Surprising Week 2 Power Rankings for the Big Ten

© Ben Queen-Imagn Images

The Big Ten Conference kicked off its season on Aug. 29 and concluded Week 1 late in the evening on Sept. 1 with a win in the week's biggest game. In its first weekend of play in the 2024 season, the B1G didn’t disappoint, going 17-1 overall, tallying wins over the Big 12 Conference and Southeastern Conference in the process.

Entering Week 1, the top power-ranking spot in the B1G appeared to be within the grasp of Ohio State or Oregon. However, as the weekend progressed, other teams entered the fray.

Conference newcomers No. 13 USC (1-0) and No. 7 Oregon (1-0) both made headlines but for opposite reasons. Defending national champ No. 10 Michigan (1-0) didn’t have the start it wanted, struggling against Fresno State (0-1), while No. 8 Penn State (1-0) impressed on the road against West Virginia (0-1), and conference favorite No. 2 Ohio State (1-0) started slow but finished strong.

Here is a glimpse back at the College Football Dawgs Week 1 B1G power rankings:

1. Ohio State

2. Oregon

3. Michigan

4. Penn State

5. USC

Week 2: Big Ten Power Rankings

Here are the Week 2 power rankings, based upon votes by the College Football Dawgs editorial and writing staff:

1. No. 8 Penn State  (1-0)

Last game: 34-12 win over West Virginia

Previous ranking: No. 4

Penn State opened the season on the road against West Virginia and came out with the win. In the game, Penn State's defense held WVU to under 250 yards of total offense. Penn State's offense on the other hand was very balanced with 235 passing yards and 222 rushing yards.

Penn State quarterback Drew Allar only threw the ball 17 times but completed 11 for 216 years and 3 touchdowns. Allar began to look like the QB many believed he would be entering the 2023 season. 

With the win, Penn State now enters the conversation as a true B1G contender. But James Franklin needs to prove he can finally beat the top ten teams if Penn State hopes to stay on top and return to the B1G championship game for the first time since 2016.

Upcoming game: Bowling Green

2. No. 13 USC (1-0)

Last game: 27-20 win over No.13 LSU

Previous ranking: No. 5

In the game of the week, watched by over 11 million viewers, USC executed a dramatic game-winning final drive to take down No. 18 LSU (0-1) in prime time on Sept. 1 in Las Vegas. The win not only moved the Trojans to 1-0 but also gave the B1G a leg up on the SEC. 

With USC ahead by 3 points, LSU hit a field goal to tie the game with 1:47 left in the fourth quarter and had Bayou Bengals fans looking forward to overtime. However, Lincoln Riley put the game in QB Miller Moss’s hands, and he did not disappoint. USC began the drive on its 25-yard line, and Moss completed 5 of 6 passes to get USC down to the LSU 13-yard line. From that point, running back Woody Marks dashed through a hole opened by the Trojans' offensive line and scampered into the end zone for the game-winning score.

Upcoming game: Utah State

3. No. 2 Ohio State (1-0)

Last game: 52-6 win over Akron

Previous ranking: No. 1

Ohio State moves down to No. 3 in this week's power ranking thanks to a slow start against Akron (0-1).  Entering the game, many believed the game would be over by halftime, but instead, the Buckeyes found themselves only up by 14. 

The Buckeyes coaching staff effectively delivered a message to the players in the locker room. Ohio State outscored Akron 35-3 in the second half en route to a 52-6 victory. Transfer QB Will Howard had a good first game with 3 touchdowns and 228 yards. Before being taken out, Howard looked comfortable running the Buckeyes offense.

True freshman wide receiver Jeremiah Smith shined in the game, leading all Ohio State WRs with 6 receptions for 92 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Upcoming game: Western Michigan

4. No. 7 Oregon (1-0)

Last game: 24-14 win over Idaho

Previous ranking: No. 2

Oregon was widely expected to be the team to give Ohio State a run for its money in 2024, but looked flat and uninspired against the Idaho Vandals (0-1) in Week 1. Like Michigan, the Ducks found themselves in a dogfight heading into the fourth quarter of a contest with an outmanned opponent. Oregon eventually put away the Vandals but didn’t look like a top-10 team.

While the Ducks amassed 380 yards through the air, their rushing attack was stagnant, totaling only 107 yards. To compete in the B1G, the Ducks' offensive line and running backs will need to perform better than they did against Idaho.

Upcoming game: Boise State

5. No. 10 Michigan (1-0)

Last game: 30-10 win over Fresno State

Previous ranking: No. 3

Michigan's Team 145 entered the season with many questions on the offensive side of the ball. Unfortunately for Michigan fans, none of those questions were answered on Aug. 31 in Ann Arbor, Mich. The Wolverines eventually prevailed 30-10, but their performance was distinctly underwhelming—nothing like the dominating performances delivered last year by Team 144.

Entering the season, the biggest question mark for Michigan was quarterback play, and coming out of the Fresno State game, it still is. Michigan rotated Davis Warren and Alex Orji all night and neither played particularly well. Warren went 15 for 25 with 118 yards, 1 TD and 1 interception, while Orji went 1 for 2 for 3 yards and 1 TD but had 32 yards rushing.  

With No. 3 Texas (1-0) coming to Ann Arbor on Sept. 7, Michigan needs to figure out its quarterback situation immediately.

Upcoming Game: No.3 Texas

B1G Power Rankings: Nos. 6-18

6. No.21 Iowa (1-0)

Last game: 40-0 win over Illinois state

Previous ranking: No. 6

Upcoming game: Iowa State

7. Nebraska 1-0

Last game: 40-7 win over UTEP

Previous ranking: No. 8

Upcoming game: Colorado

8. Maryland 1-0

Last game: 50-7 win over UConn

Previous ranking: No. 11

Upcoming game: Michigan State

9. Washington 1-0

Last game: 35-3 win over Weber State

Previous ranking: No. 9

Upcoming game: Washington State

10. Rutgers 1-0

Last game: 44-7 win over Howard

Previous ranking: No. 10

Upcoming game: Akron

11. Wisconsin 1-0

Last game: 28-14 win over Western Michigan

Previous ranking: No. 7

Upcoming game: South Dakota

12. Illinois 1-0

Last game: 40-0 win over Eastern Illinois

Previous ranking: No. 15

Upcoming game: No. 22 Kansas

13. Purdue 1-0

Last game: 49-0 win over Indiana State

Previous ranking: No. 17

Upcoming game: Bye

14. Indiana 1-0

Last game: 31-7 win over Florida International

Previous ranking: No. 18

Upcoming game: Western Illinois

15. Michigan State 1-0

Last game: 16-10 win over Florida Atlantic

Previous ranking: No. 14

Upcoming game: Maryland

16. Minnesota 0-1

Last game: 19-17 loss to North Carolina

Previous ranking: No. 12

Upcoming game: Rhode Island

17. Northwestern 1-0

Last game: 16-6 win over Miami (Ohio)

Previous ranking: No. 13

Upcoming game: Duke

18. UCLA 1-0

Last game: 16-13 win over Hawai’i

Previous ranking: No. 16

Upcoming game: Bye

Week two in the B1G offers some key matchups like Texas at Michigan, Boise State at Oregon and Iowa State at Iowa. By the time the final whistle blows we should have a better sense of who the pretenders and contenders are.