Ten Elder Energy Categories: Ohio State recovers the throne, Pennsylvania Fols

Heading into the weekend, it certainly seemed like Saturday’s slate of Big Ten games might unfold in relatively straightforward fashion. A handful of teams were on bye, including highly ranked Oregon and Indiana, and schools like Ohio State and Penn State were massive favorites. 

Few people, if any, could have forecasted what happened at the Rose Bowl, where winless UCLA pulled the most stunning upset of this young college football season, shaking the Nittany Lions to their core with a 42-37 victory that could carry significant College Football Playoff ramifications. It was, from the neutral perspective, tremendous theater.

For a team-by-team breakdown of everything that happened across the conference, here’s a fresh batch of Big Ten Power Rankings following Week 6:

The Top 10

Result: 42-3 home win over Minnesota

Ohio State recaptured the top spot in this week’s rankings courtesy of an incredible all-around performance against the Gophers. 

On offense, where the Buckeyes amassed 476 yards of total offense and converted seven of 10 times on third down, the passing game reached peak altitude in the finest outing of the season for quarterback Julian Sayin, who completed 23 of 27 passes for 326 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. The decision by head coach Ryan Day and offensive coordinator Brian Hartline to incorporate more vertical shots for Sayin paid immediate dividends when he connected on one lengthy pass after another to wideouts Carnell Tate (nine catches, 183 yards, 1 TD) and Jeremiah Smith (seven catches, 67 yards, 2 TDs). 

Even more impressive was another stifling defensive effort in which the Buckeyes held a second consecutive Big Ten opponent without a touchdown, building off last week’s smothering win over Washington. Defensive coordinator Matt Patricia’s unit limited Minnesota to 162 yards of total offense — with 66 of those yards coming on the Gophers’ opening possession — and only allowed a single third-down conversion all evening. The Buckeyes now lead the nation in scoring defense (5 points per game) and rank third in total defense (215.8 yards per game) ahead of their showdown with No. 17 Illinois on Saturday. 

Result: Idle

With the stellar performances strung together by the Ducks so far this season, no one is questioning the potential of head coach Dan Lanning’s group. It seems quite clear that Oregon is a legitimate contender to win both the Big Ten Championship and the national championship. But it’s also true that the Ducks’ overall résumé took a significant hit on Saturday afternoon when then-No. 7 Penn State was picked apart by winless UCLA at the Rose Bowl.

As things currently stand, this week’s clash with No. 7 Indiana is Oregon’s only remaining matchup against a ranked opponent. Lanning and Co. will need to make it count for College Football Playoff seeding purposes. 

Result: Idle

Just like Oregon, the Hoosiers had an extra week to rest and recover before what could be a paradigm-altering showdown for the Big Ten at Autzen Stadium this weekend. The Hoosiers slugged their way to a 2-0 start in conference play by obliterating then-No. 9 Illinois and surviving an absolute brawl on the road at Iowa over the preceding two weeks, and if head coach Curt Cignetti can lead his team to an upset win at Oregon on Saturday, the Hoosiers might be in position to run the table considering the favorable back half of their league slate. It’s a task that looks even more manageable now that Penn State, whom Indiana faces in early November, has seemingly imploded. 

Result: 24-10 home win over Wisconsin

Though the scoreboard only reflected a 14-point margin of victory, there were plenty of encouraging signs throughout Michigan’s highly controlled win over the Badgers. Everything revolved around the stifling defensive effort overseen by defensive coordinator Don “Wink” Martindale, whose group surrendered a touchdown on the game’s opening possession and then handcuffed Wisconsin for the remainder of the game. Waves of defenders from all three levels limited the Badgers’ rushing attack to just 2.7 yards per carry on 28 attempts as Michigan improved to seventh in the country against the run with an allowance of 77 yards per game. 

The Wolverines forced seven consecutive punts from the midway point of the first quarter through the midway point of the third. That was more than enough time for a rushing attack spearheaded by explosive tailback Justice Haynes (19 carries, 117 yards, 2 TDs) to stabilize the offense until quarterback Bryce Underwood found a rhythm in the second half, finishing with a career-high 270 passing yards and a touchdown while completing 67.9% of his passes. That Indiana transfer Donaven McCulley (six catches, 112 yards, 1 TD) and freshman Andrew Marsh (four catches, 80 yards) both looked like viable, Big Ten-caliber wideouts was a positive development. But as a whole, the Wolverines’ receivers must cut down on dropped passes. 

Result: 43-27 road win over Purdue

The Illini continued to restore the trajectory of their season with another convincing win over Purdue on Saturday, giving head coach Bret Bielema and his team back-to-back victories after the 53-point shellacking they took against then-No. 19 Indiana on Sept. 20. Quarterback Luke Altmyer has authored numerous standout performances since transferring from Ole Miss ahead of the 2023 season, and what he did against the Boilermakers might be his finest effort yet. Altmyer completed 19 of 22 passes for a career-high 390 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions on a day when Illinois racked up 507 yards of total offense and did not commit a turnover. His high-caliber play elicited a supreme compliment from Bielema, who in his postgame news conference said, “I’ve been in this business a long time and had a lot of quarterbacks, and this guy is as good as I’ve ever had.” 

