The offseason discussion, among all the eligibility rulings and litigation, was predictably about which conference is the best in the country: the Big Ten or the SEC. Through two weeks, despite Michigan getting a marquee win over then-No. 11 Oklahoma in the Big House, the SEC has had a decided advantage.
So far this season, in Power Conference vs. Power Conference games, the SEC is 8-2, and the Big Ten is 3-6. That’s not nothing, especially considering one of those losses came courtesy of preseason No. 2 Oregon, falling to Oklahoma State in Stillwater on Saturday.
Still, even with the conference that has produced the last three national champions showing weakness early, the Big Ten is bound to get at least two, and more likely three or four, teams in the College Football Playoff. So who will emerge? Maybe it's Penn State.
Tier 5
18. Rutgers 0-2 (0-0) at Boston College 28-21 L
With a loss to UMass in Week 1 and a seven-point loss to Boston College, which was never that close in Week 2, Rutgers is comfortably not just the worst team in the Big Ten, but the worst team in the Power Four.
Tier 4
17. Northwestern 1-0 (0-0) BYE
16. Purdue 1-1 (0-0) vs. Wake Forest 38-36 L (OT)
15. Michigan State 2-0 (0-0) vs Eastern Michigan 35-7 W
14. Illinois 1-1 (0-0) vs. Duke 31-27 L
13. Minnesota 1-1 (0-0) vs. Mississippi State 38-13 L
12. Wisconsin 1-1 (0-0) vs. W Illinois 36-9 W
11. Maryland 2-0 (0-0) at UConn 38-14 W
Minnesota went undefeated at home last season. PJ Fleck has built a real mid-tier Big Ten program on a bottom-tier budget. Yet, perennial SEC bottom-feeder Mississippi State, led by budding superstar quarterback Kamrio Taylor, rolled into Minneapolis and buried the Golden Gophers.
There are two reasons Minnesota isn’t falling too far, however. 1. Mississippi State might just be good and if not is at least frisky in the SEC. 2. There are too many back-stops in the Big Ten.
New QB Katin Houser held Illinois tough against Duke, but a new-look defense was helpless to stop Nate Sheppard in a loss. And Purdue, while shockingly competent through two weeks, failed to get off the field on a 4th-and-15 with a lead in overtime and lost on a two-point conversion.
Tier 3
10. Nebraska 2-0 (0-0) vs. Bowling Green 56-7 W
9. UCLA 2-0 (0-0) vs. San Diego State 28-10 W
8. Washington 2-0 (0-0) vs. Utah State 16-14 W
7. Iowa 2-0 (0-0) vs. Iowa State 16-13 W
This tier is full of question marks and underachievers. Iowa won the Cy-Hawk, but didn’t look good in the process. Washington has similar issues in the run game and fell out of the AP Poll after letting a Utah State team coming off a loss to FCS Idaho State, hang around the entire way. UCLA and Nebraska look promising, but haven’t proven much yet. Even behind Washington and Iowa, you almost have to feel better about those two teams and their early-season trajectory.
Tier 2
6. Penn State 2-0 (0-0) at Temple 27-9 W
5. Michigan 2-0 (0-0) vs. No. 11 Oklahoma 17-10 W
4. Oregon 1-1 (0-0) at Oklahoma State 39-31 L
3. USC 3-0 (0-0) vs. Louisiana 49-30 W
Why is Oregon, after losing to Oklahoma State and looking shaky at best and alarming at worst, ahead of Penn State and Michigan? There’s just too much talent in Eugene. Maybe coordinator changes will doom Dan Lanning’s team, but it’s hard to ding them to that degree. On a neutral field, Oregon would still be favored over Penn State, and probably by more than a touchdown.
Why is Michigan ahead of Penn State? Because that defense looks legit, and when new offensive coordinator Jason Beck smashes the run Bryce Underwood button, this offense has a different gear than it showed against Western Michigan.
But in both cases, Penn State can easily close the gap.
Tier 1
2. Ohio State 1-1 (0-0) at No. 1 Texas: 24-23 L
1. Indiana 2-0 (0-0) vs. Howard 55-0 W
At the top, the Big Ten looks like it has only two national championship contenders right now, though you can’t write off Oregon completely and USC is getting harder to ignore. Still, the Hoosiers and Buckeyes are in a class all their own, even after Ohio State’s collapse in Austin.
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