2014 Big Ten Power Rankings – Week 12
East Division
1. Ohio State 8-1 (5-0)–The Buckeyes got their revenge Saturday night dominating the Spartans in East Lansing. The East is theirs to lose.
Coming Up: Nov.15th at Minnesota- Urban Meyer’s squad will have to be ready to go early in this one. Ohio State cannot sleep walk through Minnesota and survive.
3. Michigan State 7-2 (4-1) –After getting dismantled at home what’s next for the Spartans? They will need lots of help to get back to the Big Ten Championship game.
Coming Up: Nov. 15th at Maryland- Michigan State cannot let this loss to Ohio State turn into two. Maryland has their own issues, but is Michigan State up emotionally for this game?
3. Maryland 6-3 (3-2)– Maryland had a tumultuous week off learning that receiver Stefon Diggs will miss the remainder of the season due to a kidney injury.
Coming Up: Nov. 15th vs. Michigan State- This is a tough matchup for the Terps at home. Their only hope is if the Spartans come in on a lull.
4. Michigan 5-5 (3-3)– Michigan is only at number four because they don’t stink as much as the other teams right now. They beat Northwestern in an ugly 10-9 game, but a win is a win.
Coming Up: Nov. 15th – OPEN
5. Penn State 5-4 (2-4) –After seeing Penn State in person I can tell you that this team is not good. Hackenberg’s beatings have led to him being gun shy and the run game is lackluster. Luckily they were playing a banged up IU team.
Coming Up: Nov. 15th– vs. Temple- Will the Lions get to be bowl eligible with a win over an instate foe? Probably, this defense is too good to lose to Temple.
6. Rutgers 5-4 (1-4)–Gary Nova should be back this week and playing Indiana should be a nice break in the schedule for Rutgers.
Coming Up: Nov. 15th– Can the Knights stop Tevin Coleman and can Gary Nova take care of the ball? If Rutgers does both, they will be going bowling in 2014.
7. Indiana 3-6 (0-5)– If only Indiana had an offense, then maybe they could have knocked off Penn State and shake off the doldrums of this season.
Coming Up: Nov.15th– at Rutgers- After playing three really good defenses in a row, the Hoosiers inexperienced offense will have a shot against the middle of the road Rutgers D. If Tevin Coleman can get back on track and the defense can replicate their effort from last week the Hoosiers are going to come home with a win.
West Division
1. Nebraska 8-1 (4-1)–The week off should have given the Huskers time to get healthy before heading to Wisconsin for a West Division showdown.
Coming Up: Nov. 15th– at Wisconsin- Can the Huskers survive Camp Randall at night and take a step up on the Badgers in the race for the West? Nebraska is the more talented team, but Wisconsin plays especially well at home.
2. Wisconsin 7-2 (4-1) –Wisconsin kind of struggled on the road at Purdue. Were they caught looking ahead to this week?
Coming Up: Nov. 15th– vs. Nebraska- The Badger faithful should be in full throat in this one. The winner will likely have the leg up in the division race.
3. Minnesota 7-2 (4-1)–Minnesota made a statement Saturday with a butt kicking of rival Iowa. They now hold the Floyd of Rosedale and Little Brown Jug for the first time since the late 1960’s.
Coming Up: Nov.15th– vs. Ohio State- This may be the biggest game at Minnesota in two decades. Knock off the Buckeyes and the Gophers should be getting national attention. Lose and it is just that much harder to win the West.
4. Iowa 6-3 (3-2)– The shoe was on the other foot this week as the Hawkeyes got run out of the building in Minneapolis. Fans can not be happy with that performance.
Coming Up: Nov.15th– at Illinois- The Hawkeyes now have to travel to Illinois, where the Illini knocked off Minnesota the last time out. Could this be a crushing blow to Kirk Ferentz’s time in Iowa City?
5. Purdue 3-7 (1-5)–Purdue is playing much better than their record indicates and is on the upswing.
Coming Up: Nov. 15th– OPEN
6. Northwestern 3-6 (2-4)–Where do they go from here? An ugly loss again to Michigan is followed by a trip to South Bend to face a ticked off Notre Dame team. Northwestern will miss the postseason two years in a row.
Coming Up: Nov.15th– at Notre Dame- This is not 1995. Notre Dame is coming off a season crushing loss at Arizona State and will take all their frustrations out on Northwestern.
7. Illinois 4-5 (1-4)–Illinois is still alive for a bowl berth. Yes, it is true and it could be possible.
Coming Up: Nov. 15th– vs. Iowa- The Hawkeyes will limp into Memorial Stadium as the Illini welcome back their starting quarterback Wes Lunt. Illinois has a decent shot at this game. Win this one and who knows what will happen the last week of the year when they travel to Evanston.


Hard to agree with Purdue > Northwestern. NW is a game up on Purdue, has a crushing win at Penn State, and has an easy two game closing B1G stretch. Meanwhile Purdue has a couple close games, and a random win at Illinois.