One area where Illinois’ offense still needs to improve is in the red zone, where Altmyer and Co. only found the end zone twice in seven chances, repeatedly settling for field goals in the second half. The Illini now rank 90th in the country and 13th in the Big Ten for red zone touchdown rate at just 58.6%. That number will almost certainly need to improve if Illinois wants to upset No. 1 Ohio State this weekend. 

Result: Idle

The Trojans had a bye week to lick their wounds and recalibrate following a disappointing, 34-32 road loss to then-No. 23 Illinois in which USC’s defensive front was unable to stop the run and its high-powered offense needed to mount a frantic comeback after being held to just 17 points through the opening three quarters.

Beginning this week, head coach Lincoln Riley and his team have back-to-back games against ranked opponents in No. 15 Michigan (home) and No. 16 Notre Dame (away) that will likely represent a significant tipping point for the Trojans’ season. The good news is that quarterback Jayden Maiava is playing as well as any quarterback in the country. He ranks fifth nationally in passing yards (1,587) and is one of only 10 players to throw at least 11 touchdowns with one or fewer interceptions this season. 

Result: 24-20 road win over Maryland 

The Huskies certainly deserve credit for flying across the country and upending previously unbeaten Maryland on its home turf, but this game was ugly from the opening kickoff until the clock reached zero. Washington trailed by 10 points at the end of the first quarter, by 13 points after the second quarter and by 17 points after the third quarter before mounting an impressive rally. 

Quarterback Demond Williams Jr., who finished 28 of 41 for 275 yards with two scores and one interception, led three consecutive touchdown drives in 11 minutes to rewrite the script and nudge Washington ahead for good in the fourth quarter. He also mixed in 14 carries for 54 yards in support of tailback Jonah Coleman, whose 18 carries only netted 57 yards and a touchdown — though it proved to be the game-winning score — against a stout Maryland defense that now ranks 24th nationally against the run (96.8 yards per game).

Coleman’s 1-yard score with 3:21 remaining saddled the Terrapins with their first deficit of the entire season. Washington’s defense also deserves significant credit for forcing three punts and one turnover on downs across Maryland’s final four possessions. The Huskies will host Rutgers this weekend before what could be a battle of ranked teams when they travel to No. 15 Michigan on Oct. 18. 

Result: 42-37 road loss to UCLA

Disaster, debacle, devastation, destruction, disintegration, dissolution — any of those words will do when describing what was, inarguably, the most puzzling loss Penn State has had under head coach James Franklin. Despite dropping an emotional game against then-No. 6 Oregon last week, the Nittany Lions were favored by 24.5 points over a winless UCLA team that had already fired its head coach and parted ways with both coordinators less than halfway through the season, prompting legitimate questions about whether the Bruins might actually finish 0-12. All of that was rendered moot on Saturday when it became clear that Penn State was intent on sleepwalking through this game, with Franklin admitting afterward that nothing about the team’s preparation or mindset had been adequate. 

A defense thought to be the program’s backbone and overseen by Jim Knowles, the highest-paid coordinator in the sport, was shredded for 446 yards of total offense and 10 third-down conversions on 16 attempts. The Nittany Lions surrendered a stunning 280 rushing yards on an afternoon when they proved incapable of stopping dual-threat quarterback Nico Iamaleava, who carried 16 times for 128 yards and three scores while also completing 17 of 24 passes for 166 yards and two more touchdowns. 

Franklin’s team never led in this game after falling behind 27-7 at halftime and appeared seemingly unready for various instances of situational football: the failure to recover an onside kick, the complete mismanagement of timeouts, the stunning lack of pass rush when the Bruins were punting from their own end zone in the waning seconds. Now, the Nittany Lions will almost certainly need to beat No. 1 Ohio State and No. 7 Indiana to have any chance of reaching the College Football Playoff.  

Result: 38-27 home win over Michigan State

When Michigan State quarterback Aidan Chiles plowed into the end zone for a 4-yard rushing touchdown with 2:37 remaining in the third quarter, Nebraska found itself trailing by 7 points and staring down the barrel of a potential loss that might have upended its season — especially with tricky matchups against Maryland, USC, Penn State and Iowa still remaining. But from that point forward, the Cornhuskers unleashed a deluge of three touchdowns and a field goal in roughly 12 minutes of game time that swung momentum back toward the home team and preserved what finished as a shootout victory.

Tailback Emmett Johnson, who carried 13 times for 83 yards and three touchdowns, shouldered most of the offensive workload on an afternoon when quarterback Dylan Raiola was limited to 194 passing yards and threw as many touchdowns (one) as interceptions (one). A special teams touchdown by wide receiver Carter Nelson on a blocked punt returned for a score gave Nebraska an additional boost. It proved to be more than enough support for a Cornhuskers’ defense that swarmed Chiles from start to finish, limiting him to just nine completions and 85 yards on 23 attempts, two of which were intercepted. Nebraska racked up four sacks and 12 tackles for loss overall. 

