Week 12 of the College Football season brought a ton of chaos, but in the Big Ten, it was a rather quiet weekend. There was only one matchup between ranked opponents, with the USC Trojans pulling off a win over the Iowa Hawkeyes. As the season heads into the final stretch of the season, the race for the Big Ten Championship is slim, but the league has plenty of teams in the mix for the College Football Playoff.
Big Ten Power Rankings: USC's win sets up pivotal clash
Going against a Washington team without its two biggest playmakers, Purdue had a chance to pull off an upset. Instead, the Boilermakers' defense, which has been a problem most of the season, allowed 49 points. This season was always going to be Year 1 of a rebuild, but with the Transfer Portal, it's hard to accept going winless in league play.
If Michigan State was going to win any game in Big Ten play, they had a great chance playing a Penn State team playing with its backup quarterback in a lost season, but they instead lost 28-10. The Jonathan Smith era feels as if it's truly on its last legs, as this team is clearly regressing in his second season.
After picking up a big win over Washington last weekend, it looked like Luke Fickell's team might put a real upset scare into Indiana. Instead, the Badgers went 3-and-out or turned the ball over on every drive in the second half, allowing Indiana to take total control of this game. Given how disappointing this season has been, it's good to see that they're still playing hard for Luke Fickell, but this team needs serious upgrades this offseason.
Penn State is finally on the board in Big Ten play, which no one would've expected coming against Michigan State when they started the season. Kaytron Allen led this team on the ground with a pair of scores and 181 yards while Ethan Grunkemeyer threw for a pair of touchdowns. In a wasted season, it was great for Penn State to avoid going winless in league play.
Mike Locksley's seat has to be extremely hot as Maryland dropped its 6th game in a row with its 24-6 loss to Illinois. The Terrapins are a younger team, but there's an extensive track showing that Locksley isn't the answer at head coach.
The Cinderella story that was the UCLA Bruins after their coaching changes has vanished as they've lost their last 3 games. Facing Ohio State without Carnell Tate and Jeremiah Smith in the second half, this team still let the Buckeyes score 48 points. After showing a ton of promise in the first few weeks under Tim Skipper, it's becoming clear the Bruins will make a new hire.
The Rutgers Scarlet Knights spent the weekend on the bye after picking up a nice win over Maryland. Greg Schiano will need to find a way to knock off either Ohio State or Penn State to go bowling, which may be too tough a task.
Northwestern had a chance to pull off the shocking upset until the very last moment when Michigan was able to kick the game-winning field goal. The Wildcats' defense was impressive, forcing 5 turnovers, which helped the offense stay in this game. David Braun's team is clearly improving, but they'll need to pick up a win over Minnesota or Illinois to go bowling.
The Minnesota Golden Gophers showed their flaws on Friday Night as Oregon dominated from the moment the game started. Darius Taylor still doesn't look 100%, and the passing attack isn't good enough to carry this offense. The next few weeks are going to be all about Drake Lindsey's development, as he has to take the next step if this team is going to be more competitive next season.
The Nebraska Cornhuskers spent the weekend on the bye after their big win over UCLA last week. Without Dylan Raiola for the rest of the season, it's hard to project how this team will finish, but TJ Lateef was impressive in his first start last weekend, which is promising.
On Saturday, Washington was without its two biggest weapons in Denzel Boston and Jonah Coleman, and it did not matter. The Huskies scored 49 points on Purdue behind a 3-touchdown game from Adam Mohammed, who helped fill the void of Jonah Coleman. The loss to Wisconsin is going to haunt this team, as they could've factored into the Playoff race down the stretch.
The Illinois Fighting Illini handed Maryland another loss on Saturday in a game that the defense dominated. The Illini defense held Washington to below 300 yards and just 6 points, allowing the offense to win this game behind 2 touchdowns from Luke Altmyer to Hudson Clement and a rushing score from Kaden Feagin. This team has Playoff hopes, but they can still finish the season with a great record to continue building momentum under Bret Bielema.
It looked like Iowa may end USC's College Football Playoff hopes, but they struggled mightily after they took a 14-0 lead. The offense couldn't get anything going in the second half until their final drive, where they may have been robbed by a questionable call that appeared to be a catch. The final two weeks for Iowa are fairly easy, which should allow this team to end the season at 8-4.
It took a walk-off field goal, but the Michigan Wolverines survived to pick up a win over Northwestern. Bryce Underwood has been underwhelming for the expectations coming into the year, as he threw a pair of interceptions while Michigan turned the ball over 5 times which almost ended their season. Next week's game against Maryland is going to have to be a great dress rehearsal before a potential win and in against Ohio State.
When the USC Trojans fell in an early 14-0 hole against Iowa, it looked like the Trojans hopes of making the College Football Playoff may have been gone. Instead, Lincoln Riley's team went on a 26-7 run to pick up a crucial win. Makai Lemon and Ja'Kobi Lane being healthy at the same time has made this offense almost impossible to slow. Next week's game against Oregon now becomes pivotal as it'll determine each team's fate for the College Football Playoff.
After needing a last-second field goal to beat Iowa last weekend, Oregon left no doubt on Friday Night with a dominant 42-13 win over Minnesota. Playing without his two leading pass catchers, Dante Moore was surgical, going 27-30 for 306 yards and a pair of touchdowns. The Ducks now need to get healthy as their final two games come against USC and Washington, which could make or break their playoff hopes.
Early on, it looked like Indiana may be on upset alert as they only led Wisconsin 10-7 at the half. In the second half, Curt Cignetti's team came alive, going on a 21-0 run to close the game, and at 11-0 on the season, even with a loss to Purdue in the season finale, this team is going to the College Football Playoff. Fernando Mendoza threw for another 4 touchdowns on Saturday, and with arguably the best quarterback in the Country, this team is poised to make a postseason run.
All Ohio State has done in Big Ten play is dominate, as they handed UCLA a 48-10 loss on Saturday Night. The offense was impressive as they were able to lean on their rushing attack with Carnell Tate out and Jeremiah Smith missing the second half. The defense continues to dominate, yet they may be upset with the showing as 10 points is above their season average.