Week 3 has wrapped up in college football, which means the beginning of conference play for most teams is here. With the "cupcake" games out of the way, the top teams in the Big Ten will start to emerge and solidify.
Is Michigan one of those teams, or will the Wolverines succumb to the tough schedule ahead of them? Well, their first test comes against No. 17 Iowa this week, and Kyle Whittingham and Co. will need to be on their A-game when facing that defense.
For the rest of the Big Ten, there are a few ranked matchups and a few opportunities for some upsets, but let's evaluate how the teams fell after Week 3.
18. Rutgers Scarlet Knights
The Scarlet Knights might want to take up residence at the bottom of the Big Ten rankings as the only team so far not to have a win this season. Rutgers looked like a team that could take down the Trojans, but jsut too many mistakes ended up being the downfall for this team. With no losses though, the only way to go from here is up...right?
17. Purdue Boilermakers
Purdue happened to be the other team this week to take a loss in Big Ten play at the hands of UCLA. The Boilermakers showed some signs of life with 38 points against the Bruins, but their defense struggled to stop Nico Iamaleava, who is not having his best season...again. Purdue is looking like a team that won't do much in the Big Ten again this season.
16. Minnesota Golden Gophers
Minnesota bounced back after a tough loss to Mississippi State with a win against Akron. However, with the way this Minnesota team is playing and the schedule they have in conference play, there aren't a lot of games where they will find good wins to do much in the Big Ten this season.
15. Wisconsin Badgers
Head coach Luke Fickell should be on the hot seat, but for some reason the Badgers are still holding out hope that he can make this program successful again. Wisconsin won't find that with wins over Western Illinois and Eastern Michigan. If the Badgers can find a way to beat Penn State, maybe Fickell could be turning the corner, but only time will tell.
14. Maryland Terrapins
Maryland suffered a loss to a good Virginia Tech team now coached by James Franklin. Honestly, it wasn't a terrible performance from the Terrapins, who put up 26 points on the Hokies, and now face UCLA, a team who have to make the cross-country trip and could be an easy target for thier first Big Ten win this season.
13. Michigan State Spartans
Even though Michigan State suffered a loss at the hands of No. 3 Notre Dame, the Spartans held their own, certainly better than some probably thought they would. New head coach Pat Fitzgerald still has a ways to go before this team is truly one to compete within the conference, but there are already some positives to be seen, and a date with Nebraska could be a good measuring point for this squad.
12. Northwestern Wildcats
Northwestern, after having a bye in Week 2, came out of nowhere and beat former Pac-12 foe Colorado 41-7 in an impressive outing for the Wildcats' offense. Granted, Colorado is a tough measuring stick with how up and down the Buffaloes tend to be. Either way, the big win makes Northwestern have the biggest jump in this week's power rankings. Now it's a date with No.5 Indiana, a true test for the Wildcats.
11. Washington Huskies
Washington finished up non-conference play unscathed, but some matchups were way too close for comfort, hence why the Huskies dropped out of the Top 25. With conference play loaded with five ranked matchups, Washington will need to figure out the offensive problems and get Demond Williams Jr. back on track, or else it could be a long rest of the season for Jedd Fisch.
10. Illinois Fighting Illini
Illinois finished up non-conference play with a big win over Southern Illinois, but it would have been more troublesome if they hadn't. Bret Bielema's squad is a bit of a question mark right now in the Big Ten, with the offense looking great, led by Katin Houser and Collin Dixon, but the defense just isn't performing up to standard so far.
The Illini open Big Ten play in Columbus against Ohio State this week, and Bobby Hauck's defense will see its toughest battle against a Buckeyes offense littered with elite talent. Things don't look great for the Illini, who are nearly a four-touchdown underdog to Ohio State.
9. UCLA Bruins
UCLA moved up a bit in the rankings this week thanks to a Big Ten win over Purdue, but they did allow 38 points to the Boilermakers, not something to be proud of. Even though the Bruins dropped 52 points on Purdue, this offense is still troublesome to watch, but their toughest matchups won't come till later in the season, so maybe they can get it all figured out by then.