Result: Idle

Iowa is still without a marquee victory this season — the three teams they’ve beaten are Albany, UMass and Rutgers — but the Hawkeyes have also avoided any catastrophic losses, with both defeats coming against ranked opponents in then-No. 16 Iowa State and then-No. 11 Indiana.

The biggest question facing head coach Kirk Ferentz and his staff right now, as they prepare to play Wisconsin, is the health of starting quarterback Mark Gronowski, who left the game against Indiana with a left leg injury and did not return. His immediate status remains unclear, though CBS Sports reported it’s not expected to be a long-term issue.

The Rest

Result: 24-20 home loss to Washington

The Terrapins led 20-0 when quarterback Malik Washington connected with tight end AJ Szymanski for a 2-yard touchdown pass with 11:25 remaining in the third quarter — but from there, things quickly unraveled. What had been a very stout Maryland defense allowed 21 points in the fourth quarter as the visiting Huskies clawed their way to an unlikely win. Maryland’s inability to establish the run (2.8 yards per carry) proved costly in a fourth quarter when the offense desperately needed to run some clock.  

Result: 38-27 road loss to Nebraska 

Michigan State deserves credit for rallying back from a 14-point road deficit to take a 21-14 lead with 2:37 remaining in the third quarter, at which point quarterback Aidan Chiles muscled across the goal line on a 4-yard run. But it was the Spartans’ defense that couldn’t hold serve, allowing four scoring drives in the span of 13 minutes that turned the tide for good. Head coach Jonathan Smith’s squad has now slipped into a tie for 113th in scoring defense at 30.6 points per game. UCLA, which concedes 32.4 points per game, is the only Big Ten team below Michigan State in those rankings. 

Result: 42-3 road loss to No. 1 Ohio State

The Gophers were outclassed in seemingly every aspect of Saturday’s game by an Ohio State team that certainly looks the part of a national championship favorite. Minnesota was outgained through the air (341 yards to 94 yards), outgained on the ground (135 yards to 68 yards) and outfoxed on third down, where head coach P.J. Fleck’s team managed just a single conversion in 11 attempts. This quote from Fleck’s postgame news conference more or less summed things up: 

“Some nights you just get your butt kicked,” Fleck said. “And we got our butt kicked.”

Result: Idle

The Scarlet Knights desperately needed a bye week following back-to-back losses to Iowa and Minnesota in which they allowed 69 combined points to teams now ranked 66th and 79th, respectively, in scoring. An incredibly difficult Big Ten slate continues with a trip to Washington on Friday night, with games against No. 3 Oregon, No. 17 Illinois, No. 1 Ohio State and Penn State still to come. It will be difficult for Rutgers to achieve bowl eligibility. 

Result: 42-37 home win over No. 7 Penn State

Regardless of what happens the rest of the season for UCLA, which has already fired its coach and parted ways with both coordinators, Saturday’s stunning victory over then-No. 7 Penn State will be a defining moment. The inspired play from quarterback Nico Iamaleava, who led the Bruins in passing, rushing and accounted for five total touchdowns, was matched by the incredible playcalling of Jerry Neuheisel, who had been elevated from tight ends coach earlier in the week. Neuheisel, whose father, Rick Neuheisel, played at UCLA and later became the head coach from 2008-11, received a Gatorade bath along the sideline in the waning seconds and was hoisted onto the shoulders of adoring players. It was a reminder to everyone of what makes college football so great. 

Result: 42-7 home win over UL Monroe

Northwestern did what it was supposed to do in pummeling UL Monroe to notch its third win in the last four games. The Wildcats ran the ball 38 times for 246 yards and two touchdowns on Saturday during a comprehensive offensive performance in which quarterback Preston Stone threw for a season-high 262 yards and three additional scores. They outgained the Warhawks 515-273 in total yards and finished with an advantage of more than 10 minutes in time of possession. 

Result: 24-10 road loss to No. 20 Michigan 

Embattled head coach Luke Fickell changed quarterbacks again entering Saturday’s game at Michigan, turning away from No. 2 signal-caller Danny O’Neil, who struggled mightily in losses to Maryland and then-No. 19 Alabama, in favor of the relatively unknown Hunter Simmons, a transfer from Southern Illinois. It hardly mattered, however, as the Badgers were overwhelmed by an aggressive, ball-hawking Michigan defense. Simmons completed 18 of 29 passes for 177 yards, no touchdowns and one interception. Wisconsin now faces Iowa, No. 1 Ohio State and No. 3 Oregon in the next three weeks. 

Result: 43-27 home loss to No. 22 Illinois

Purdue head coach Barry Odom, a defensive coordinator by trade, must be beside himself considering how poorly the Boilermakers are playing on that side of the ball. After opening the season with back-to-back wins over Ball State and Southern Illinois — against whom Odom’s squad only conceded 17 combined points — Purdue has now surrendered 33 points to USC, 56 points to Notre Dame and 43 points to Illinois. The Boilermakers are now tied for 108th nationally in scoring at 29.8 points per game.  

Michael Cohen covers college football and college basketball for FOX Sports. Follow him at @Michael_Cohen13.

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