Big Ten was 16-2 in Week 1 of the college football season, led by Ohio State's victory over No. 1 Texas. Where does Bryce Underwood and Michigan rank?
Just like that Week 1 of College football is in the books and teams are already feeling differently about themselves.
Some feel they've shown the nation they can live up to the hype that surrounded them during this offseason, while others want a re-do on their opening performance. Unfortunately there are no second chances for these teams until Week 2, and for many the slate only gets tougher.
Below are our Big Ten power rankings on a week the league went 16-2 in the nonconference schedule.
No. 1 Ohio State
The Buckeyes didn't overwhelm offensively against Texas − the first touchdown came courtesy of a pair of Longhorns penalties and the second was on a well underthrown 40-yard deep ball by freshman Julian Sayin − but new defensive coordinator Matt Patricia made life tough enough for Texas starter Arch Manning to preserve the 14-7 win over the No. 1-ranked team in the country.
No. 2 Penn State
Penn State frankly could've picked its score in the opener if it truly mattered. The run game was actually a bit underwhelming − 36 carries for 135 yards (3.8 per attempt) − but it did result in four touchdowns. Quarterback Drew Allar was 22 of 26 for 217 yards and one touchdown, but had a QBR of just 39.3 (perhaps because he went 6 of 10 on passes more than 9 yards down field). PSU didn't allow a touchdown until the final 30 seconds, with backups on the field, in a 46-11 win over Nevada.
No. 3 Oregon
The Dante Moore (Detroit King) era at quarterback got off to a solid start in Eugene: 18 of 23 passing for 213 yards and three touchdowns with no turnovers. Even better was the Ducks' consistent gains on the ground, rushing 38 times for 254 yards (6.7 yards per carry) and five touchdowns. Eight different players had at least one 8-yard carry in a 59-13 victory over Montana State.
No. 4 Michigan
The Bryce Underwood era got off to a fantastic start for the Wolverines. He went 21 of 31 for 251 yards and touchdown, putting up the most passing yards in school history for a freshman's first start. Alabama transfer Justice Haynes also dominated, rushing 16 times and racking up 159 yards and three touchdowns in a 34-17 win over New Mexico. Now comes the real test: at Oklahoma in a night game for ESPN's College Gameday, without, as of now, a critical defensive piece for the first half.
No. 5 Illinois
There's a reason Illinois entered the season in the top-15. Luke Altmyer went 17 of 21 passing for 217 yards and three scores, Aidan Laughery ran nine times for 101 yards and two touchdowns and Hank Beatty had five grabs for 108 yards. Illinois pounded Western Illinois 52-3, now it will play its first power conference game of the season at Duke.
No. 6 USC
The highest scoring Big Ten team in Week 1? Lincoln Riley's Trojans, who defeated Missouri State 73-13 as they scored at least 14 points in every quarter. Jaden Maiava was close to perfect, completing 15 of 18 passes for 295 yards and two touchdowns and the team spread the love on the ground, rushing 30 times for 233 yards (7.8 yards per rush) and six touchdowns with only one back getting more than five carries.
No. 7 Nebraska
It was a nailbiter, but Nebraska ruined the Taylor Swift party at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City as the Cornhuskers beat her fiancés alma mater (Cincinnati) 20-17. Dylan Raiola completed 33 of 43 passes for 243 yards and two scores, Emmett Johnson ran 25 times for 108 yards and Malcolm Hartzog Jr. had the game-sealing pick in the end zone in the final minute.
No. 8 Minnesota
Freshman Drake Lindsey completed 19 of 35 passes for 290 yards, two touchdowns and just one interception while Darius Taylor ran 30 times for 141 yards as the Gophers scored the final 10 points of the game to pull away for a 23-10 win over Buffalo.
No. 9 Washington
It was tight late in the game, but the Huskies were ready for a trick-punt pass play, came away with a sack and left little doubt in what ended as a 38-21 win over Colorado State. Demond Williams Jr. was as advertised, connecting on 18 of 24 passes for 226 yards and a score while rushing 13 times for 68 yards. He connected six times with his favorite target, Denzel Boston, for 92 yards and a score, but the real difference in the game was Jonah Coleman: he ran 24 times for 177 yards (7.4 yards per carry) and two touchdowns.
No. 10 Michigan State
The Spartans were on their way to a shutout, bleeding out the clock when backup quarterback Alessio Milivojevic threw a pick-six on a third-down play with three minutes to go − his only pass of the day. The starter, Aidan Chiles, was much more poised than last season. He completed 17 of 23 passes for 155 yards and a touchdown as MSU finished off a 23-6 victory over Western Michigan.
No. 11 Iowa
Kirk Ferentz moved into a tie as the winningest coach in Big Ten history (Woody Hayes, 205 wins) as Iowa handled Albany 34-7. The team ran well with 53 carries for 310 yards (5.8 per rush) and three touchdowns, but the passing game looked like, well, Iowa's passing game. Mark Gronkowski completed just 8 of 15 attempts for 44 yard and one touchdown.
No. 12 Indiana
It was a slow start for the fighting Curt Cignetti's, but they pulled away for a 27-14 win. Cal transfer quarterback Fernando Mendoza went 18 of 31 for 193 yards while Maryland transfer running back Roman Hemby led the way on the ground for IU with 23 rushes for 111 yards.
No. 13 Maryland
Maryland rolled over Florida Atlantic 39-7 in the first start for freshman quarterback Malik Washington. He was the player of the game, completing 27 of 43 passes for 253 yards and three touchdowns.
No. 14 Wisconsin
It seems the Badgers escaped the worst news when quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. went down with a non-contact injury in the first half: x-rays came back negative and he's considered week-to-week with a sprained knee. After that, Luke Fickell's team wanted to just get out of there without any more injuries and finished off a 17-0 win over Miami (OH).
No. 15 Purdue
It was a feel good opener for Purdue which beat Ball State 31-0 in the Barry Odom's debut. Ryan Browne who won the starting job went 18 for 26 for 311 yards and two scores, while fifth-year back Devin Mockobee ran 14 times for 59 yards and a touchdown.
No. 16 Rutgers
That was closer than Greg Schiano wanted, but in the end it was a 34-31 win over Ohio to open the season. Athan Kaliakmanis made just enough plays, completing 18 of 23 passes for 252 yards and two touchdowns and converted a fourth-and-7 to ice the game in the closing minutes.
No. 17 Northwestern
One of the two losing teams, Northwestern doesn't seem to have fixed its offensive problems. The Wildcats managed just a first quarter field goal in what ended as a 23-3 road loss at Tulane.
No. 18 UCLA
The Nico Iamaleava era couldn't have started much worse for the Bruins. He completed 11 of 22 passes for 136 yards with one touchdown and one interception, while the defense was a sieve all night long. Utah scored the first 20 points and the final 20 points in a 43-10 beatdown of the Bruins at the Rose Bowl.
Tony Garcia is the Wolverines beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Big Ten power rankings: No doubt Ohio State is top team after Week 1
Category: General Sports
