Big Ten West Power Ranking: How Far Did Iowa Fall?

Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

A look at the Big Ten West following the third week of college football

The Big Ten West didn’t have its strongest showing in week three, however teams did combine to go 3-2 on the week. Not every team was active, but the Iowa Hawkeyes arguably had the biggest disappointment of the week when they fell to FCS powerhouse North Dakota State.

Even with that being so, the Big Ten West is still in very good shape heading into conference play. Nebraska jumped into the AP Poll top-25 this week, giving the division two top-20 teams. Just like the rest of this early season, the West Division continues to prove that they can hold their own against the East.

With the Hawkeyes struggles and the emergence of Wisconsin and Nebraska, the Big Ten West is wide open for anyone’s taking. The Hawkeyes seem to still be one of the favorites, although they won’t run away with it like many people predicted heading into the season.

In conference play this week, the Hawkeyes head on the road to take on Rutgers. They’ll try to bounce back from their tough loss and start conference play on the right foot. So far there hasn’t been any conference games in the Big Ten, making the fourth weekend of college football extremely intriguing.

With the Big Ten West going a combined 13-6 so far this year, here’s a look at how each team stacks up with each other.

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No. 7 – Purdue Boilermakers 1-1 (0-0)

Last Week: 6

Purdue was inactive last week, however that didn’t help their case with every team in the Big Ten West now owning a win in 2016. The Boilermakers cruised by Eastern Kentucky in week one, winning 45-24. Although, in week two they fell to Cincinnati and back to mediocrity, losing 38-20.

The Boilermakers have an important test this week in Nevada, who isn’t great but has managed to go 2-1 in the early season. With Darrell Hazell trying to rebuild the program, the Boilermakers need to win against teams like Nevada. Purdue and Nevada are both in the same tier of teams, which will truly show the improvement Purdue has made from a season ago.

Following Nevada, Purdue takes on Maryland and Illinois to start conference play before hitting the heart of their schedule. The Boilermakers only managed to win two games last season, however have a chance to top that mark early in 2016. While Maryland is 3-0 and Illinois hasn’t looked as bad as in years past, both are games Purdue has a chance to win.

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They’ll need better quarterback play from David Blough, though. Blough has completed just 57 percent of his passes and has thrown six interceptions to just three touchdowns. The Boilermakers overcame an interception against Eastern Kentucky, although five against Cincinnati proved to be detrimental.

It’s really hard to get a grasp on how good of a football team the Boilermakers are because they haven’t played anyone with the same talent level as them. That being said, they weren’t a good football team last season and struggling mightily against Cincinnati doesn’t help their case.

They came in at number six last week because Northwestern hadn’t recorded a win yet. With everyone in the Big Ten West owning a win, the Boilermakers are back at the bottom until they show at least a little improvement from the past couple of seasons.

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No. 6 – Illinois Fighting Illini 1-2 (0-0)

Last Week: 5

I’ll admit it, I bought into the Illinois Fighting Illini Kool-Aid a little following their week one win over Murray State. Sure, it’s only a win over Murray State, however it seemed like Lovie Smith brought a new aurora to the program and they could rattle off a couple of wins in 2016.

After playing North Carolina somewhat tough in week two before losing by 25, the Illini didn’t show up in week three against Western Michigan. The Broncos already took down Northwestern earlier in the year and finished their Big Ten Illinois’ schools sweep with a dominating 34-10 win.

Nebraska is the Illini’s next matchup in a couple of weeks, therefore the immediate future is not looking bright for Illinois. All the positives that we saw in the first two weeks seemingly went away when they went down 24-7 in the first half against Western Michigan.

Their defense was putrid, allowing 5.3 yards per carry and letting Jamauri Bogan run wild for 189 yards and two scores. On the other side of the ball, the Illini ran even worse than the Hawkeyes. They averaged just 0.2 yards per carry, with Ke’Shawn Vaughn rushing for 22 yards on eight carries.

While Western Michigan has a chance to run the table in the MAC this year, many viewed this as the best non-conference measuring stick game for the Illini. Now, with four currently ranked teams left on their schedule, it’s hard to imagine them sneaking into a bowl game this year.

Wes Lunt has been good this year, however the Illini need more than just him. Their defense has given up 30-plus points in back-to-back weeks and their offensive line struggled mightily against Western Michigan.

It was a promising start to the season for Illinois, although we have a better grasp on the team they’ll be this season. I still have faith in Lovie Smith, however it’s evident that he has a lot of work to do in Champaign.

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No. 5 – Northwestern Wildcats 1-2 (0-0)

Last Week: 7

The wait is finally over, the Northwestern Wildcats have a win in 2016. Unlike last year, a couple of big calls and plays didn’t go their way. It led to them losing by one point to Western Michigan and two points to Illinois State, starting the season 0-2. Even if the Wildcats won both games and started the season 3-0, it’s evident that this is not even the below-average 10 win team that they were last season.

Although somehow the Wildcats were able to get their first win of the season over Duke, a respectable team this year. Clayton Thorson threw for an uncharacteristic 320 yards and three touchdowns, also throwing two interceptions. He only completed a terrible 46.1 percent of his passes though, but there was life in the passing game for Northwestern, nonetheless.

