Leaders Division Standings
#16 Illinois (6-0, 2-0) - I have a lot of family that are Illini fans, so it’s great to see them at 6-0 and bowl eligible. However, I’m not sold on them yet. Here’s who Illinois has beaten: Arkansas State, South Dakota State, #18 Arizona State, Western Michigan, Northwestern, Indiana. Those six have a combined record of 18-16, two aren’t even Division 1-A schools, and the only away game was against Indiana. Illinois will most likely be 9-0 by the time they play Michigan. If they get that win and become 10-0 then I will be impressed.
Penn State (5-1, 2-0) – Penn State is an average team that has padded their record up with cupcake teams. The Nittany Lions are getting wins because of their incredible defense. In the past six games Penn State’s defense has only given up five touchdowns. In the past five games the Lions offense has only scored eight touchdowns. If they expect to make a run for the division title they need the offense to start scoring more. The Lions have two winnable games before their final four games against Illinois, Nebraska, Ohio State, and Wisconsin.
#4 Wisconsin (5-0, 1-0) - The Badgers are a legit team. They have a powerhouse offense and a great defense. The offense is lead by quarterback Russell Wilson who has a strong arm and the capability to scramble for long runs. The offense can also rely on running backs Monte Ball and James White who are two of the best backs in the country.The Badgers only quality win came against Nebraska, but there isn't another team on their schedule who will able to slow down the Badgers.
Purdue (3-2, 1-0) - Even though Purdue has three wins, none of them have been against a decent team. Purdue had no answer for Notre Dame and lost to Rice by two points. Their wins were against Middle Tennessee, Southeast Missouri State, and Minnesota. Purdue is bad this year, and there’s a good chance their coach will be fired if there is no improvement.
Ohio State (3-3, 0-2) - Realistically, this is where the Buckeyes should be. Even though they are Ohio State and have great players, there was so much turmoil in the off season. The Buckeyes have lost two straight and will probably lose two more as they have games at Illinois then against Wisconsin.
Indiana (1-5, 0-2)-The Indiana Hoosiers Football’s official slogan should be “when’s basketball start?” I don’t understand how this team can be so bad after a semi-successful season last year. You know your team is bad when you lose to Ball State. There’s a good chance that when the Hoosiers play Purdue in the Old Oaken Bucket game the Hoosiers will be 1-10 and the Boilermakers 3-8.
Legends Division Standings
#11 Michigan (6-0, 2-0) - The Wolverines are led by their do-it-all quarterback Denard Robinson. Robinson has been unstoppable so far this season, and is again on everybody’s Heisman watch list. I’m not buying into the theory that the Wolverines are a really great team. Their only road game so far was against Northwestern. Their best win was against Notre Dame when they won on a last second touchdown. If they can go to Michigan State on Saturday and win I will be a little more impressed.
#24 Michigan State (4-1, 1-0) - The Spartans, much like the Wolverines, get a chance to prove they’re for real when they play Michigan this weekend. The Spartans best win came last week when they beat struggling Ohio State by three points. The game on Saturday against Michigan will be a great game to watch. It's not only a rivalry game but will decide who the leader of the division is.
#14 Nebraska (5-1, 1-1) - Nebraska was expected to be the second-best team in the conference and a huge competitor to the Wisconsin Badgers. That ship sailed after the Badgers beat down the Huskers 48-17. Nebraska can still win their division and get another shot at Wisconsin, but I honestly hope that doesn’t happen because it will be another blowout.
Iowa (3-2, 0-1) - Iowa didn’t come into the season with too high of expectations, which is probably a good thing. The Hawkeyes had a great chance of getting to 7 or 8 wins by November due to a weak schedule, but after losing to Iowa State and Penn State those hopes were dashed. Iowa can still get to 7 wins before they face Michigan and Michigan State back to back.
Northwestern (2-3, 0-2) - This was a team that a lot of people expected to get to 7 or 8 wins and a bowl game. The Northwestern Wildcats rely entirely on their quarterback Dan Persa, who has been battling an injury since the beginning of the season. When Northwestern won their first game of the season without Persa, it seemed like they had a well- rounded team. With or without Persa though, the Wildcats struggle.
Minnesota (1-5, 0-2) - What’s new here? Not a lot to say about the Golden Gophers. It does suck that they have a brand new, really cool stadium but no quality football team to watch.
Before the season this is what I predicted the final standings would be:
Leaders: Wisconsin, Purdue, Illinois, Ohio State, Penn State, Indiana
- Well the Purdue pick was a huge leap of faith, and who knows; maybe they’ll get it together and finish strongly. I highly doubt it though. I still believe Ohio State will finish ahead of Penn State. Illinois is looking good though and should finish second.
Legends: Nebraska, Michigan State, Northwestern, Michigan, Iowa, Minnesota
- I really didn’t think Michigan would be 6-0, and I don’t think they’ll keep on winning. Flip Michigan and Northwestern I would have nearly nailed the standings.
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