Week 5 Power Rankings

Ahhh…you smell that. Yeah that’s the smell of Big Ten Conference football as the teams prepare for the opening of conference play this weekend. Here are my Power Rankings heading into Week 5.

1. “The” Ohio State University (3-1)- USC’s loss last night makes the Buckeye’s loss look that much worse, but injured running back Chris Wells will make his return this weekend for the defending conference champs. Along with Wells, QB Terrelle Pryor will lead the OSU offense this weekend. The freshman Pryor threw four touchdowns passes last week against Troy and look for him to get even more touches this weekend as the Buckeyes begin conference play against undefeated Minnesota.

2. Penn State University (4-0)- Oregon State’s win against USC makes the Nittany Lions look that much better as they smoked the Beavers earlier this season 45-14. This weekend brings the Fighting Illini to Happy Valley as PSU prepares for its toughest test of the season yet. The Lions have looked dominant so far, but we’ll see if that stands after this weekend’s premier conference matchup.

3. Wisconsin (4-0)- The Badgers are coming off a tough road win at Fresno State two weeks ago and had a bye last week. The bye gave time for injured players like tight end Travis Beckum to rest his hamstring injury. With Beckum back in the lineup this Saturday against Michigan look for the Wisconsin offense to be that much stronger.

4. Michigan State (3-1)- All you need to know about the Spartans is Javon Ringer. The senior running back is putting up Heisman like numbers and continued that trend last week when he rushed for over two hundred yards and two touchdowns against the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame. Look for him to put up big numbers again this weekend as the Spartans take on Indiana.

5. Illinois (2-1)-The Illini have another tough game this weekend as they head into a hostile environment at Beaver Stadium to take on #12 Penn State. Illinois did not look very impressive in their recent win against Louisiana-Lafayette, but dual quarterback Juice Williams is always a threat to put up big numbers and look for him to challenge the young linebackers of Penn State.

6. Iowa (3-1)- The Hawkeyes are coming off a one point loss to a tough Pittsburgh team as they head into this weekend’s Homecoming game against Northwestern. Quarterback Ricky Stanzi has been named the starter, but don’t be surprised if Jake Christensen sees some time as well.

7. Purdue University (2-1)- The Boilermakers had a thrilling victory last week against Central Michigan, but they were losing with just a 1:18 left to play. The offense is not what it has been in years past, but the defense is picking up the slack. The Boilers travel to South Bend this weekend to take on an Irish team that got handled by Michigan State last weekend. I look for Cory Sheets to have another big game in a game I think the Boilermakers can win.

8. Minnesota (4-0) –One of the surprises so far this year has been the turnaround of Minnesota football. After a dismal season last year, Tim Brewster has the Gophers playing some good football and they have already surpassed their win total from a year ago. Minnesota has not been challenged thus far and play their first ranked opponent as they travel to “The” Ohio State University.

9. Northwestern (4-0)- The Wildcats only scored sixteen points, but still managed a win last week against Ohio. The defense played well and is definitely improved from last year. The Wildcats are still undefeated, but face their first real test in Iowa this weekend.

10. Indiana (2-1)- The Hoosiers had trouble defending the run this past weekend as they allowed four rushing touchdowns against Ball State. Look for the run defense to try and step up this week as they face Heisman candidate Javon Ringer and Michigan State.

11.Michigan (1-2)- Congrats to Michigan as they didn’t lose last week thanks to the bye. This week the Wolverines and their abysmal quarterback situation take on Wisconsin at home. Michigan is always tough at home and look for that offense to start clicking a little more as we get deeper into the season.