There will be some tasty matchups this weekend in the Big Ten headlined by the showdown in Madison. Wisconsin had the luxury of an extra week in preparation for the most talented team in the conference, Ohio State. But wait, there is more. Nebraska also coming off a bye week is expected to have their hands full at Indiana. Minnesota and Iowa will try to stay in the West division hunt with winnable road games. We could see a lot of shuffling in the standings after Saturday. Here is how I rank them this week.
1- Ohio State (5-0, 2-0)
Last week: Defeated Indiana 38-17
This week: @ Wisconsin
- Another road test and chance to validate their claim as not just the best in the conference but in the country.
2- Michigan (6-0, 3-0)
Last week: Defeated Rutgers 78-0
This week: Bye
- Michigan enjoyed a glorified scrimmage against Rutgers where they barely broke a sweat. After their bye week the true challenges will be in front of the Wolverines.
3- Wisconsin (4-1, 1-1)
Last week: Bye
This week: vs. Ohio State
- The fact that Wisconsin is 4-1 coming out of the bye week is a victory in itself and now having two weeks to prepare for the Buckeyes could prove to be a huge factor in their upset bid at Camp Randall.
4- Nebraska (5-0, 2-0)
Last week: Bye
This week: @ Indiana
- You can probably categorize this road game for the Huskers as their biggest challenge to date. A win for the Big Red would likely put a 7-0 Husker team in a divisional showdown at Wisconsin in 2 weeks.
5- Indiana (3-2, 1-1)
Last week: Lost to Ohio State 38-17
This week: vs. Nebraska
- Don't let last week's score fool you, Indiana was competitive against the Buckeyes and should have plenty of confidence at home against Nebraska. The defense continues to show solid improvement and the offense can hurt teams in a variety of ways.
6- Penn State (4-2, 2-1)
Last week: Defeated Maryland 38-14
This week: Bye
- Penn State humbled a hot Maryland team and will go into a bye week with plenty of big opportunities on the schedule. Rest up Nittany Lions
7- Northwestern (2-3, 1-1)
Last week: Bye
This week: @ Michigan State
- The rested Wildcats will be facing Michigan State and perhaps the best time as Sparty is desperate and searching for answers.
8- Maryland (4-1, 1-1)
Last week: Lost to Penn State 38-14
This week: vs. Minnesota
- Maryland got a big piece of humble pie and are now in trouble with injury concerns at quarterback.
9- Iowa (4-2, 2-1)
Last week: Defeated Minnesota 14-7
This week: @ Purdue
- Although it was anything but pretty, Iowa will gladly take the win over Minnesota and continue to keep themselves in the hunt for the division as they try to find consistent personnel packages.
10- Minnesota (3-2, 0-2)
Last week: Lost to Iowa 14-7
This week: @ Maryland
- Mitch Leidner did not come close to resembling a future NFL quarterback and the Minnesota offense looked similar to the one that eventually cost Matt Limegrover his job as O.C. a year ago.
11- Michigan State (2-3, 0-2)
Last week: Lost to BYU 31-14
This week: vs. Michigan State
- It's been a week of quarterback auditions for the Spartans which should tell you that things are very much out of whack in East Lansing.
12- Purdue (3-2, 1-1)
Last week: Defeated Illinois 24-23 (OT)
This week: vs. Iowa
- Just when you thought the Boilermakers may not win another game they show you they still have a little fight in them.
13- Illinois (1-4, 0-2)
Last week: Lost to Purdue 24-23 (OT)
This week: @ Rutgers
- So much for noticeable improvement by Lovie and Co. from the previous week.
14- Rutgers (2-4, 0-3)
Last week: Lost to Michigan 78-0
This week: vs. Illinois
- This weekend's game should not be on TV. Viewer discretion advised.
