We're now in the home stretch of the college football season, and the clear separation we thought we were seeing in the Big Ten has continued to be thrown into chaos. Ohio State lost its second in a row, Indiana has had to escape several close games, Oregon seems resurgent, and Michigan looks like a punching bag after another loss.
UCLA remains the lone undefeated team in the conference, but even that seems like a paper tiger. Outside of that, teams like Iowa and USC may still have a puncher's chance at still reaching some pretty lofty goals.
It's our weekly Big Ten football power rankings, and what we think we know now will likely change drastically as teams figure out their identities and improve, or continue to spiral further -- as we've seen.
Here's a look at our Week 10 Big Ten football power rankings. We start from No. 18 and make our way down to No. 1.
No. 18 - Rutgers Scarlet Knights (2-7, 1-5) | No. 17 last week ⇩
Last Game Result: Lost 31-10 at Wisconsin
Next Game: vs. Nebraska
Why the ranking
There was a point in the season when it seemed like Rutgers was playing better, but that Scarlet Knight ship has sailed after three losses in a row. There's no way to even get back to .500 at this point, and you have to wonder where this program goes from here.
No. 17 - Maryland Terrapins (3-6, 1-5) | No. 18 last week ⇧
Last Game Result: Won 34-29 at Purdue
Next Game: vs. Wisconsin
The 'Terps finally got a Big Ten win, but it was a struggle to do that. Color us surprised, though, that the team didn't mail it in and found a way to rebound from all the turmoil with the coaching change. For the first time in a few weeks, we don't have Maryland as the worst team in our power rankings. Baby steps, folks, baby steps.
No. 16 - Purdue Boilermakers (3-6, 2-4) | No. 15 last week ⇩
Last Game Result: Lost 34-29 vs. Maryland
Next Game: at Iowa
What goes into the ranking
We thought about placing the Boilermakers below the 'Terps because of the game result, but Purdue just had an off day and has looked better throughout the season. Heck, who really cares at this point with where we are in the rankings anyway.
No. 15 - Michigan State Spartans (3-6, 1-5) | No. 16 last week ⇧
Last Game Result: Won 15-6 at Michigan
Next Game: vs. Washington
What goes into the ranking
Speaking of caring, we do care at this point in the power rankings because Pat Fitzgerald not only got his first Big Ten win for the Spartans, but he did it by beating arch-rival Michigan. And if there's anything Michigan State and Ohio State fans can agree on, it's that the Wolverines don't deserve nice things. This team still has a long, long way to go.
No. 14 - Nebraska Cornhuskers (5-4, 2-4) | No. 13 last week ⇩
Last Game Result: Lost 24-13 at Illinois
Next Game: at Rutgers
Four losses in a row for Nebraska says we probably could have slid the 'Huskers down further. All of those games have been close and competitive, but it's the same story in Lincoln that's been there for years, and it's an ability to close out games. Let's hope Matt Rhule can get his squad to beat the Scarlet Knights next week.
No. 13 - Washington Huskies (5-4, 2-4) | No. 12 last week ⇩
Last Game Result: Lost 28-25 vs. Penn State
Next Game: at Michigan State
I know the entire Big Ten -- heck, the entire sport of college football -- has seen a lot of volatility and inconsistency this year, but has any team been more inconsistent in the conference than Washington? The Huskies will probably get to bowl eligibility, but it's been a real struggle in Seattle this year.
No. 12 - Michigan Wolverines (5-4, 2-4)* | No. 10 last week ⇩
Last Game Result: Lost 15-6 vs. Michigan State
Next Game: at Oregon
What goes into the ranking
Things are a mess in Ann Arbor, especially on the offensive side of the ball. Only scoring six points at home against a Michigan State team that is dealing with a bunch of injuries is about rock bottom for the Wolverines. The honeymoon period is officially over for head coach Kyle Whittingham, and it's quite possible Michigan ends up home during bowl season with what's left on the schedule.
No. 11 - Penn State Nittany Lions (5-4, 2-4) | No. 14 last week ⇧
Last Game Result: Won 28-25 at Washington
Next Game: vs. Minnesota
What goes into the ranking
After going winless in the Big Ten through the first four conference games, Penn State has now won two in a row and looked pretty good doing it. This team still has some holes, but there's at least some momentum to build upon. If Matt Campbell can get this squad back to .500 in the Big Ten, that would be huge.
No. 10 - Illinois Fighting Illini (6-3, 4-2) | No. 11 last week ⇧
Last Game Result: Won 24-13 vs. Nebraska
Next Game: at UCLA
What goes into the ranking
Don't look now, but Illinois is healthier and playing much better. The Illini have just two losses in the League and have an outside shot still at getting to Indy if things can break right. The reality is that they aren't complete enough of a team, but the fighting Bret Bielema's can hope for good things, right?
