East Division

1. Michigan State–Sparty had their way with EMU winning 73-14. MSU will look to fatten up more when Wyoming comes to town this weekend.

Coming Up: Sept. 27^th– vs. Wyoming- It may not be as large of a win as last week, but the Spartans should win easily at home.

2. Ohio State–Sure beating Kent State 66-0 looks great, but is that what a Big Ten power has to do to get back into the playoff race? Urban Meyer was pleased with the game, but let’s not get too carried away.

Coming Up: Sept. 27^tth vs. Cincinnati- Gunner Kiel and the Bearcats put up monster numbers against Toledo. Is the Buckeye defense ready for an aerial assault.

3. Penn State–The Nittany Lions finally ran the ball well, albeit against the Umass Minutemen. If the Lions do find their running game against better opponents the Big Ten East should be on high alert

Coming Up: Sept 27^th vs. Northwestern- James Franklin and PSU should open the Big Ten season with a win in Happy Valley against the Wildcats.

4. Indiana– The Hoosiers scored the league’s biggest non-conference win of the 2014 season when they beat number 18 Missouri on the road. Kevin Wilson’s squad followed up a bad loss with a great win.

Coming Up: Sept. 27^th vs. Maryland- The Hoosiers will welcome the Terps to the Big Ten. Indiana needs to win this game to continue the momentum from last week. It should be a shootout in Bloomington as both offenses are top notch.

5. Maryland–The Terps got back on track with a nice win on the road against former ACC foe Syracuse. Maryland is 3-1 and could be a factor in the Big Ten East if they can pull of the win in Bloomington.

Coming Up: Sept. 27^th at Indiana- Maryland should be fired up for their first Big Ten contest. They match up well against Indiana and have some experience facing a Brian Knorr defense from his time at Wake Forest. If CJ Brown has time to throw, Maryland could spring the upset.

6. Rutgers–The Scarlet Knights’ impressive win at Navy came at a high price, as it was announced star running back Paul James will miss the rest of the year with a knee injury. That is the only reason they are stuck at 6.

Coming Up: Sept. 27^th vs. Tulane- This game should give the Knights a chance to feel out a new running back and get Gary Nova ready to get back into Big Ten play.

7. Michigan– Things are quickly becoming a tire fire in Ann Arbor after the pitiful performance against a solid Utah team. The quarterback situation is a mess and apparently Coca-Cola was giving away seats to this weeks game versus Minnesota.

Coming Up: Sept. 27^th– vs. Minnesota- The Battle for the Little Brown Jug has gone Michigan’s way for the last few years, but are things too unstable in Ann Arbor to get another victory in the series? Minnesota is banged up, but is Michigan mentally ready to play?

West Division

1. Nebraska–Could Nebraska really be a player in the College Football Playoff? If Ameer Abdullah stays healthy they sure can. Abdullah had another big night in the win against Miami.

Coming Up: Sept. 27^th vs. Illinois- The Illini are an unimpressive 3-1 and this game should be a time for Abdullah to pad more stats in his quest for a Heisman trophy.

2. Wisconsin–Wisconsin set a Big Ten rushing record with 644 yards. Melvin Gordon scored five times and the Badgers rolled over a hapless Bowling Green squad.

Coming Up: Sept. 27^th vs. South Florida- The Badgers should be able to have another field day and Gordon could make his case against Abdullah as the conferences best back.

3. Iowa– Iowa scored an impressive win at Pittsburgh Saturday after CJ Beathard took over for an injuried Jake Ruddock at quarterback. The offense looked more explosive and Beathard could have surpassed Ruddock on the depth chart.

Coming Up: Sept. 27^th at Purdue- The Hawkeyes hit the road again, this time to West Lafayette, Indiana to face the Boilers. Purdue isn’t good, but they are improved over last year. Can the Hawkeyes score enough to beat this team by two scores? Probably not.

4. Minnesota–A banged up Minnesota team won last week while only throwing the ball seven times and completing just one pass all day.

Coming Up: Sept. 27^th at Michigan- The Gophers head to their Big House of Horrors on Saturday when they battle for the Little Brown Jug. The Gophers better play big on defense if they are going to win this rivalry game.

5. Illinois–Have you ever seen a more unimpressive 3-1 team? I don’t think so. The Illini are half way to bowl eligibility, but in a head scratching way.

Coming Up: Sept 27^th at Nebraska- The Illini are hitting the road to open Big Ten play and will have to face the high powered offense of Nebraska. The defense may be in for a long day.

6. Northwestern-The Wildcats finally won, albeit a very meh win against an FCS foe. Pat Fitzgerald is clearly frustrated and went off on a reporter after the game.

Coming Up: Sept. 27^th at Penn State- The Wildcats are going to Happy Valley looking to start the Big Ten season off right, however there is more going on behind the scenes in Evanston than we know and it may have already derailed the ‘Cats 2014 season.

7. Purdue–A win is a win right? Purdue topped their 2013 win total with the victory over SIU. The offense in the first half looked good. Iowa is coming to town next and the Boilers are looking for their first conference win since 2012

Coming Up: Sept. 27^th vs. Iowa- This may be an ugly typical Big Ten matchup that will be tough for both squads. Purdue is at home, but they probably don’t have the weapons on offense or defense to overcome being a double-digit underdog.