8. Nebraska Cornhuskers
Nebraska has been kind of middle of the road so far this season. The defense hasn't looked great, but the offense hasn't looked show-stopping either. The Cornhuskers are 3-0, but it's against Ohio, Bowling Green, and North Dakota. While Michigan State isn't the toughest test in the world, Matt Rhule's squad will get its first idea of how they will perform in the Big Ten with the trip to East Lansing.
7. USC Trojans
USC dropped just a bit this week thanks to a closer-than-expected game against Rutgers, who is currently setting up shop at the bottom of the Big Ten Power Rankings. Lincoln Riley and his team got the job done, though, but the schedule doesn't get any easier with Oregon coming to town for a battle of former Pac-12 foes.
If Riley wants to stay in the rankings and off the hot seat, USC has to perform well against the Ducks, a team that lost to Oklahoma State a week ago. The Trojans need a win here to really cement themselves as a threat in the Big Ten.
6. Oregon Ducks
Oregon must have thought it needed to prove a point after losing to Oklahoma State in Week 2, putting up 84 points on poor Portland State. If you ask me, the Ducks were trying to prove they aren't as bad as they looked in the first two weeks, but beating Portland State isn't going to do that.
Now Oregon will head to USC for its Big Ten opener, and if the Ducks aren't the team they looked to be in the first two weeks, they shouldn't have any issues, but the way this defense is playing, they could have a lot of problems stopping Jayden Maiava and the Trojans' offense.
5. Iowa Hawkeyes
Iowa has looked good early in the season, but this defense is one of Phil Parker's best. The Hawkeyes have the No. 1 defense in the country according to ESPN, and even their offense has shown signs of life behind quarterback Hank Brown and running back Kamari Moulton. With Michigan on the docket, this could be the Hawkeyes' opportunity to solidify themselves as a team to look out for in the conference.
4. Penn State Nittany Lions
Matt Campbell passes his non-conference test, and it would have been really bad for the Nittany Lions if he hadn't. With an easy slate of games before Big Ten play, Campbell was able to get his team in order, but let's face it: Penn State won't be challenged too much in conference play, with the Nittany Lions avoiding the Big Three in the Big Ten.
The toughest tasks for Campbell and Co. will be Michigan and USC, both Top 25 teams for now, and for Penn State's hopes, will still be by the time they face off. The Nittany Lions need some resume builders, and those two games are their biggest opportunities to gain some traction when lobbying for a spot in the College Football Playoff.
3. Michigan Wolverines
Michigan did fall one spot this week, but that is only because of the slow start against UTEP. Take that away, and the Wolverines would have stayed right where they were because they finally looked like the team many expected in the second half. The defense was dominant, and the offense opened up the pass game and thrived on the ground.
Kyle Whittingham has his guys in a good spot heading into conference play, starting off by welcoming Kirk Ferentz and Iowa to town. This will be a tough matchup between No. 18 and No. 17 in the rankings, with two great defenses. Whichever offense can get through the suffocating defense could be the one that finds a win because that is a very tall task against Phil Parker and Jay Hill's squads.
2. Ohio State Buckeyes
Unfortunately for Michigan fans, the Buckeyes leapfrog the Wolverines this week, but that is only because of the struggles Michigan had in the first half vs. UTEP. Ohio State was able to bounce back well after the blown-lead loss to Texas in Week 2 and now opens Big Ten play against Illinois. The Buckeyes are a heavy favorite in that matchup, their first conference action in Columbus.
1. Indiana Hoosiers
Indiana showed some strange struggles in the first half of its game against Western Kentucky, but ultimately walked away with a convincing win in the second half. Now that the Hoosiers are through a very easy non-conference slate, the real test begins in Big Ten play, but they still only face Northwestern this week.
It won't be till the middle of October that Indiana really gets tested with back-to-back games against Ohio State at home and Michigan in Ann Arbor. That might be when these rankings really start to shake up.
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