Saturday Blitz
Fansided

Big Ten Football Power Rankings, Week 7: Iowa reigns supreme

By Dante Pryor

Oct 1, 2021; College Park, Maryland, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes players celebrates after a game against the Maryland Terrapins at Capital One Field at Maryland Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Taetsch-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 1, 2021; College Park, Maryland, USA; Iowa Hawkeyes players celebrates after a game against the Maryland Terrapins at Capital One Field at Maryland Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Taetsch-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
6 of 9
Next
October 9, 2021; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers wide receiver Samori Toure (3) comes down with a pass against Michigan Wolverines defensive back Daxton Hill (30) and linebacker Josh Ross (12) during the third quarter at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports
October 9, 2021; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers wide receiver Samori Toure (3) comes down with a pass against Michigan Wolverines defensive back Daxton Hill (30) and linebacker Josh Ross (12) during the third quarter at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports /

4. Michigan Wolverines (6-0, 3-0)

This style of football is the type of football head coach Jim Harbaugh wants to play. Hasan Haskins and Blake Corum each have over 90 carries this season. Quarterback Cade McNamara has completed a high percentage of his passes and has taken care of the football.

The defense, led by defensive end Aidan Hutchinson, is much improved from last season. The defense is nearly 20 points better than last season and is giving up about 150 fewer yards than last season.

What the Wolverines have done this season is forge an identity. When Ronnie Bell was lost due to injury, Michigan went all-in on playing power football. So far, it has worked. The Wolverines are undefeated and a contender in the Big Ten.

The negative to their style of play is they won’t beat a lot of good teams by two or three scores. Most of the games they play will be close to the vest. However, the way Michigan takes care of the ball and plays defense, they can take the air out of the football and limit possessions.

That makes their game against Michigan State on Oct. 30 so intriguing. The Spartans, like the Wolverines, want to run the football. This game should be a physical low-scoring rock fight.

Home/Big Ten