Big Ten power rankings, week 8: Sad pizza edition

I’m running a little late this week with these, but I’m not letting a weekend filled with an Ohio State loss pass so easily. So let’s get right to this week’s rankings as the next CFB weekend approaches:

14. rutger (1-7)

I saw the band Chvrches over the weekend. They put on a really good live show, and I’d highly recommend go seeing them next time they come to your area.

13. Illinois (3-4)

The midterm elections are less than 2 weeks away and I think it’s important for everyone to make sure they get out and vote on November 6. Or earlier if your state has early voting!

12. Minnesota (3-4)

Got destroyed 53-28 against previously winless Nebraska. PJ Fleck just hasn’t put it together up in Minneapolis yet, and it’s hard to tell if this is just a thankless head coaching job, or if he just still needs more time to row the boat with the Gophers.

Minnesota hosts Indiana this Friday night because apparently Jim Delany has decided recruiting trips to high school football Friday night games is overrated.

11. Nebraska (1-6)

Scott Frost finally got off the schneid with a win over Minnesota, as Nebraska claimed back the coveted $5 Bits of Broken Chair Trophy. The Huskers have a late-addition game with Bethune-Cookman on the schedule this weekend to make up for the canceled week 1 game against notable Northwestern defeater Akron.

10. Indiana (4-4)

You can practically do Mad Libs with IU football after any big game at this point:

“Last Saturday, Indiana took (insert top 25 team here) down to the wire, but ultimately fell short, losing by (number less than 10) points to (B1G East team) in heartbreaking fashion. Though the Hoosiers held (star opposing team player) in check for most of the game, self-inflicted actions such as (insert type of turnover here) caused the game to slip away from Indiana. After the game, (opposing team’s coach) commented on the hard-fought game, and complimented the Hoosiers for their tenacity.”

9. Maryland (4-3)

Blanked by Iowa in a forgettable game in Kinnick Stadium. This team is a shell of the one that beat Texas on opening weekend, and the off-field issues with embattled suspended head coach DJ Durkin have persisted.

8. Northwestern (4-3)

Another week, another ugly but effective victory for Northwestern, who scraped by Rutger 18-15 despite being down at halftime and giving up a safety to the Scarlet Knights. Next up for the Wildcats: a trio of tough opponents in Wisconsin, Notre Dame, and Iowa.

7. Michigan State (4-3)

Lost a long, rain-delayed game to archrival Michigan on a gloomy day in East Lansing. The Spartans look like they just don’t quite have it this year, and it doesn’t get any easier, as the hottest team in the Big Ten, Purdue, rolls into town this weekend.

6. Penn State (5-2)

Despite doing everything it could to lose the game in the final minutes, Penn State came away with the victory because IU football ultimately is IU football. Regardless, this team seems to have been broken by the OSU loss last month, and now an upcoming game against a very hot Iowa team is looming. It’s an unfortunate way for Trace McSorley to be spending his final season in State College.

5. Purdue (4-3)

After seeing Tyler Trent’s inspirational story on Gameday Saturday morning, and knowing who Purdue was playing against, it would have been hard to root against the Boilers on Saturday night. And they delivered the most stunning result of the regular season thus far, boatracing Ohio State 49-20 in West Lafayette. Rondale Moore has quickly turned into one of the most dangerous playmakers in the B1G, and David Blough and DJ Knox also helped to power the offense to victory. With only one Big Ten loss, the Boilers aren’t out of contention yet, but they’ve yet to face Iowa or Wisconsin, and a trip to East Lansing looms this weekend. Now it will be up to Purdue to keep the momentum from Saturday night rolling and not let up in its last five games, especially as Jeff Brohm-to-Louisville rumors continue to swirl.

4. Wisconsin (5-2)

The Badgers righted the ship on Saturday thanks to a 49-20 win over Illinois. Cool. Next!

3. Ohio State (7-1)

When Ohio State loses, it loses in spectacular fashion. There was the 31-0 shutout two years ago to Clemson. Then last year Baker Mayfield passed all over them in Columbus as Oklahoma won by 15. Then of course was the 55-24 rout at Iowa. And now, a 49-20 loss to Purdue, in which Dwayne Haskins threw 73 times, which is something you’d expect to see out of a team struggling to keep up, not one ranked #2 in the country.

While it felt strange to root for Purdue in that game, it’s hard to come up with any sympathy for the situation the Buckeyes are in right now. Throughout August, the university did a three-week long investigation into what Urban Meyer knew about Zach Smith, and determined that a three-game suspension was the only decent punishment, an implicit statement that Meyer should ultimately be exonerated because of his win-loss record. The whole thing felt like a charade, and even many OSU fans that I’ve talked to are disgusted by the school’s actions. Now, after a 29-point loss to Purdue, Ohio State’s entire house of cards has fallen. This is a program that needs to push a reset button, and there’s no adult in the room in Columbus willing to stand up and do something about it.

2. Iowa (6-1)

Beat Maryland 23-0 in a classic Kirk Ferentz victory — a 12 noon start time game that didn’t even last 3 hours. Good for Kirk. He knows Iowa fans lead busy lives and realizes they need to get on with their Saturdays and not spend it watching the Hawkeyes play Maryland for any longer than they need to.

1. Michigan (7-1)

My hot take is that the Michigan/MSU rivalry is 100 times more heated than Michigan/Ohio State. Michigan fans have a modicum of respect for Ohio State, but absolutely none for Sparty, and the 21-7 victory was a cathartic moment for the Wolverines, who have been cursed against the Spartans in recent years.

College Football Playoff

1. Alabama

2. Clemson

3. Notre Dame

4. LSU

Once again, Alabama claims the top spot thanks to a 58-21 curbstomping of Tennessee. Next up is Clemson, which looked the part of the CFP team in a 41-7 win over previously undefeated N.C. State. Notre Dame had the week off but they’re still in for now. And barely beating out Michigan for the final spot is LSU, which won another slugfest over Mississippi State and has maybe the most impressive in I’ve seen this year against Georgia. Bama and LSU have byes this week and will face off on Nov. 3 in Baton Rouge, which should bring some clarity to the SEC West race (lol just kidding Bama will probably win that game by 40).