purdue fared so well was that it forced Ohio State to pass the ball to win the game. After giving up well over 300 yards in each of its last two games, Purdue held Ohio State to just 164 yards and 3.4 ypc.  

With Ohio State forced to rely more on the pass, the offense struggled to consistently move the ball.

Meanwhile, Purdue's quarterback combo of Robert Marve and Caleb TerBush combined to complete two-thirds of their passes for 233 yards.  Ralph Bolden was strong on the ground, rushing for 81 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries.

Purdue is now, surprisingly, one win away from bowl eligibility with two winnable games left on the schedule.  First, Iowa visits West Lafayette, then Purdue travels to Bloomington to face Indiana.  

Win either game, and a bowl trip is in the cards.

Next Week: vs. Iowa

No. 6: Ohio State (6-4, 3-3) (2)

Last Week: Lost to Purdue 26-23 OT

Zero for two.

No, that isn't Braxton Miller's passing stat line, or kicker Drew Basil's kicking performance on the day. That is how many times Ohio State has won in West Lafayette in the past two trips.

Things looked bad from the get-go in this one.  Ohio State went three and out on its first three drives of the game while Purdue jumped out to a quick lead.  However, the Buckeyes weren't done, and scored a touchdown in each of the next three quarters.  The third touchdown would have been enough if the extra point would not have been blocked.

Instead, the teams went to overtime, Ohio State got the ball first and kicked a field goal.  It wouldn't be enough.

The bad news for Ohio State is that the run game looked pedestrian against a Purdue defense that had been beaten up on the ground two weeks straight.  The Buckeyes only managed 164 yards and Dan Herron was held under the 100-yard mark for the first time since he returned from suspension.

The good news is that with added expectations in the passing game, Braxton Miller played relatively well.  The freshman signal-caller only completed eight of 18 pass attempts, but he did so for 132 yards and two touchdowns—with no interceptions.  Miller also added 43 yards and a touchdown on the ground.  Positive signs of growth for the long term.

In the near future, Ohio State looks to only have pride to play for.  The loss to Purdue means that for Ohio State to have any chance at the conference title game, the Buckeyes would have to win both remaining games (vs. Penn State, at Michigan), hope Penn State loses to Wisconsin, then hope Wisconsin loses to Illinois.  Don't hold your breath, Buckeye fans.

Next Week: vs. Penn State

No. 5: Michigan (8-2, 4-2) (7)

Last Week: Beat Illinois 31-14

The only way this year's game could have looked any different from last year's triple overtime win against Illinois would be if it was played on a different planet.

The defense came through in a big way this week, and this was easily the most impressive defensive effort the Wolverines have put together all season.

Illinois three first-quarter drives netted just eight total yards, and by halftime Illinois was still negative on the day in rushing yards and had yet to cross into Michigan territory.  By the end of the third quarter, Illinois finally began to move the ball with some consistency, putting together a 74-yard touchdown drive.  However, after getting the ball back from the Wolverines down just ten, JT Floyd came up with a crucial interception returned deep into Illinois territory, and the subsequent Michigan touchdown closed the door on a comeback.

Offensively, Michigan got everything out of the way early.  Fitzgerald Toussaint had gone over 100 yards by the end of the first quarter, and Denard Robinson already had two touchdowns.  From there, however, Michigan couldn't move the ball to save its life.

 Over the next two quarters, Michigan would go three-and-out twice, miss a fourth down conversion, miss a field goal and throw an interception.  The field goal in the middle of the third quarter was the only positive offense the Wolverines could muster.  Only two short fields in the fourth quarter allowed the Wolverines a chance to tack on two touchdowns—and both were set up by the defense and special teams.

The positive developments of this game:  Michigan has another bit of evidence that the defensive turnaround of this year is no mirage.  Illinois offense isn't great, but it is capable of putting up numbers against lesser competition.  Michigan's dominating effort was nearly complete, and it resulted in Illinois' lowest total yardage of the season.

The negative developments:  After a blazing first quarter, Michigan's offense fell off the map.  The Wolverines squandered opportunities deep in Illinois territory and seemed to alternate negative plays with positive plays for most of the middle two quarters.

While a shot at the conference title is all but gone with Michigan State's win over Iowa, the Wolverines still have an outside chance at ten wins, and a strong finish could propel them to a BCS bowl game. For that to happen, the offense is going to have to start playing like the defense.

How many Michigan fans would have guessed that would be the prescription for success at this point in the season?

Next Week: vs. Nebraska

No. 4: Penn State (8-2, 5-1) (1)

Last Week: Lost to Nebraska 17-14

The Nittany Lions got back to playing football after the most tumultuous week in school history, and for the first time without Joe Paterno on the staff since the 40s.

The game itself went about how everyone imagined it would go: a defensive struggle between two run-first teams with spotty quarterback play.

The Penn State defense wasn't able to shut down Nebraska's rushing attack, however, as Rex Burkhead ran for 125 yards at 4.6 ypc.  Most of Penn State's problems came during the second quarter when Nebraska was able to gain 155 yards of offense while scoring a touchdown and a field goal and punting once.  

From there, Nebraska would only have one more scoring drive—a 52 yard touchdown drive early in the third quarter—while punting four times, fumbling once and failing once on fourth down.

