Hard to believe but a month of football has flown by as we head into the first weekend of October. It was an exciting month of games. With Big Ten conference races starting to heat up, the next month should be even better. The Penn State football team has already played 5 of its 12-game schedule in 2023. But after a slow start at Northerwstern, did the Nittany Lions slip in the latest power rankings?
In the Big Ten, we still have three teams that appear elite. Their defenses are a big reason why.
As for the rest of the conference, Maryland continues to improve, and looks like it could belong in the upper tier of the conference. But there are still a lot of flaws in most of the rest of the conference, with nearly half of the teams under .500. It is a top-heavy conference, much like the SEC has been the last decade.
Let’s take a look at how the Big Ten power rankings shake out after the season’s first month of play.
No. 14 Indiana 2-3 (Last week 14)
Getting routed at Maryland means the Hoosiers stay in the Big Ten basement for the second straight week. The loss to the Terps was OC Walt Bell’s last game as he was fired Sunday and replaced by quality control coach Rod Carey. Will they move to pay off? Tom Allen certainly hopes so but the chances of a quick turnaround this season are slim.
Allen and company will use the bye week to regroup. It does not get any easier with a trip to Ann Arbor after the bye.
No. 13 Northwestern 2-3 (Last week 13)
The Wildcats took an early Penn State miscue and turned it into three points. They even led the Nittany Lions 10-3 late into the second quarter. But in the second half, Penn State outscored the Wildcats 31-3 on their way to victory.
Have to give Northwestern credit for hanging with Penn State for about 30 minutes of game time. Even the final score did not indicate how close this was. But in the end, a loss is a loss and there are no moral victories. The Wildcats will look to regroup against FCS Howard to improve in the power rankings.
No. 12 Michigan State 2-3 (Last week 10)
For a while Saturday night, it looked like the Spartans were about to overcome all their issues and beat Iowa in Kinnick Stadium. But a missed field goal, penalties, four turnovers, and giving up a special teams touchdown were all killers and Sparty ended up losing in the end.
The bye week comes at a good time for Michigan State. With Mel Tucker now officially fired, they can start to put that behind them and move forward. They travel to Rutgers on October 14th and look to improve in the power rankings.
No. 11 Nebraska 2-3 (Last week 11)
Nebraska could not do much of anything against Michigan, on their way to being on the losing end of a 45-7 rout. The Huskers came into the game as the conference’s best-rushing team but were held to just 106 yards on the ground. Most of that came on Joshua Fleek’s 74-yard touchdown run late in the game that ended Michigan’s shutout bid.
It was always going to be a tough first year for Matt Rhule and company. They will try to improve their luck against a reeling Illinois team on Friday night.
No. 10 Illinois 2-3 (Last week 9)
What is going on in Champaign? We knew the Illini lost a lot on defense from last year but Bret Bielema teams typically play sound defense and they still had some quality pieces from last year’s unit that was one of the nation’s best. After a 44-19 shellacking at the hands of Purdue, the defense is allowing over 30 points and 419 total yards per game. The offense has also not found much of an identity yet.
Can Bielema find a way to turn around his team to keep in the West division race? We will find out shortly with a Friday night game against Nebraska.
No. 9 Purdue 2-3 (Last week 12)
Head coach Ryan Walters surely enjoyed that beat down of his former team last Saturday. The Boilermakers finally got a victory at home this season. Hudson Card had a solid game with 217 yards and two scores. The run game got going with three running backs all finding the end zone once each and combining 209 yards on the ground.
Purdue has a tough upcoming schedule so it will be difficult for them to stay in the West division race but this victory was much needed. They travel to Iowa City next.
No. 8 Rutgers 4-1 (Last week 8)
Not much to take from Rutgers’ 52-3 victory over FCS Wagner. It was a win-and-move-on kind of deal. The good news for the Scarlet Knights is they are two victories away from bowl eligibility. There are some matchups remaining they should be able to compete and possibly come away with a victory.
Greg Schiano’s team looks better than it has previously. Maybe not ready to compete with the elite of the conference but certainly six or seven wins can be in their grasp this season. Rutgers next face Wisconsin, who they are 0-4 against since entering the conference in 2014.
No. 7 Minnesota 3-2 (Last week 7)
Minnesota had a back-and-forth battle against Louisiana, being down 17-14 to the Ragin’ Cajuns at halftime. But the Gophers took control in the second half to come out on top 35-24. Quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis had a very accurate game, going 12 for 14 for 146 yards and two touchdowns.
Minnesota bounced back after blowing a 21-point lead a week ago at Northwestern. Now they face a tougher test in hosting Michigan for the Little Brown Jug trophy.
No. 6 Iowa 4-1 (Last week 6)
Is Iowa really the sixth-best team in the Big Ten? Well, their defense and special teams certainly pull their weight. Cade McNamara completed just three of five passes against Michigan State before going down to injury, which now we know was a torn ACL. It was Cooper DeJean’s 70-yard punt return for a touchdown that sealed the Hawkeyes victory. Where would Iowa be without DeJean the last couple of seasons?
With McNamara now sidelined for the rest of the season, the Hawkeyes will turn to Deacon Hill. Brian Ferentz better hope for a miracle to get to the 25-points per-game mark.
No. 5 Wisconsin 3-1 (Last week 5)
The Badgers were off this past week and host Rutgers on Saturday. Braelon Allen is now the man in the backfield with Chez Mellusi’s season-ending injury.
No. 4 Maryland 5-0 (Last week 4)
Maryland only had possession of the ball in just under 22 minutes against Indiana. They still scored 44 points and ran away with it. Taulia Tagovailoa threw for 352 yards and accounted for six touchdowns.
The Terps are off to their best start since 2001 when they won their first seven games on their way to an ACC championship. Now they have a chance to really make a statement as they head to Columbus to take on the Buckeyes. Can they leap over any of the top three in next weeks power rankings?
No. 3 Penn State 5-0 (Last week 3)
Out of sync. Undisciplined. Sleepy from the 11 a.m. kickoff. Call it whatever you want but Penn State did not play well through 30 minutes of game time against Northwestern and slipped in the power rankings. The Nittany Lions turned it on in the second half and ran away with a 41-13 victory.
In two road games, Drew Allar has not looked the same as he has played at home. Hopefully, that is not a sign of things to come in a couple of weeks in Columbus. The Penn State defense continued to be elite, recording seven sacks, 12 tackles for loss, and an interception.
Penn State gets a bye week at the right time. Time to figure out some of the issues on offense, rest up, and get ready for a back-half schedule of all Big Ten East opponents after UMass.
No. 2 Ohio State 4-0 (Last week 2)
Ohio State was off this week, needing a breather after their close call at Notre Dame a week ago. They host an undefeated Maryland next.
No. 1 Michigan 5-0 (Last week 1)
In Michigan’s first four games, they had some slower starts offensively. That was not the case in their first road game Saturday against Nebraska. The Wolverines got off to a 14-0 lead midway through the first quarter and led 28-0 at halftime on their way to a 45-7 win.
The Wolverines look the part right now of a top team in the Big Ten. They have not really been tested yet and that should come later in the season. For now, they look to continue cruising to comfortable wins. Michigan will stay on the road this Saturday at Minnesota.
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