Week 3 of the College Football season was far more exciting, as everywhere you looked, there was a great game. This weekend had a ton of massive clashes, yet the Big Ten wasn't involved in any of them as it was a weaker schedule for the reigning back-to-back champions. Conference play kicked off this weekend and it wasn't a great weekend of games but, they great matchups are right around the corner as some of the Nation's best teams will no longer face cupcakes.
The best way to describe this week in the Big Ten was a weekend of jockeying as each team moved a bit in the rankings but, no one made a massive leap.
Power Ranking the Big Ten after the first three games of the season
The Northwestern Wildcats actually kept this game much closer than many expected while scoring 14 points on their final two drives to make it look respectable, but the Wildcats were clearly outmanned in this game. Preston Stone continues to struggle with taking care of the football and it hurt the Wildcats again in this game as he threw a pair of interceptions. The good news for Northwestern is that the next two games will give them a great chance to get back to .500 but, there aren't many winnable games on the schedule.
The UCLA Bruins are an absolute disaster, and their loss on Friday Night feels like rock bottom for the program. The New Mexico Lobos dominated every aspect of the game running the ball at will for 6.5 yards per carry and UCLA had no answers. Adding Nico Iamaleava has been an absolute dud for the Bruins as he has turned into a checkdown quarterback which makes it so much tougher on the offense to score. After losses to UNLV and New Mexico, it's truly hard to find any game on the schedule that the Bruins can win this season.
This weekend, Purdue fell back to earth as they looked like the team we all expected against USC. Ryan Browne threw three interceptions while getting sacked 5 times, which completely derailed the offense. The defense did a fine job against an explosive USC passing attack, but the Trojans had no struggles running the ball.
As you would hope, Rutgers dominated Norfolk State, but doing so while scoring 60 points without receiver Ian Strong is even more impressive. Athan Kaliakmanis kept creating explosive plays in the passing attack, and the rushing attack kept capitalizing, punching in 3 touchdowns. The Scarlet Knights starting the year 3-0 is great, but now it's time for them to do it against the competition in the Big Ten.
The Wisconsin Badgers looked totally outmatched in every facet of the game on Saturday as the Crimson Tide rolled to an easy victory. Danny O'Neil didn't take care of the football, filling in for Billy Edwards Jr, as he threw a pair of interceptions, which helped Alabama put this game away early. The overall talent level has taken a massive dip under Luke Fickell, and his time in Madison may be coming to an end.
Mike Locksley and the Maryland Terps may have found something in freshman quarterback Malik Washington who continues to make strides. The defense and the team as a whole continue to make strides, and while the wins haven't been against great teams, starting 3-0 to begin the year was crucial for Maryland.,
Coming into Saturday Night, the Golden Gophers had a great chance to improve to 3-0 while picking up a win over an ACC opponent, and instead, let mistakes cost them the game. Down by 6 in the fourth quarter, Koi Perich muffed a punt, allowing Cal to score the game-sealing touchdown. Losing this game was a massive blow as the Golden Gophers had a manageable enough schedule to make some noise.
After the offense looked lifeless against the Iowa State Cyclones, the Hawkeyes truly needed this game against UMass to start finding their identity. Mark Gronowski looked like the quarterback everyone was promised, accounting for three touchdowns in this game. It wouldn't have been an Iowa game without a punt return touchdown and a defensive touchdown and the team rallied to make Kirk Ferentz the Big Ten's winningest coach.
The Michigan State Spartans continue to pick up wins, but this team still has some flaws it needs to work through. The offense was impressive again, scoring 41 points as four different players scored rushing touchdowns while Chiles passed for a 5th score. The defense is still an immense concern, as this game saw the Spartans allow 24 points to Youngstown State.
The Washington Huskies spent this weekend on the bye before they'll ramp up for the Apple Cup, followed by a game against Ohio State. The Apple Cup should prove to be key for the Huskies as it'll be their toughest task before Big Ten play.
After losing to Oklahoma last weekend, the Michigan Wolverines started their two-game stretch without head coach Sherrone Moore, who's serving his suspension for his part in the sign-stealing scandal. Bryce Underwood had a massive bounce-back game as he was so good that his interim Head Coach, Biff Poggi, compared him to Batman. The Wolverines needed the positive momentum, but they'll be in a massive game again next weekend against Nebraska.
A three-hour delay threw the USC Trojans off a bit, but in the end, Lincoln Riley's team picked up a 33-17 win to get off to a 1-0 start in Big Ten play. The rushing attack was key as the Trojans scored a pair of touchdowns on the ground, but the offense needs to do a better job of finishing, as they attempted 5 field goals in this game. The defense got one of the most incredible plays of the year as defensive tackle Jamaal Jarrett had a 70-yard pick-six to help the Trojans pull away.
On Saturday, the Nebraska Cornhuskers scored 59 points on a school that many didn't know existed as they demolished Houston Christian. Dylan Raiola was efficient, going 15-21 for 222 yards and 2 touchdowns, but the rushing attack picked up 192 yards and 4 touchdowns, leading the way. The Huskers return to playing big games again next week as they'll face Michigan in a pivotal Big Ten matchup.
The Indiana Hoosiers wrapped up their equivalent of the NFL preseason as they played 3 games against far inferior opponents, with their final win in this stretch coming in a 73-0 win over Indiana State. Fernando Mendoza was lights out, going 19-20 for 270 yards and 5 touchdowns, finding Omar Cooper for 207 yards and 4 touchdowns. The defense has only allowed 23 points in three games, but Big Ten play will determine just how good this team is.
As is expected, the Penn State Nittany Lions ended their three-game stretch against inferior opponents with a blowout victory over Villanova. The offense looked unstoppable as you would expect, rushing for 6.2 yards per carry while passing for 7.35 yards per attempt. The defense was dominant, chipping in a score themselves, but it'll be exciting to watch this team play a real opponent.
While a few teams struggled with their inferior opponents, the Illinois Fighting Illini were all business on Saturday. The defense shut out Western Michigan as they didn't allow the Broncos to get anything going in this game. Luke Altmyer contributed 2 touchdowns while the Illini scored 3 times on the ground in an all-around solid performance
Dan Lanning's Oregon Ducks moved to 3-0 while picking up their first win in Big Ten play but, it wasn't as impressive as you would've expected. The passing attack couldn't complete as many big plays as we saw last weekend, leading to Dante Moore finishing the game 16/20 for 178 yards and a touchdown with an interception. The defense was solid until the final two drives of the game but, this game may have just been one the team had a tough time getting up for.
The Ohio State Buckeyes weren't nearly as impressive as you would expect in their win over the Ohio Bobcats, but they took over in the second half. Julian Sayin showed some growing pains with a pair of interceptions, but he also passed for 3 touchdowns. Running Back Bo Jackson may be the best back in the room, picking up 130 total yards on 11 touches. The defense had one letdown, but continues to look like one of the best units in the Country.
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