Welcome to another season of Big Ten Power Rankings. It is an unusual Week 1 in that six schools do not play on Saturday. Then again, in this conference half the teams never look like they’re playing on Saturdays. Rim shot, please. The Buckeyes top the charts . Sparty brings up the rear.
1. Ohio State
This week : vs. Akron
What to know : The Buckeyes begin their title quest with a lethal defense that makes the Zips worthy of their nickname.
2. Oregon
This week : vs. Idaho
What to know : If it looks like a Duck … then its offense will cause most defenses to lay an egg. Dan Lanning’s flock will quack opponents up, down and sideways.
3. Penn State
This week : at West Virginia
What to know : Perhaps no power conference school is more thrilled about the expanded playoff than PSU, which would have made a 12-team model half of the time since 2014.
4. Iowa
This week : vs. Illinois State
What to know : In an odd turn of events, Kirk Ferentz will miss one game due to suspension instead of the Hawkeyes’ offense missing every game. But an easy schedule makes Iowa a CFP candidate.
5. USC
This week : at LSU (Sunday)
What to know : Losing quarterback Caleb Williams to the NFL is like the Trojans misplacing their defense and having no clue where to find it. Sounds about right.
6. Michigan
This week : vs. Fresno State
What to know : The Wolverines return only five starters, so it doesn’t take a Connor Stalions to uncover why UM won’t repeat as conference champs.
7. Nebraska
This week : vs. UTEP
What to know : Owning the longest bowl drought among power conference schools feels odder than Nebraskans shucking carrots, but the dubious seven-year streak ends this year.
8. Rutgers
This week : vs. Howard (Thursday)
What to know : Rutgers used to be the butt of Big Ten jokes, but the Scarlet Knights will be the ones laughing after finishing with eight wins for the first time in a decade.
9. Wisconsin
This week : vs. Western Michigan (Friday)
What to know : The Badgers’ “Dairy Raid” offense turned out to be lactose intolerant last season. Maybe transfer quarterback Tyler Van Dyke brings back the churn.
10. Washington
This week : vs. Weber State
What to know : Play for a national championship one season, lose your coach, star quarterback and most everything else the next. A sobering first step into Big Ten country for the Huskies.
11. Maryland
This week : vs. UConn
What to know : Every year we overvalue the Terrapins, only to watch them fold like a $5 umbrella in 30 mph wind.
12. Indiana
This week : vs. Florida International
What to know : New IU coach Curt Cignetti talks big and has backed it up at his previous stops, but unless he’s talking basketball it’s all static noise in Bloomington.
13. Northwestern
This week : vs. Miami (OH)
What to know : The football gods know the Wildcats won six games by one score last season. Those pigskin deities get their revenge in 2024 when NU loses a bunch of close ones.
14. Illinois
This week : vs. Eastern Illinois (Thursday)
What to know: We’re trying to remember the last time the Illini were a threat to anyone but themselves; 2001 was the last time they won 10 games.
15. Minnesota
This week : vs. North Carolina (Thursday)
What to know : Motor boat, motor boat, putt, putt, putt, Gophers football in a rut, rut, rut. And there is rowing out of it this season.
16. UCLA
This week : at Hawaii
What to know : Traveling to Honolulu for the opener is an early consolation prize for a program that gets bounced from the conference game show before September ends.
17. Purdue
This week : vs Indiana State
What to know : The Boilermakers are known for their quarterbacks. Unfortunately, they haven’t had a great one this century.
18. Michigan State
This week : vs. Florida Atlantic (Friday)
What to know : One year after MSU fired Mel Tucker for cause, the Big Ten considers firing Sparty just because. You don’t need a reason when a program is this much of a mess.
roller@dispatch.com
@rollerCD
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Big Ten Power Rankings: Ohio State on top, but who is No. 2?
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