Big Ten Power Rankings, Week 13
We may have reached the end of the regular season, and the end of the Big Ten in its current form, but what a way to go out! Rivalry week in the conference featured multiple one-possession games and two teams shutting the door on their rivals’ hopes of making bowl games.
The status quo held firm this week, with no new teams reaching the six-win mark in this week’s action. However, despite finishing the season with a loss to Wisconsin and a 5-7 record, Minnesota will be going bowling as a result of having the highest Academic Progress Rate (APR) score out of the 5-7 teams who were vying for the final remaining spot in a postseason game.
But while the Golden Gophers’ excellence in the classroom extended their season, the eyes of Big Ten fans (and most college football fanatics) were fixated on Ann Arbor, where then-No. 2 Ohio State and then-No. 3 Michigan faced off in what felt like a de facto CFP quarterfinal.
1. Michigan (12-0, 9-0 B1G)
Last Ranking: 1
Last Result: 30-24 win versus Ohio State
Michigan was actually outgained 378 to 338 in total yards by No. 2 Ohio State, but the Wolverines went 3-for-3 on 4th down, and they won the turnover battle via two Kyle McCord interceptions. The first interception led to a seven-yard touchdown drive to give Michigan a 7-0 lead. The second pick ended then-No. 2 Ohio State’s potential game-winning drive.
On the season, Michigan is now 5-0 with Jim Harbaugh on the sidelines and 7-0 without him coaching on gameday. Harbaugh will return to the sidelines for the Big Ten Championship Game, and if the Wolverines defeat No. 16 Iowa on Saturday, it would make for one extremely awkward trophy handoff between Harbaugh and Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti.
2. Ohio State (11-1, 8-1 B1G)
Last Ranking: 2
Last Result: 30-24 loss at Michigan
Ryan Day repeatedly stressed winning in two areas: the turnover battle and the rushing battle. The Buckeyes lost the turnover battle 2-0 and lost the rushing battle 156-107. Ohio State did overcome the initial turnover and despite being in a 14-3 hole, the Buckeyes erased that deficit to tie the game at 17.
For the first time since Michigan’s 35-21 win in 2003, Ohio State never led in The Game. The Buckeyes didn’t give up big-play touchdowns on the ground this year, but Ohio State did end up allowing Michigan to play at its preferred pace as both teams only had four drives each (excluding the kneel down) in the second half. Michigan scored on all four of those.
The Buckeyes, who slid to No. 6 in the latest CFP rankings, will now hope to sneak into the CFP — like they did in 2022 — behind multiple big upsets (and a Georgia win) in other conference championship games.
3. Penn State (10-2, 7-2 B1G)
Last Ranking: 3
Last Result: 42-0 win at Michigan State
Penn State rebounded from their loss to Michigan with two strong performances to end the season against Rutgers and Michigan State. The Nittany Lions outscored their final two opponents by a combined score of 69-6, including a 42-0 victory against the Spartans to close out the regular season.
Penn State was firing on all cylinders as Drew Allar totaled 292 passing yards and two touchdowns, and the Nittany Lions tallied 283 rushing yards on 39 carries. Penn State did all that offensively while holding Michigan State to just 53 total yards behind seven sacks and 12 TFLs.
4. Iowa (10-2, 7-2 B1G)
Last Ranking: 4
Last Result: 13-10 win at Nebraska
Many said ‘they can’t keep getting away with it.’ Well, they did. Another low-scoring, close victory has the No. 16 Hawkeyes on the second-longest winning streak in the conference (only behind undefeated Michigan) at the end of the regular season. Against Nebraska, Iowa intercepted a pass with 15 seconds left and turned it into a walk-off 38-yard field goal to defeat the Cornhuskers, 13-10, denying its opponent bowl eligibility in the process.
The Big Ten West might be going away, but Iowa winning low-scoring games remains a universal constant. Iowa only surpassed 15 points once in its final six games of the season, but the Hawkeyes still went 5-1 in those games and will hope to spoil Michigan’s season with an upset in the Big Ten Championship Game.
