Big Ten power rankings entering Week 2: How far does Penn State rise?

MADISON, WISCONSIN - SEPTEMBER 04: Jahan Dotson #5 of the Penn State Nittany Lions celebrates a touchdown with Caedan Wallace #79 during the second half against the Wisconsin Badgers at Camp Randall Stadium on September 04, 2021 in Madison, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) /

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Sep 3, 2021; Evanston, Illinois, USA; Northwestern Wildcats head coach Pat Fitzgerald reacts after a play against the Michigan State Spartans during the fourth quarter at Ryan Field. Mandatory Credit: Jon Durr-USA TODAY Sports /

Wildcats . 10. team. 882. . 0-1 (0-1).

Did a Big Ten team have a more disappointing opening performance than Northwestern?

Outside of Nebraska last week, I don’t think so.

The 2020 Big Ten West Division champions got manhandled by a rebuilding Michigan State squad at home 38-21.

There were concerns about Northwestern’s offense heading into the season. How would Hunter Johnson perform? Well, Johnson was not too shabby, going 30-43 with 275 yards and three touchdowns. The problem was that most of this came after trailing 28-7.

The Wildcats defense showed little resistance against a Michigan State offense that wasn’t that good last year. The Spartans totaled up 511 total yards of offense, with 326 of it on the ground(more on this later). Coach Pat Fitzgerald, a defensive minded coach, cannot be pleased with this performance at all from his squad.

Northwestern is heavy favorites in their next three games, so we may not get a picture of how good this team is until the heart of conference play starts, but this is a team that could end up going in the wrong direction on this list.

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