Ultimately, the 17 point Nebraska lead was too much to overcome for the offense.  Penn State did most of its damage on the ground.  Stephfon Green led the way with 71 yards on 17 attempts and scored Penn State's only two touchdowns.  Silas Redd added another 54 yards and Brandon Beachum 36 more.  

The rest of Penn State's offense came from Matt McGloin, who completed 16 of 34 passes for 192 yards, and even caught a 16-yard pass on a trick play.

With Ohio State's loss, Penn State's biggest game is now a showdown with Wisconsin.  Win that, and Penn State goes to the Big Ten title game.  The road doesn't get any easier as both of Penn State's next two games are on the road.

Next Week: at Ohio State

No. 3: Wisconsin (8-2, 4-2) (4)

Last Week: Beat Minnesota 42-13

The Badgers got some big news about a Big Ten foe, then proceeded to run off a big win to create a big shift in the Big Ten title race.  Big deal, eh?

Wisconsin never looked anything other than comfortable against Minnesota.  The first three drives went 81, 52 and 55 yards and each ended in a touchdown.  By halftime the score was 28-0 and of the four drives the Badgers got in the second half, two went for touchdowns.

Russell Wilson was the earlier, Heisman-seeking incarnation of himself, passing 17 times and completing all but one on the way to 177 yards and four touchdowns.  Through the air, Nick Toon did the most damage, catching half of Wilson's 16 passes for 99 yards and two touchdowns.  

Tight end Jacob Pedersen and running back Montee Ball caught the other two touchdowns.  Ball also put together an impressive day on the ground with 167 yards on 23 carries (7.3 ypc) while rushing for two touchdowns.  James White added 87 yards of his own.

Defensively, Wisconsin held Minnesota to three yards per play and just ten first downs while forcing a turnover.  That turnover—an interception on the Wisconsin 22-yard line with the score at 21-7—slammed the door on any positive momentum for Minnesota and led to a long touchdown drive to close the half.

The Badgers have traveled full circle on the path to the Big Ten title.  After being the odds on favorite early, to being the second team out last weekend, Wisconsin now once again control's its destiny, and the road to the Big Ten title again runs through Madison.  

Next Week: at Illinois

No. 2: Nebraska (8-2, 4-2) (5)

Last Week: Beat Penn State 17-14

The Huskers' attempt to hang in the Big Ten title race continues, but the door is slowly closing with every Michigan State victory.

Nebraska continues to do what it has to do.  The Huskers used a good stretch in the second and third quarter to jump out to a 17-point lead that held on through the rest of the game.

Rex Burkhead was the driving force of the offense, rushing for 125 yards and a touchdown on 27 carries. Taylor Martinez was good for 200 more yards of total offense with 144 coming through the air (13 of 25 passing), and another 56 on the ground.

Nebraska's defense did enough early to put Penn State down a couple scores.  The Nittany Lions were held to five punts and a missed field goal in the first half.  The second half defense saw Nebraska give up two long touchdown drives, but also force a fumble—which led to Nebraska's second-half touchdown—and a critical fourth-down stop at the end of the game to preserve the win.

Nebraska now is playing with one eye on the score ticker the rest of the way.  Not only do the Huskers have to travel to Michigan before facing Iowa at home, but they must do so while hoping for a loss to Michigan State that will allow the Husker's to go to the Big Ten championship game.

Next Week: at Michigan

No. 1: Michigan State (8-2, 5-1) (3)

Last Week: Beat Iowa 37-21

Michigan State exorcised some demons against Iowa in Iowa City last weekend by recreating Iowa's game plan from the last time the teams met: win the battle on the ground and take advantage of careless turnovers.

This game was almost a carbon copy of the 2010 version, with the two teams merely switching roles.

Michigan State completely shut down the Iowa run game early on, while moving the ball consistently for long scoring drives.  Iowa's inability to run soon manifested itself in turnovers from the passing game which Michigan State converted to points.  By halftime it was all over.

Leading the way for the Spartans was Le'Veon Bell, whose 111 yards rushing on 20 carries for one touchdown is the second best game a Michigan State back has put together against a Big Ten team this year.  This allowed quarterback Kirk Cousins to pick his spots in the passing game, and Cousins responded with a quite efficient 18 of 31 for 260 yards and three touchdowns.

Defensively, Michigan State set the tone for the game on Iowa's first two drives, forcing a punt after four plays on the first, followed by a beautiful Johnny Adams interception and return on the second that set up Michigan State's second touchdown.  

The Spartans shut down the Big Ten's best running back, Marcus Coker, and held Iowa to just 87 yards rushing on the day.  And after Iowa scored two third-quarter touchdowns to pull within two scores, Michigan State got a fourth down stop, forced a punt, and forced a fumble on Iowa's last three possessions to slam the door on a comeback.

The Spartans now sit in the most enviable position in the Big Ten: they control their own destiny in the Legends division and have games against two opponents with a combined record of 6-14.  Even with a loss, Michigan State still has an advantage over second place Nebraska, which has to play at Michigan and home against Iowa to finish the season.

Michigan State is the closest thing you can get to a lock in this crazy Big Ten title game race.

Next Week: vs. Indiana