5. Maryland (7-5, 4-5 B1G)
Last Ranking: 5
Last Result: 42-24 win at Rutgers
Maryland lost four games in a row in the middle of the season, but the Terrapins ended the season on a high note. Taulia Tagovailoa threw for 361 yards and three touchdowns against Rutgers, and he also became the Big Ten’s all-time passing leader on Saturday.
Maryland’s offense was extremely effective, and the Terrapins jumped out to a 28-3 lead over the Scarlet Knights after they scored on each of their first four possessions. This game was the first time in a while that Maryland looked like the team that started the season 5-0. Now, the Terps have some momentum going heading into their bowl game.
6. Northwestern (7-5, 5-4 B1G)
Last Ranking: 7
Last Result: 45-43 win at Illinois
Northwestern trailed Illinois, 20-14, before a 75-yard touchdown drive in the final minute of the first half. Then, Illinois clawed back a 31-28 lead after a touchdown at the beginning of the fourth quarter. But Northwestern was resilient and found a way to win — as it has all season long. A muffed punt led to a Northwestern touchdown, and on the ensuing kickoff, Northwestern forced a fumble and took that to the house as well to take a 42-31 lead.
Illinois scored on an 80-yard passing touchdown, but with overtime on the line, Northwestern’s defense held strong and stopped Illinois’ two-point conversion that would have tied the game with under a minute left. The ‘Cats defied all odds this season, going from 1-11 to being bowl eligible. A high-scoring win to secure the HAT was the cherry on top of an amazing season for the Wildcats.
7. Wisconsin (7-5, 5-4 B1G)
Last Ranking: 8
Last Result: 28-14 win at Minnesota
Injuries derailed Wisconsin’s season, but the Badgers ended the year strong after the returns of both Tanner Mordecai and Braelon Allen. Allen averaged 6.3 yards per carry, en route to a 165-yard, two-touchdown performance against Minnesota. Mordecai totaled 214 combined yards with two touchdowns of his own, which was enough to lead the Badgers to a victory.
A 7-5 record is not the desired outcome for a Wisconsin program that had 8+ wins every season from 2009 through 2019. However, Fickell went 4-8 in his first season at Cincinnati in 2017 before going 44-7 across his next four seasons. Wisconsin fans should continue to feel hopeful for the future, especially if the Badgers can stay healthier next season.
8. Rutgers (6-6, 3-6 B1G)
Last Ranking: 6
Last Result: 42-24 loss versus Maryland
Rutgers had relied on its defense all season to keep them in games and, in some circumstances, to win them games as well. Against Maryland, their defense did not hold up its end of the bargain, and before Rutgers could really get into a flow offensively, the Scarlet Knights trailed, 28-3.
This offense is not good enough to make those types of comebacks, but Rutgers fans should still take great pride in their program’s first six-win season since the team’s first year in the Big Ten. Even though Rutgers lost its last four games of the regular season, this season proved that Greg Schiano is capable of restoring Rutgers to its late-2000s form — when Schiano himself led the Scarlet Knights to five straight seasons with seven or more wins.
9. Illinois (5-7, 3-6 B1G)
Last Ranking: 9
Last Result: 45-43 loss versus Northwestern
Illinois lost to Iowa by just two points, but with Northwestern coming into town, the Fighting Illini expected a bounce-back win to secure bowl eligibility. Things didn’t quite work out that way, as Northwestern capitalized on two costly Illinois fumbles. Despite a late comeback attempt, Illinois once again came up two points short of a victory.
Illinois was expected to take a step back after losing its top three defensive backs — Devon Witherspoon, Jartavius Martin and Sydney Brown — to the NFL, along with starting quarterback Tommy Devito and running back Chase Brown. After 2023, the program will be losing two NFL-ready defenders (Jer’Zhan Newton and Keith Randolph, Jr.), and Illinois must figure out how to replace them if it wants to get back to its impressive 2022 form.
