Big Ten Power Rankings, Week 2: Oregon Ducks looked unimpressive (again)
By Mark Knight
The Big Ten entered week two with only one loss on their resume, when Minnesota lost to North Carolina 19-17. The conference as a whole was feeling really good about the teams that compromise the conference.
The elite teams towards the top were felt better than the elite teams of any other conference. This may still prove to be true but the Big Ten added four more losses to their portfolio this week and one was a high profile loss when Michigan lost in the Big House to the Texas Longhorns.
A couple of their other high profile teams were able to get wins in the column but looked absolutely lackluster in the effort. Penn State barely beat Bowling Green 34-27 and Oregon barely beat Boise State in a walk-off field goal 37-34.
The best win for the Big Ten this week was Illinois taking down the #19 ranked Kansas Jayhawks, and because of that, they are the highest risers in this week's Big 10 rankings.
Big Ten Power Rankings: Top Tier
1. Ohio State (Last Week Rank: 1)
The Buckeyes were impressive once again even if it was against a weaker opponent in Western Michigan. They showed no signs of weakness in their 56-0 shutout win. There's no reason to believe they are anything but the best team in the Big 10.
2. USC (Last Week Rank: 3)
USC is building off their week one win with a shutout victory against Utah State 48-0. It was a complete performance for them on all sides of the ball and they look the part of one of the top teams in this conference.