Ranking Big Ten teams from worst to first. Factoring in current results as well as projections, win rate %, the strength of schedule remaining, etc.

After week 2 action, let's take a look at the current Big Ten Pecking Order.

I'll admit it one more time.
I thought this was the year Nebraska found level under Scott Frost. I was wrong.
I don't care about the game they won, Nebraska lost the season opener to Northwestern, a game they should have won. Now, they lose a game to Georgia Southern, and all of the same issues that have plagued this program under Frost still exist. The poor game management, the late self-inflicted mistakes, and the tension throughout. I feel for the fans in Lincoln because Frost was supposed to be the answer and the program is now as low as it has ever been.

College football is always evolving, but some things never change. It is really hard to win if you lose the turnover battle and can't stop the run. Enter Northwestern against Duke.

Evan Hull is a beast and without a devastating fumble at the goal line to end the game, this is a very different paragraph. Pat Fitzgerald is a good coach, and this team will likely win a game or more that they shouldn't, but it's never good when your team finds ways to lose games you should have won.

Illinois lost to Indiana but then wins convincingly against a Virginia team that beat them by 28 last season. Chase Brown continues to impress and Tommy Devito was efficient enough for the Illini to win. Their defense was impressive in this one, and maybe Bret Bielema has this team back on track. I can’t figure out what I think about Illinois.

Indiana was in a bad spot in the first half against Idaho before a 23-point third quarter gave them some room. In a closer than it needed to be 4th quarter the Hoosiers won, and Indiana is a team with talent that just needs to put it together.

Connor Bazelak needs to settle in and find some consistency if Indiana is going to exceed expectations. It looks like has found a couple of #1 targets in WR DJ Matthews Jr. and TE AJ Barner.

Rutgers with another nice win to start the season. 4 touchdowns in the first quarter put the game away before it ever really started. The big story for Greg Schiano's Scarlet Knights is at quarterback. With Noah Vedral out with an injury, Rutgers gave top 10 QB recruit Gavin Wimsatt his first career start. Wimsatt struggled at times, but Schiano rotated him and Evan Simon throughout the game.

I thought Rutgers was a year away at the start of the season, we'll see how they handle the QB spot and how they play come conference play.

What can you say?
That Iowa offense is really bad. After not finding the end zone and getting only 166 total yards against South Dakota State, they followed it up with 141 yard total against Iowa State. They had TWO plays longer than 10 yards against the Cyclones.

Iowa's defense is really good but not good enough to carry this offense. Have to think a change is coming at quarterback, but it might not matter. That offensive line is nothing close to what Iowa has had in recent years.

Maryland beat a bad Buffalo team last week and they beat a bad team this week in Charlotte. I hate to stick to this theme, but I am hesitant to get too excited about Maryland when they padded stats against weaker opponents last season but didn't show up in big games.

It is no secret the talent that QB Taulia Tagovailoa has, but an inconsistent run game and a below-average secondary still has me doubting the Terrapins until they prove me wrong.

I looked at the stats and I have no idea how the Badgers lost to Washington State. Wisconsin had 150 more yards than the Wazzu, 125 coming on the ground. 7/15 on third down and 17 more minutes of the time of possession. It's a nonconference loss so Wisconsin's path to the B1G Championship is still wide open in the West, but this program has been trending in the wrong direction as of late.

I came into the season high on the Boilermakers and thought Purdue did enough to beat Penn State. They bounced back in a big way with a 56-0 win over Indiana State.

Purdue has a passing game with Aidan O'Connell and his new favorite target, "Chuck Sizzle", Charlie Jones. The run game looked good as well, albeit against a weaker opponent. We'll see if Jeff Brohm can get Purdue rolling in what looks like a very winnable Big Ten West.

Penn State's biggest opportunity last season was in the run game, in their nail-biter win against Purdue getting the ball moving on the ground was still a struggle. Against Ohio, the Nittany Lions got a breakout game from Nicholas Singleton with 179 yards and 2 touchdowns on only 10 carries against the Bobcats.

Penn State has had no shortage of talented recruits in the backfield, but none has been good enough since Saquon Barkley. We'll need to see it against better competition, but Penn State is looking to break out of the midfield.

Michigan State overcame a tough start last week against Western Michigan to win by a large margin, but the win was never in doubt with a blowout against Akron. Still, the score doesn't match reality in East Lansing. Payton Thorne wasn't great, as he was inefficient with the ball and threw two interceptions. He is his harshest critic, and he will bounce back.

The rush combo of Jalen Berger and Jarek Broussard however had another great week for the Spartans. Throw in LB Jacoby Windmon and Coach Mel Tucker may have struck gold in the transfer portal yet again. 2-0 Michigan State heads to Washington for a night game contest against the Huskies, a big win there and the Spartans could be for real again.

It may be tough to draw conclusions from Minnesota's shut-out win over New Mexico State and a blowout win against Western Illinois, but when you play weaker opponents the best thing you can do is destroy them, and that's what the Gophers have done.

Minnesota's offense has a balanced attack with Tanner Morgan at QB and RB Mohammed Ibrahim returning after last year's injury. The West is wide open and Minnesota may have the tools to win it.

Big plays all day for the Buckeyes against Arkansas State. CJ Stroud had a ridiculous 14.6 yards per attempt. Trevyon Henderson had 87 yards and 2 touchdowns on only 10 carries. A big game for Marvin Harrison Jr. with Jaxson Smith Ngiba out due to injury.

There are still questions, especially about the defense after their big win against Notre Dame took a hit with the Irish losing to Marshall, but Ohio State is still one of the top dogs in the conference, and the country.

Michigan had a convincing win last week against Colorado State, but a shaky performance by Cade McNamara and the impending first start of JJ McCarthy was lingering over the week heading into the game against Hawaii.

It was no secret the game was a mismatch, but McCarthy showed exactly what his elite arm talent and ability to run can do for the offense. Michigan's defense is deep and it looks like Harbaugh could be right, once they nail down their rotations it could be better than last season. With JJ leading the way, this is the most modern and explosive offense Michigan has ever had. It's them and the Buckeyes at the top now.

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