Big Ten Power Rankings: Week 11

Another week of Big Ten football has passed, though this time most of the teams weren’t active as there were only four games played in the conference with everybody else on a bye. Despite that there were still a few shakeups as well as one notable upset to keep things interesting.

1. Ohio State Buckeyes

Last Week: Bye (8-0)

SP+ Rankings: 1

Nothing to report. Top dog stays top dog. The Buckeyes get to rip Maryland to shreds this weekend as a part of Big Nude Saturday. They’re roughly 43-point favorites depending on where you get the line and the crazy part is that they just might cover that.

2. Penn State Nittany Lions

Last Week: Bye (8-0)

SP+ Rankings: 7

No KJ Hamler highlight this week since the Nittany Lions didn’t play. This weekend they’ll play what could be one of the better games in the Noon window as they travel to Minneapolis to defeat an undefeated (read: ain’t played nobody) Minnesota team. PSU is a seven-point favorite.

3. Wisconsin Badgers

Last Week: Bye (6-2)

SP+ Rankings: 8

Another team that was on a bye week. The Badgers will play a big-time Big Ten West matchup (if such a thing exists) as they host Iowa this weekend in a Top 25 battle.

4. Michigan Wolverines

Last Week: 38-7 win @ Maryland (7-2)

SP+ Rankings: 11

Michigan got its turn to spank Maryland and didn’t disappoint. Shea Patterson was fine, completing 13 of 22 passes for 151 yards and a touchdown. Zach Charbonnet ran the ball eight times for 28 yards and a pair of touchdowns. The defense kept the Terps off the board until the third quarter. This weekend the Wolverines get a break heading into their rivalry game with Michigan State in Ann Arbor.

5. Indiana Hoosiers

Last Week: 34-3 win vs. Northwestern (7-2)

SP+ Rankings: 21

The Hoosiers, frankly, stomped Northwestern. The IU defense forced a trio of turnovers in what was its best performance of the season which shockingly came against the worst offense it’ll play all season. Peyton Ramsey tagged in for Michael Penix Jr. again and performed well. The duo combined to complete 17 of their 25 passes for 270 yards and a touchdown. Stevie Scott has been trending upward for the past few weeks and put together what might be his best game of the season against a typically stout Northwestern defense. Scott ran the ball 26 times for 116 yards and a pair of touchdowns. This weekend the Hoosiers will get a bye, giving them more time to prepare (and more time to get Penix healthy) for their matchup with Penn State.

6. Minnesota Golden Gophers

Last Week: Bye (8-0)

SP+ Rankings: 10

The week is finally here. The Golden Gophers will finally play a team that’s good at football as they host Penn State. I’ve been waiting for this game to see whether or not Minnesota is legit. Both teams are currently undefeated and if the Gophers can pull the upset it would go a long way toward earning them a trip to Indianapolis where they’d receive the honor of getting beaten by Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship Game.

7. Iowa Hawkeyes

Last Week: Bye (6-2)

SP+ Rankings: 22

Iowa sat this week out. The Hawkeyes currently sit tied for second place in the Big Ten West with Wisconsin, who they’ll play this weekend at Camp Randall Stadium. Iowa is only an 8.5-point underdog and crazier things have happened but if they allow the Badgers to dominate the trenches and time of possession things won’t turn out well. Expect a decent game.

8. Michigan State Spartans

Last Week: Bye (4-4)

SP+ Rankings: 29

Another team coming off of a bye week, the Spartans will run into one of the hotter teams in the conference as Illinois comes to East Lansing this weekend. The Illini are one win away from bowl eligibility which was unexpected, to say the least. The Spartans are 14.5-point favorites but, well, Illinois has overcome worse odds so far this season.

9. Illinois Fighting Illini

Last Week: 38-10 win vs. rutger (5-4)

SP+ Rankings: 57

The Illini beat the breaks off of everybody’s favorite American Athletic Conference team last weekend. Brandon Peters led the way by complete six of his 11 passing attempts for 120 yards and a touchdown. Dre Brown added on 31 yards and a pair of touchdowns on the ground. Add in a scoop and score as well as a pick six from the Illinois defense and it was a solid day all around for the Illini. As previously mentioned they get Michigan State this weekend. Even if they don’t clinch bowl eligibility in that game they still have chances against Iowa and Northwestern to close out the schedule, meaning that they’ll likely earn their postseason berth against the Wildcats.

10. Purdue Boilermakers

Last Week: 31-27 win vs. Nebraska (3-6)

SP+ Rankings: 55

Every time you count the Boilermakers out, they do some weird stuff. Purdue entered the day as a four-point underdog roughly and left a winner as David Bell ran for a nine-yard touchdown with just over a minute left in the contest to give the Boilermakers the lead, stuffing Scott Frost in a trash can in the process. It was a good win for them even though quarterback Jack Plummer became the latest victim of the injury bug. Luckily for them, they get Northwestern this weekend which should put them at four wins with two weeks left in the season.

11. Maryland Terrapins

Last Week: 38-7 loss vs. Michigan (3-6)

SP+ Rankings: 63

They got beat by one of the big four. Nothing unexpected. They should be officially eliminated from the postseason this weekend when they square off with Ohio State.

12. Nebraska Cornhuskers

Last Week: 31-27 loss @ Purdue (4-5)

SP+ Rankings: 50

You’ve gotta wonder if Scott Frost wanted more games against Purdue too.

13. Northwestern Wildcats

Last Week: 34-3 loss @ Indiana (1-7)

SP+ Rankings: 94