With Justin Jackson a little banged up, he still ran for 94 yards on 28 carries. Teams know that Northwestern doesn’t want to throw with Thorson, therefore honing in on Jackson every play has taken a toll on him. He’s averaging just 4.1 yards per carry this season and had to leave the game in the second half against Illinois State.

Despite Jackson’s low 4.1 yards carry and Thorson’s 49 percent completion percentage, the Wildcats defense has yet to allow more than 22 points in a game and has kept the Wildcats competitive in all three contests. To be fair, their competition hasn’t been stiff, however Western Michigan scored 34 points against Illinois but only managed 22 against the Wildcats.

With Nebraska, Iowa and Michigan State being their next three opponents, the Wildcats will need Jackson to get going and for their stifling defense to be even better.

When it comes down to it, Clayton Thorson isn’t going to get the job done if they fall behind early. Therefore, relying on a small 5-11, 193 pound running back in Justin Jackson isn’t the best solution when teams are packing the box. The Wildcats don’t have any other options and it wouldn’t be surprising if they aren’t bowl eligible this year.

Their defense might be one of the best in the Big Ten, but it’s hard to overcome terrible quarterback play every week.

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No. 4 – Minnesota Golden Gophers 2-0 (0-0)

Last Week: 4

The Golden Gophers were off last weekend, which helped them stay at number four this week. After a come from behind win over Oregon State in week one and a dominating performance against Indiana State the following week, no one is sure what to make of Minnesota.

The Gophers have an underwhelming opponent in Colorado State this week, therefore it will probably take until their meeting with Penn State on October 1 to really know how this team will fare in the Big Ten this year. Still, a 2-0 start is a positive sign, as well as quarterback Mitch Leidner‘s production.

A year removed from throwing 11 interceptions, Leidner has four touchdowns, no interceptions and has completed 58.9 percent of his passes in 2016. With running back Shannon Brooks yet to play a down due to a foot injury, Leidner and Rodney Smith have needed to step up.

Smith has averaged 4.7 yards per carry and has already rushed for three touchdowns. While it hasn’t been against great competition, the Golden Gophers have taken a step in the right direction in 2016. If Brooks returns for the heart of their schedule, they have a chance to string together a couple of wins.

Their defense will need to step up, though. They rank just 73rd in the nation in points allowed per game (25.5). Indiana State scored most of their points in garbage time, however it’s never a pleasant sign to see the Sycamores moving the ball with ease down the field.

Minnesota is looking to improve on their sub-par 6-7 season in 2015. They’re not considered a true threat in the Big Ten West, but they have a chance to give teams problems if they stay healthy and take care of the ball on offense.

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No. 3 – Iowa Hawkeyes 2-1 (0-0)

Last Week: 2

The Iowa Hawkeyes are better than what they showed last week against North Dakota State. Their offensive and defensive lines got manhandled all game and it resulted into their worst offensive showing in years. Although, the Hawkeyes will look to put that behind them this week when they travel to Rutgers.

With C.J. Beathard getting banged up a little against North Dakota State, there could be bigger problems looming over the Hawkeyes’ heads. Nate Stanley looked impressive in his small outing on Saturday, however, the Hawkeyes don’t want to turn to a true freshman quarterback, especially not after their run game was effectively stopped.

As much criticism as they’ve received from national media, the Hawkeyes aren’t a terrible football team. The good news is that the loss didn’t come in Big Ten play, therefore the Big Ten West is still up for grabs.

If Iowa can refocus before getting into the heart of their schedule, they have a very good chance of winning the West Division for the second straight season. Luckily, for the Hawkeyes, they have a couple of games they should win with ease to get going in the right direction.

Don’t forget that Iowa came into the season as heavy favorites in the West. Just because they fell to an FCS team doesn’t negate how dominating they’ve proven to be at times. With this being the first loss of the C.J. Beathard era, everyone will be seeing if Kirk Ferentz can get his team back on track and not have a hangover against Rutgers this upcoming week.

It was a tough loss but the Hawkeyes have plenty of chances to get back on track this season. There are obvious concerns on both sides of the ball, however they’re still top-50 in the nation in both points per game and points allowed per game.

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No. 2 – Wisconsin Badgers 3-0 (0-0)

Last Week: 1

Wisconsin defeated then #5 LSU in week one, although that can’t keep them at number one forever. The fact of the matter is that the Badgers struggled against Georgia State in week three. Sure, Corey Clement didn’t play, however the Badgers should have still won by at least double-digits.

The fact that Georgia State held Wisconsin to six points in the first half and led 17-13 early in the fourth quarter is enough reason for concern. Wisconsin might have been focusing on their brutal five game stretch starting this week. Either way, there are clear problems on their team.

Just like in many years for the Badgers, the problem arises on the offensive side of the ball.

Freshman quarterback Alex Hornibrook replaced fifth-year senior quarterback Bart Houston in the second half, and many believe it’s Hornibrook’s job to lose for this coming week’s game against Michigan State. A quarterback controversy with a banged up running back is not how Wisconsin pictured the week leading up to their matchup with #8 Michigan State.