Thanks to Wisconsin’s, to put it politely, bulldozing of Nebraska, we now have a clear pitcure of what the Big Ten championship will look like. Ohio State has the East effectively sewn up and the Badgers continue to control their destiny, but now with some brand new safety cushions.
1. No. 7 Ohio State (10 first place votes), 140 points
Minnesota looked like they could give the Buckeyes a scare, given their strong run game and the chaos a snow game can bring. The Gophers put up a fight, but Urban Meyer and Co. ultimately prevailed. J.T. Barrett is now a legitimate Heisman candidate, possibly No. 3 after Mariota and Gordon, and the Buckeyes pretty much have their division clinched. This is now the Big Ten’s one and only Playoff candidate.
2. No. 10 Michigan State, 127 points
The Spartans still have an elite offense and a defense just about at their standards, which is quite good. Their only two losses are to teams that are still in Playoff contention (Oregon and Ohio State). Hopefully, people don’t forget that as we start to focus on the Big Ten championship and possibly forget that the East still has the top two teams in the conference.
3. No. 14 Wisconsin, 123 points
Personally, I was pretty shocked our voters didn’t want to bump the Badgers past Michigan State after their hilariously excessive beatdown of Nebraska. We already know about 408 and everything, but you also have to note that the UW defense held a Top 20 Husker offense to less than 200 total yards and forced five turnovers. The Badgers might be the only team left in the conference that can pose a challenge to Ohio State.
4. No. 21 Nebraska, 107 points
Just got smacked down in Madison? Ouch, but now it’s time to move on to a very important game with Minnesota. The Gophers will be playing to guarantee their road game at Wisconsin next week will decide the West division. Nebraska’s shot at the division is pretty much gone, but they’re still playing to get a New Year’s bowl.
5. Minnesota, 102 points
You can bet Jerry Kill and his players watched what Wisconsin’s power run game did to Nebraska and are licking their chops to play that same defense this Saturday. This is a little unfair to Minnesota, but its team is basically a poor man’s Wisconsin from where I’m standing. However, last Saturday made it pretty clear that homeless man’s Wisconsin could have beaten the Huskers.
6. Iowa, 90 points
Like Nebraska, the Hawkeyes are playing for bowl placement, as the division is basically out of reach at this point. They’ll be forced to play Wisconsin and Nebraska back-to-back to end their season, and their dismantling at the hands of Minnesota should makes those games scary.
7. Maryland, 72 points
The Terrapins might lead the conference in explainable losses. Here’s the list: West Virginia, Ohio State, Wisconsin and Michigan State. None of those games were close, but at least we know where the Terrapins stand in the conference. Losing Stefon Diggs for the year is a brutal loss though.
8. Northwestern, 64 points
What.
I don’t really know how to explain how the Wildcats walked into South Bend and came away with a beyond shocking win over Notre Dame, all I know is that Wisconsin’s loss to this squad just became a lot more explainable. Indiana already misses its “Biggest non-conference win in the Big Ten” crown.
T-9. Penn State, 57 points
The Nittany Lions could get shut out at Illinois this weekend (never say never) and this season would be still be a positive. Penn State is eligible for their first bowl since 2012. This helps get over the fact that Christian Hackenberg is still somehow getting worse.
T-9. Rutgers, 57 points
A dominant win over Indiana is the oasis in the desert for the Scarlet Knights. Before their win over the Hoosiers, Rutgers had been crushed in three straight games by the Big Ten’s top teams. And now they take on Michigan State this weekend.
11. Michigan, 50 points
Michigan might not win a game again this year, as they are standing at five wins and have to play Maryland and Ohio State to end the season. It’s going to be all or nothing against the Terrapins, because the Wolverines are as likely to beat Ohio State as I am to strike out Bryce Harper.
12. Illinois, 27 points
Do you want me to talk about the Illini, or do you want me to list players J.J. Watt has more touchdowns than? I thought so, here’s an updated list: Calvin Johnson, T.Y. Hilton, Andre Johnson, Frank Gore, Julio Jones, Golden Tate, Anquan Boldin and Jason Witten.
13. Purdue, 23 points
The Boilermakers win the Big Ten’s award for Most Inconsequential Remaining Schedule, as the only games they have left are Northwestern and at Indiana. No word yet on if federal aid will be sent to people willingly attending those games.
14. Indiana, 11 points
I’m setting the over/under for Ohio State points against the Hoosiers this weekend at 56. This is the meeting of the conference’s best offense against its worst defense by points per game. This could get really ugly.
