Week 5 of college football is in the books, and conference rankings are starting to take shape. In the Big Ten, the teams expected to be at the top, like Indiana, Ohio State, and Oregon, continue to have a stronghold on their positions, while others like Michigan and Penn State struggle to hang on after starting 0-2 in conference play.
As we approach the halfway mark of the season here soon, wins and losses are going to start becoming more and more crucial. At this point, some teams are already out of the running for the College Football Playoff, while others are barely hanging on by a thread.
So, after five weeks of football, here is how the Big Ten rankings shook out.
Tier 5
18. Rutgers Scarlet Knights 1-4 (0-2) vs. Indiana 47-15 L
17. Michigan State Spartans 2-3 (0-2) vs. Wisconsin 31-3 L
Rutgers continues to be the bottom team of the conference, while Michigan State falls from tier four to tier five. A blowout loss to Wisconsin is not a good look for new head coach Pat Fitzgerald and the Spartans. It was expected to be a rebuild for Michigan State, but it appears to be worse than anyone thought. Luckily, basketball season is right around the corner.
Tier 4
16. Maryland Terrapins 2-3 (0-2) vs. Nebraska 48-23 L
15. Illinois Fighting Illini 2-3 (0-2) vs. Purdue 24-17 L
14. Purdue Boilermakers 2-3 (1-1) vs. Illinois 24-17 W
13. Washington Huskies 3-2 (0-2) vs. USC 25-21 L
12. Penn State Nittany Lions 3-2 (0-2) vs. Northwestern 34-13 L
11. Northwestern Wildcats 3-1 (1-1) vs. Penn State 34-13 W
Tier four saw a few new members this week, with Purdue jumping up after a win over Illinois and Penn State dropping down after a blowout loss to Northwestern. Illinois dropped even further than they did in last week's rankings after the Illini struggled to put up points on one of the worst defenses in the conference.
Penn State, on the other hand, is showing that a soft non-conference schedule does nothing for conference play. The Nittany Lions have now dropped matchups against Wisconsin and Northwestern to start Big Ten play, and in both games, Matt Campbell has been humbled. If Penn State wants to salvage this season, the offense has a lot to figure out.
Tier 3
10. Michigan Wolverines 3-2 (0-2) vs. Minnesota 20-14 L
9. Wisconsin Badgers 4-1 (2-0) vs. Michigan State 31-3 W
8. Minnesota Golden Gophers 4-1 (2-0) vs. Michigan 20-14 W
7. USC Trojans 5-1 (1-1) vs. Washignton 25-21 W
6. Nebraska Cornhuskers 5-0 (2-0) vs. Maryland 48-23 W
The Michigan Wolverines took a big fall this week after the 20-14 loss to Minnesota. In all reality, the Michigan defense could be in a tier of its own with how well Jay Hill's unit is playing. The Michigan offense is an entirely different story, with Jason Beck starting to feel some heat. Either way, Michigan's bye could not have come at a better time.
Wisconsin and Minnesota made some big leaps to the new tier after wins and staying undefeated in conference play. With Michigan and Penn State dropping so far, Nebraska and USC got to move up a spot, even though the Trojans had a close call against Washington.
Tier 2
5. Iowa Hawkeyes 4-1 (1-1) vs. Ohio State 31-14 L
4. UCLA Bruins 4-0 (2-0) BYE
3. Oregon Ducks 3-1 (1-0) BYE
Iowa dropped one spot after the loss to Ohio State, but with UCLA and Oregon on a bye, there was not much movement in this tier. The Hawkeyes still look like a good team this season, but going up against a Buckeyes team that is laser-focused after the Texas loss was just too much to overcome.
Tier 1
2. Indiana Hoosiers 5-0 (2-0) vs. Rutgers 47-15 W
1. Ohio State Buckeyes 4-1 (2-0) vs. Iowa 31-14 W
No movement in tier one, as both Ohio State and Indiana stay in the same spots as last week. Even with one loss this season, the Buckeyes stay at No. 1, but that could change if either team falters or when they meet in two short weeks.
Add us as a preferred source on Google