No. 9 - Minnesota Golden Gophers (5-4, 3-3) | No. 8 last week ⇔
Last Game Result: Lost 34-20 vs. UCLA
Next Game: at Penn State
What goes into the ranking
I'll admit it. I don't really know what to do with Minnesota. There are some really good wins in there, but then there are those times when you wonder if this team and program have hit the ceiling of what it can become. P.J. Fleck's crew will go to a bowl game, and that's about all we can say as the status quo in the Twin Cities.
No. 8 - Northwestern Wildcats (6-3, 3-3) | No. 7 last week ⇩
Last Game Result: Lost 24-10 vs. Iowa
Next Game: at Ohio State
What goes into the ranking
The Wildcats have hit a bit of a speed bump after having a surprising and fantastic start to the season. Not having quarterback Aidan Chiles is a big deal, and it's going to be hard to continue to beat good teams if he's still on the shelf. We'll see how offensive coordinator Chip Kelly deals with coming back to Columbus to coach against his protégé, Ryan Day, next Saturday.
No. 7 - Wisconsin Badgers (5-3, 4-2) | No. 8 last week ⇧
Last Game Result: Won 31-10 vs. Rutgers
Next Game: at Maryland
What goes into the ranking
The Badgers look like an entirely different team at home than on the road, and that proved to be true again last week. Wisconsin administered a public flogging to Rutgers in Madison, but they have to travel to play Maryland next week. If they can win that one, they stay within arm's reach of factoring into the race for Indy with three winnable games to go.
No. 6 - Ohio State Buckeyes (6-3, 4-2) | No. 4 last week ⇩
Last Game Result: Lost 41-28 vs. Oregon
Next Game: vs. Northwestern
What went into the ranking
We haven't seen an Ohio State team struggle this badly since 2011, when Luke Fickell was a caretaker of the program for a year. The offense is a mess trying to find an identity with Julian Sayin out, the coaching staff seems to have brain fog, and even if the Buckeyes run the table the rest of the way, it's unlikely that we'll see a Scarlet and Gray-hued Big Ten championship game or College Football Playoff. Keep an eye on Jeremiah Smith to see what he does the rest of the season, with some individual awards still out there.
No. 5 - Iowa Hawkeyes (7-2, 4-2) | No. 5 last week ⇔
Last Game Result: Won 24-10 at Northwestern
Next Game: vs. Purdue
This isn't a great Iowa team, but it has done enough to be right there with a pretty easy schedule coming out. Heck, who are we kidding? Just like almost every year, the Hawkeyes will find a way to drop an unexpected turd against a team they should beat somewhere in their last three games. Will it be against Purdue, at Illinois, or vs. Nebraska to end the regular season?
No. 4 - Oregon Ducks (6-3, 4-2) | No. 6 last week ⇧
Last Game Result: Won 41-28 at Ohio State
Next Game: vs. Michigan
What goes into the ranking
What we saw from Oregon in Columbus against Ohio State is even better than what we thought the Ducks would be this year. Nike U is back from the dead and still has an outside shot of putting a wrench into the Big Ten and CFP if it plays as it did on the banks of the Olentangy. Was that a product of what the Ducks did or what the Bucks didn't do, though? Michigan is up next in Eugene. That should be fun.
No. 3 - USC Trojans (7-2, 4-2) | No. 7 last week ⇔
Last Game Result: Off
Next Game: at Indiana
What goes into the ranking
The Trojans enjoyed an off week and will look to build on the win against Ohio State a couple of weeks ago in L.A. IF USC can win in Bloomington, it's time to take this team a little more seriously than we have so far. It'll all come down to how well the defense plays the rest of the way, especially next week.
No. 2 - Indiana Hoosiers (8-1, 5-1) | No. 2 last week ⇔
Last Game Result: Off
Next Game: vs. USC
What went into the ranking
Yes, the Hoosiers have not looked like the defending national champions, but they still have found a way to win more often than not, with the only loss coming to an Ohio State team that still had Julian Sayin. If Indiana can get by USC next week, we may be talking about a trip to Indy and the College Football Playoff despite all of the struggles on offense this year.
No. 1 - UCLA Bruins (9-0, 6-0) | No. 3 last week ⇔
Last Game Result: Won 34-20 at Minnesota
Next Game: vs. Illinois
What goes into the ranking
Ho-hum. UCLA just keeps winning. It isn't always a laser light show, but the Bruins just keep proving everyone wrong. Maybe we get surprised in the next couple of weeks, but it's sure looking like the season finale against USC could be a fairly sizeable game. The Bruins are the story of the Big Ten so far.
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This article originally appeared on Buckeyes Wire: Big Ten power rankings after Week 10: Ohio State tumbles, more changes
