Ohio State:

Another week, another win for Ohio State. Wisconsin put up a good fight against the best team in the Big Ten but just couldn’t topple the Buckeyes. The overtime win against the best team in the Big Ten West kept Ohio State’s hopes for an undefeated season alive.

Michigan:

Michigan had a bye this week, but it will take more than one week for any of the teams below the Wolverines to hop them anyway. These top two will probably stay the same until the last week of the season when Michigan and Ohio State finally face off.

Wisconsin:

Wisconsin is the only team in the national top-10 that has multiple losses, but that is because of the quality of those losses. Wisconsin has put up great fights against Michigan and Ohio State, but have not been able to pull off wins. Wisconsin is the best team in the Big Ten West, and taking the Buckeyes to overtime made that even more apparent.

Nebraska:

Nebraska is the only undefeated team left in the Big Ten West, but the Cornhuskers still have not jumped the Badgers in our power ranking. Nebraska has been a surprise this year, going undefeated so far after a rough 2015. But outside of a win against Oregon, Nebraska has been squeaking by lesser competition like Illinois and Indiana.

Penn State:

Penn State also had a bye this week. It is right in the middle of these rankings, bridging the gap between the upper tier of Ohio State, Michigan, Wisconsin and Nebraska, and the rest of the Big Ten.

Iowa

Iowa has had a rough season, but it took care of business against Purdue on Saturday. Purdue was dangerous coming off an overtime win against Illinois, but Iowa did not give Purdue a chance to pull off a big win.

Indiana:

Indiana tried to knock off Nebraska but could not pull it off. Indiana has had two rough weeks in a row, losing to both Ohio State and now Nebraska. Neither were bad losses, but nobody is in this league for moral victories.

Minnesota:

The Golden Gophers beat Maryland this week, giving them their first Big Ten victory. This was their first legitimate win of the season. Minnesota had a weak nonconference schedule, so even though they entered the Big Ten undefeated, nobody was sold on the Golden Gophers.

Northwestern:

Northwestern was the laughing stock of the Big Ten early, but now after beating Iowa and Michigan State, the Wildcats have reestablished themselves as a serious threat in the Big Ten.

Maryland:

Maryland got blown out in their first real test of the season last week against Penn State and lost again in its second test this week against Minnesota.

Purdue:

Purdue did not carry the momentum it gained last week victory over Illinois. Purdue lost to Iowa 49-35. The loss apparently pushed the Purdue athletic department over the edge as it fired head coach Darrell Hazel on Sunday.

Illinois:

The Illini finally got a Big Ten win under their belt with a road win over Rutgers. It is nothing to get too excited about because Rutgers is not good, but it will take a little pressure off of the Illini as they head to Ann Arbor next week.

Michigan State:

This has to be the first time ever Michigan State has been ranked behind Illinois and Purdue in football rankings. The Spartans are one of two teams left in the Big Ten without a conference win. The Spartans are probably better than their record shows, but they need to prove it.

Rutgers:

Rutgers will likely never escape the bottom of the Big Ten now. The Scarlet Knights scored their first points in 11 quarters against Illinois. They are not good, and they don’t really have a chance to win a game the rest of the season.