Each week, we look around at the results of the Big Ten football season and try to make sense of the power in the league. During this college season, there was a clear line drawn between Ohio State and Michigan, and the rest of the league. Penn State seemed to be the next team in the pecking order, and then there was a muddled mess after that.
And while we swung back and forth between the Buckeyes and Wolverines all season as things ping-ponged around from week to week, we finally got that matchup of the two power brokers in the league during Week 13 and now have a clear winner.
Beyond that though, what does the rest of the power rankings look like now that the dust has settled on the regular season? Here’s how we see everything at the end of the rope that is the Big Ten football season.
14
Northwestern Wildcats (1-8, 1-11)
Last Week
Lost vs. Illinois, 41-3
| Previous week | Change |
| 14 | no change |
Northwestern’s season has mercifully come to an end. We’re still not sure how the Wildcats beat Nebraska in Ireland aside from a guess that maybe the ‘Huskers spent a really late night in a pub the night before the game.
13
Rutgers Scarlet Knights (4-8, 1-8)
Last Week
Lost at Maryland, 37-0
| Previous week | Change |
| 13 | no change |
It was a poor, poor finish to the season for Rutgers. If Greg Schiano wants to wrangle some momentum for the program, things need to be more competitive next season. Remember, college football was invented in Piscataway, or so I am told by Scarlet Knight fans — a lot.
12
Indiana Hoosiers (4-8, 2-7)
Last Week
Lost vs. Purdue, 30-16
| Previous week | Change |
| 12 | no change |
Yep, we can confirm the win over the Spartans the week prior was a fluke. Indiana will now turn the page to trying to be good at American football in 2023.
11
Michigan State Spartans (5-7, 3-6)
Last Week
Lost at Penn State, 35-16
| Previous week | Change |
| 10 | -1 |
There was a period of time in the middle of the year when it seemed like the Spartans were getting healthy and figuring things out. Then, the Michigan fiasco happened with off-the-field problems that resulted in a limp to the finish line.
10
Nebraska Cornhuskers (4-8, 3-6)
Last Week
Won at Iowa, 24-17
| Previous week | Change |
| 11 | +1 |
I mean, there were some signs of life for the Nebraska program heading down the stretch, right? There’s still a big hole to climb out of, and now the Matt Rhule era begins.
9
Wisconsin Badgers (6-6, 4-5)
Last Week
Lost vs. Minnesota, 23-16
| Previous week | Change |
| 9 | no change |
Usually, Wisconsin plays much better at home, but Minnesota was able to get it done in Camp Randall to cap off a very, very disappointing season in Madison. Where do the Badgers go from here?
8
Iowa Hawkeyes (7-5, 5-4)
Last Week
Lost vs. Nebraska, 24-17
| Previous week | Change |
| 4 | -4 |
Shame on us for believing that Iowa had turned the corner and had become a formidable foe. All the Hawkeyes needed to do was win at home and they were Indy-bound. Nope, a loss to Nebraska reminds us that the only thing consistent about this program is that it will continue to be inconsistent.
7
Maryland Terrapins (7-5, 4-5)
Won vs. Rutgers, 37-0
| Previous week | Change |
| 8 | +1 |
Maryland has gotten healthy and has played much better in the last couple of weeks. The Terps finished on a high note with a win an impressive shutout win vs. Rutgers and will now set their sights on the postseason.
6
Minnesota Golden Gophers (8-4, 5-4)
Last Week
Won at Wisconsin, 23-16
| Previous week | Change |
| 7 | +1 |
It was an up-and-down season for Minnesota, but mostly up that ended on a pretty high note with a tough win on the road vs. Wisconsin. There should be a decent bowl awaiting the Golden Gophers.
5
Illinois Fighting Illini (8-4, 5-4)
Last Week
Won at Northwestern, 41-3
| Previous week | Change |
| 6 | +1 |
By all accounts and measures, it was a successful season in Champaign. Despite missing out on the Big Ten West division title, Bret Bielema has the program pointed in the right direction with the mindset and culture. Illini fans should be excited about the future.
4
Purdue Boilermakers (8-4, 6-3)
Last Week
Won at Indiana, 30-16
| Previous week | Change |
| 5 | +1 |
After all the tiebreaking scenarios that we thought would come into play, Purdue ended up winning the West outright. Now it’s off to Indy to see if the Boilermakers can put up a fight against a Michigan team on a mission.
3
Penn State Nittany Lions (10-2, 7-2)
Last Week
Won vs. Michigan State, 35-14
| Previous week | Change |
| 3 | no change |
What would happen if Penn State played Ohio State and Michigan again? This feels like the most improved team in the Big Ten and one that deserves an invite to a New Year’s Six bowl as a top eight ballclub.
2
Ohio State Buckeyes (11-1, 8-1)
Last Week
Lost vs. Michigan, 45-23
| Previous week | Change |
| 1 | -1 |
For the first time since 2011, Ohio State didn’t grab at least a share of the Big Ten East division title. What would be a fantastic season for almost every other program in the country will be one of despair once again. The Buckeyes are probably headed to the Rose Bowl unless USC stubs its toe in the Pac-12 Championship game. Then, maybe a CFP invite awaits. Don’t hold your breath.
1
Michigan Wolverines (12-0, 9-0)
Last Week
Won vs. Ohio State, 45-23
| Previous week | Change |
| 2 | +1 |
Michigan manhandled Ohio State in the second half again. We can’t bring ourselves to write too many superlatives for TTUN, so we’ll leave things right here. Congrats?
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