Big Ten Power Rankings: Spartans fall after brutal performance against Washington

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Record: 1-2 (0-1 in the Big Ten)

This week’s result: Loss at Duke

Next game: Minnesota on September 23

Northwestern was easily handled by a ranked Duke team this weekend, which will likely be the norm moving forward for the Wildcats. This week’s home matchup against Minnesota may be one of their last winnable games this year.

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Record: 1-2 (0-1 in the Big Ten)

This week’s result: Loss against Penn State

Next game: Florida Atlantic on September 23

Illinois very well could be 0-3 right now, so thank goodness they were able to come back against Toledo in the opener. The Fighting Illini were sloppy against Penn State this week and desperately need a convincing win over Florida Atlantic to start getting back on track this week.

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Record: 1-2 (0-1 in the Big Ten)

This week’s result: Loss against Louisville

Next game: Akron on September 23

The Hoosiers played Louisville tough in a neutral non-conference field game this week, but came up short late. Indiana is proving to be better than my preseason expectations, but I’m still not convinced overall of its long-term success in 2023.

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Record: 1-2 (0-1 in the Big Ten)

This week’s result: Victory against Northern Illinois

Next game: Louisana Tech on September 23

Matt Rhule is on the board! After losing his first two games as the Cornhuskers’ head coach, Rhule earned a much-needed convincing victory over Northern Illinois this week. The same should be said next week in their final warm-up game against Louisana Tech.

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Record: 1-2 (0-0 in the Big Ten)

This week’s result: Loss against Syracuse

Next game: Wisconsin on September 22

Purdue has played a tough schedule to open the year with all three games against solid teams. That said, it’s hard to know where the Boilermakers rank compared to lower-tier teams, but we should learn more this week in their Big Ten opener against Wisconsin.

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Record: 2-1 (0-0 in the Big Ten)

This week’s result: Loss against Washington

Next game: Maryland on September 23

It can be argued that the Spartans are lower on this list. And I wouldn’t be opposed to that. But for this week, I’ll give Michigan State a little breathing room to know that Washington is a true National Championship contender based on the offensive firepower they have. But now we know that Michigan State is not a top team in the league and will essentially play the entire season next week against Maryland.

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Record: 2-1 (1-0 Big Ten)

This week’s result: Loss in North Carolina

Next game: at Northwestern on September 23

Like Michigan State, Minnesota received a dose of reality this week in a non-conference loss against North Carolina. The Golden Gophers’ offense is terrible right now, and it will be difficult for them to reach bowl eligibility if we don’t see progress on that side of the ball.

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Record: 3-0 (1-0 Big Ten)

This week’s result: Victory against Virginia Tech

Next game: in Michigan on September 23
Rutgers is off to another 3-0 start this year (the third year in a row) but this year feels different for the Scarlet Knights. In the previous two years, the wheels came out of control during Big Ten play, and that could happen again here, but now I feel more confident in Rutgers’ ability to maintain its fast start in conference play. He may not be seen this week in a tough road game against Michigan.

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Record: 2-1 (0-0 in the Big Ten)

This week’s result: Victory against Georgia Southern

Next game: at Purdue on September 22

I don’t know what to make of the Badgers after a relatively lackluster performance against Georgia Southern this week. Wisconsin hasn’t looked particularly impressive in any of their three non-conference games, so I’m intrigued to see how they handle a Friday night road trip to Purdue this week.

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Record: 3-0 (0-0 in the Big Ten)

This week’s result: Victory against Virginia

Next game: at Michigan State on September 23

It makes me a little sick to have the Terps so high, but who else should be here? Maryland is a perfect 3-0 and, despite poor starts in each of its last two games, has won every game by double digits. We’ll have a better idea of ​​where Maryland is after this week’s road trip to the state of Michigan.

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Record: 3-0 (0-0 in the Big Ten)

This week’s result: Victory against Western Michigan

Next game: at Penn State on September 23

Iowa appears to be an early favorite in the Big Ten West Division after a perfect 3-0 non-conference slate, which included a road win over Iowa State. The Hawkeyes’ offense still appears to have its flaws, but they’ll get a chance to show if they’ve really improved this week on a big road trip to Penn State.

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Record: 3-0 (0-0 in the Big Ten)

This week’s result: Victory against Bowling Green

Next game: Rutgers on September 23

I’m finally knocking Michigan out of first place after farting on poor competition for the third week in a row. The Wolverines will have a tougher test this week against Rutgers, and I would like to see them show their dominance after a somewhat disappointing start to the season.

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Record: 3-0 (1-0 Big Ten)

This week’s result: Victory against Western Kentucky

Next game: at Notre Dame on September 23

Ohio State finally looked like its normal dominant self in a blowout win over Western Kentucky this week. However, the first true test for the Buckeyes is finally here, in a top-10 clash at Notre Dame next week. We should learn a lot about Ohio State’s true potential to win a National Championship this week.

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Record: 3-0 (1-0 Big Ten)

This week’s result: Win in Illinois

Next game: Iowa on September 23

We have a new team at the top of our power rankings: Penn State. The Nittany Lions have the best resume of the big three at the top and have simply looked the most impressive thus far. This week heralds another challenge for Penn State in a primetime showdown at home against Iowa.

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