Week 10 was built up as the slate of the season in college football, but very few of the marquee matchups were in the Big Ten. Perhaps the biggest came in Columbus, where preseason favorites Ohio State and Oregon met, but both with backup QBs.
It’s been a disappointing year across the Big Ten, and QB injuries are a huge reason why. Indiana was on a bye in Week 10, but if you assume Grant Wilson starts for the banged-up Josh Hoover in Week 11, that would mean the three preseason favorites, Oregon, Ohio State, and Indiana, are down to QB2, as are UCLA, Michigan (not injury-related), and Michigan State.
Penn State and Washington, both preseason Top 20 teams, have also failed to meet expectations this year. But, largely, that’s been unrelated to QB injuries. Penn State QB Rocco Becht hasn’t missed a game this year, and though Washington QB Demond Williams missed time for a combination of injury and performance, he was back for the Week 10 meeting in Seattle.
That’s two in a row for Matt Campbell’s team, but after a near second-half collapse, it’s hard to bump the Nittany Lions higher than their No. 12 slot from Week 9.
Tier 4
18. Maryland 3-6 (1-5) at Purdue 34-29 L
17. Rutgers 2-7 (1-5) at Wisconsin 31-10 L
16. Michigan State 3-6 (1-5) at Michigan 15-6 W
15. Purdue 3-6 (2-4) vs. Maryland 34-29 L
Purdue lost to Maryland in West Lafayette, allowing the Terrapins to snap their 13-game Big Ten losing streak. With the loss, it’s impossible not to drop the Boilermakers, who do have a few nice wins this year, to Tier 4. Barry Odom also decided it was impossible to keep his defensive coordinator, Kevin Kane, after the loss.
You may also be wondering why Michigan State didn’t jump out of Tier 4 after beating Michigan in Ann Arbor to take Paul Bunyan back to East Lansing. The answer is that they won that game without reaching the end zone and managed a 35% success rate. The game said everything about Kyle Whittingham and the Wolverines.
Tier 3
14. Nebraska 5-4 (2-4) at Illinois 24-13 L
13. Washington 5-4 (2-4) vs. Penn State 28-25 L
12. Penn State 5-4 (2-4) at Washington 28-25 W
11. Michigan 5-4 (2-4) vs. Michigan State 15-6 L
10. Minnesota 5-4 (3-3) vs. UCLA 34-20 L
9. Illinois 6-3 (4-2) vs. Nebraska 24-13 W
8. Wisconsin 5-3 (4-2) vs. Rutgers 31-10 W
7. Northwestern 6-3 (3-3) vs. Iowa 24-10 L
6. Ohio State 6-3 (4-2) vs. Oregon 41-28 L
5. Iowa 7-2 (4-2) at Northwestern 24-10 W
At their best, Michigan can hang with the best teams in the conference. That defense is still elite and played at an elite level in Week 10, as well. The offense, however, is an unmitigated disaster, which, on Sunday, cost Jason Beck his job. Now, as the Wolverines are in free fall and in danger of missing a bowl game, Kyle Whittingham might be next.
As for Penn State, the Nittany Lions hop in front of Nebraska and stay just above Washington, but they got leapfrogged by Illinois, which is now 6-3 after taking down the Cornhuskers. Quarterback Katin Houser is back from injury, and after an early-season DC change, that side of the ball is settling in. For as bad as it looked in Champaign at the beginning of the season, Bret Bielema has found a way to will this team to bowl eligibility and maybe even eight wins.
At the top of the extensive tier, which can’t be separated by a touchdown on a neutral field, in my opinion, Iowa handled its business against an Aiden Chiles-less Northwestern. There’s nothing special about the Hawkeyes, but Kirk Ferentz knows how to win far more football games than he loses, and at this point, that’s bankable.
What’s not bankable is Ohio State’s offense with backup QB Luke Fahey. And now, the defense is falling apart. The Buckeyes allowed 38 unanswered points to Oregon after going up 14-0, and any hope of the College Football Playoff is gone.
Tier 2
4. USC 7-2 (4-2) BYE
3. Oregon 6-3 (4-2) at Ohio State 41-28 W
2. UCLA 9-0 (6-0) at Minnesota 34-20 W
The coaching job Dan Lanning has done this year has been remarkable. Sure, he’s responsible for hiring Drew Mehringer as his OC and wasting the elite talent on his offense, but he was willing to make a change, and he’s getting rewarded for it as interim OC Jay Johnson is putting backup QB Dylan Raiola in a position to succeed. Oh, and even without a healthy Dante Moore, all that elite talent is still on the roster.
With a 4-2 record in conference and a win over USC, it’s not inconceivable that the Ducks make the Big Ten Title game or break down the back door into the CFP.
Tier 1
1. Indiana 8-1 (5-1) BYE
The Indiana defense is the best unit in the Big Ten, and no unit needed a bye week more than the Hoosiers’ offense. Whether it’s with Hoover getting healthy or Wilson taking over, the Hoosiers should be in better shape on that side of the ball down the stretch.
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