10. Nebraska (5-7, 3-6 B1G)
Last Ranking: 10
Last Result: 13-10 loss versus Iowa
Nebraska intercepted a Deacon Hill pass in a 10-10 game with only 31 seconds left, and it ended up with the ball on its own 45-yard-line after a penalty on the return. The Cornhuskers had a chance to move into field goal range and defeat then-No. 17 Iowa at home with bowl eligibility on the line or take the game to overtime without a score. Alas, an interception by Chubba Purdy proved costly, as Iowa cashed in on Purdy’s mistake and kicked the walk-off field goal to squeak past the Cornhuskers.
After recording consecutive victories over Illinois, Northwestern and Purdue, Nebraska held a 5-3 record and looked poised to snap its six-year bowl game drought. But the wheels fell off for the Cornhuskers after the middle portion of the season. Four consecutive one-possession losses later (Michigan State, Maryland, Wisconsin and Iowa) and Nebraska finds itself short of the six-win mark once again.
11. Minnesota (5-7, 3-6 B1G)
Last Ranking: 11
Last Result: 28-14 loss versus Wisconsin
Minnesota had a weekend filled with a lot of bad news, but then some good news at the end. The Golden Gophers scored a touchdown on their opening drive to take a 7-0 lead over Wisconsin, and the game ended up tied at 14 heading into halftime. Minnesota probably felt good about that result, but then Wisconsin erupted for 14 points in the third quarter to take a 28-14 lead, and the Badgers never looked back from there. Minnesota was shut out in the second half, and it suffered the loss to its rival as a result.
So what was the good news after the Golden Gophers lost four consecutive games to end the season? Well, there was one spot left in bowl games for teams who were not automatically eligible. Minnesota’s APR was the highest among 5-7 teams, meaning that despite failing to reach six wins, the Golden Gophers will be bowling for the third year in a row. Considering P.J. Fleck is 4-0 in bowl games at Minnesota, the Golden Gophers have a good chance of cashing in on a second chance at ending the season on a high note.
12. Purdue (4-8, 3-6 B1G)
Last Ranking: 14
Last Result: 35-31 win versus Indiana
After being sidelined with an injury during the Boilermakers’ loss to Northwestern, Hudson Card returned with a vengeance against Indiana. The former Texas quarterback threw for 275 yards and three touchdowns, and he added 85 yards and another touchdown on the ground to lead Purdue to a 35-31 win over Indiana.
The Boilermakers started 1-2 after non-conference losses to Fresno State and Syracuse and looked like an early candidate to end the season last in the conference. In its first year under Ryan Walters, Purdue went 3-6 in conference and ended up tied for 4th in the B1G West. Considering all the talent that left Purdue after the 2022 season (on both the roster and the coaching staff), this season could have gone a lot worse, but the Boilermakers still have a lot to figure out to improve before the 2024 campaign.
13. Michigan State (4-8, 2-7 B1G)
Last Ranking: 12
Last Result: 42-0 loss versus Penn State
For the third time this season, Michigan State proved unable to even compete against the top of the conference. The Spartans were outscored 129-3 by Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State over the course of the year. The 42-0 loss to then-No. 11 Penn State over the weekend ensured that the Spartans would be looking outside of East Lansing to find the program’s next head coach.
Michigan State looked to the Pacific Northwest and gave the job to Jonathan Smith — the former head coach at Oregon State. At OSU, Smith took over a program that went 1-11 the season before he took over. After a bumpy start to his tenure in Corvallis, Smith boasted a 25-10 record in his last three seasons, including three straight appearances in bowl games (including this season). Smith now hopes to engineer a turnaround at Michigan State similar to the one he pulled off with the Beavers.
14. Indiana (3-9, 1-8 B1G)
Last Ranking: 13
Last Result: 35-31 loss at Purdue
After defeating Wisconsin, 20-14, it looked like Indiana could end the season with some momentum against a weaker schedule. Unfortunately for Hoosiers fans, despite averaging 32.3 points over its final three games, Indiana did not pick up a single victory and ended the season with seven losses in its final eight games.
There were little flashes of improvement throughout the year for the Hoosiers, especially on the offensive end, but nothing ever materialized in terms of victories. After ending the season 3-9, the Hoosiers made the decision to fire Tom Allen, who had been Indiana’s head coach since 2017 and ended his stint at Indiana with a 33-49 record.
