Big Ten Power Rankings: Spartans drop after brutal showing vs. Washington
Michigan State football failed its first real test of 2023.
The Spartans opened the season with a pair of dominant performances against subpar competition, but that changed on Saturday when top-10 Washington came to town. The Huskies were the dominant team in this one en route to a 41-7 victory over Michigan State.
Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. ripped apart the Spartans defense to finish with more than 400 passing yards and four touchdowns. As a team, the Huskies racked up more than 700 yards. The Spartans’ offense was equally dreadful on Saturday, failing to find the scoreboard until the final minutes.
So how far should Michigan State drop in our weekly power rankings following this embarrassing performance? See where the Spartans and the rest of the Big Ten teams land below:
Northwestern
Record: 1-2 (0-1 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Loss at Duke
Next Game: Minnesota on Sept. 23
Northwestern was easily handled by a ranked Duke squad this weekend, which will probably be the norm moving forward for the Wildcats. This week’s home matchup with Minnesota may be one of their final winnable games this year.
Illinois
Record: 1-2 (0-1 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Loss vs. Penn State
Next Game: Florida Atlantic on Sept. 23
Illinois very well could be 0-3 right now, so thank god they were able to come back against Toledo in the opener. The Fighting Illini were sloppy against Penn State this week and desperately need a convincing victory over Florida Atlantic to start to get back on track this week.
Indiana
Record: 1-2 (0-1 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Loss vs. Louisville
Next Game: Akron on Sept. 23
The Hoosiers played Louisville tough in a nonconference neutral field game this week but came up short late. Indiana is proving better than my preseason expectations, but I’m still not sold on their long-term success in 2023.
Nebraska
Record: 1-2 (0-1 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. Northern Illinois
Next Game: Louisiana Tech on Sept. 23
Matt Rhule is on the board! After dropping his first two games as the Cornhuskers head coach, Rhule picked up a much-needed convincing win over Northern Illinois this week. The same should be said next week in their final tune-up game against Louisiana Tech.
Purdue
Record: 1-2 (0-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Loss vs. Syracuse
Next Game: Wisconsin on Sept. 22
Purdue has played a sneaky tough schedule to open the year with all three games coming against solid teams. That being said, it’s hard to get a read on where to place the Boilermakers compared to the fellow bottom tier teams but we should learn more this week in their Big Ten opener vs. Wisconsin.
Michigan State
Record: 2-1 (0-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Loss vs. Washington
Next Game: Maryland on Sept. 23
There’s an argument that can be made for the Spartans being lower on this list. And I wouldn’t argue against that. But for this week, I’m going to give Michigan State a little bit of a break knowing Washington is a true national championship contender based on the offensive firepower it has. But we now know Michigan State isn’t a top tier team in the league and will essentially be playing for their entire season this week against Maryland.
Minnesota
Record: 2-1 (1-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Loss at North Carolina
Next Game: at Northwestern on Sept. 23
Like Michigan State, Minnesota received a dose of reality this week in a blowout nonconference loss against North Carolina. The Golden Gophers’ offense is dreadful, and it’s going to be tough for them to reach bowl eligibility if we don’t see strides on that side of the ball.
Rutgers
Record: 3-0 (1-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. Virginia Tech
Next Game: at Michigan on Sept. 23
Rutgers is off to another 3-0 start (their third straight year doing so), but this year feels different for the Scarlet Knights. In the previous two years, the wheels came off during Big Ten play — and that could happen again here — but right now I feel more confident in Rutgers’ ability to sustain its fast start into conference play. It just may not be seen this week in a tough road game against Michigan.
Wisconsin
Record: 2-1 (0-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. Georgia Southern
Next Game: at Purdue on Sept. 22
I don’t know what to make of the Badgers after a relatively lackluster performance against Georgia Southern this week. Wisconsin hasn’t looked particularly impressive in any of its three nonconference games, so I’m intrigued to see how it handles a Friday night road trip to Purdue.
Maryland
Record: 3-0 (0-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. Virginia
Next Game: at Michigan State on Sept. 23
It makes me a little sick having the Terps this high, but who else should be here? Maryland is 3-0 despite poor starts in each of its last two games. It has won every game by double-digits. We will get a better idea of where Maryland stands following this week’s road trip to Michigan State.
Iowa
Record: 3-0 (0-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. Western Michigan
Next Game: at Penn State on Sept. 23
Iowa looks to be the early favorite in the Big Ten West Division after a 3-0 nonconference slate, which included a road win over Iowa State. The Hawkeyes’ offense still looks to have its warts, but it’ll get a chance to show if it’s truly improved this week in a big-time road trip to Penn State.
Michigan
Record: 3-0 (0-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. Bowling Green
Next Game: Rutgers on Sept. 23
I’m finally moving Michigan out of the top spot after farting around with subpar competition for a third straight week. The Wolverines will get a tougher test this week against Rutgers, and I’d like to see them show their dominance after a somewhat disappointing start to the season.
Ohio State
Record: 3-0 (1-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win vs. Western Kentucky
Next Game: at Notre Dame on Sept. 23
Ohio State finally looked like its normal dominant self in a blowout victory over Western Kentucky this week. The first true test for the Buckeyes is finally here, though, a top 10 clash at Notre Dame next week. We should learn a lot about Ohio State’s true potential to win a national championship this week.
Penn State
Record: 3-0 (1-0 in Big Ten)
This week’s result: Win at Illinois
Next Game: Iowa on Sept. 23
We have a new team at the top of our power rankings, Penn State. The Nittany Lions have the best resume of the big three powers at the top and have simply looked the most impressive thus far. This week offers another challenge for Penn State: a home prime-time matchup against Iowa.
Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on Twitter @RobertBondy5.
