Big Ten power rankings after Week 12: Top two showdown on deck

What was easy for one team was a struggle for another.

Michigan football emerged unscathed from playing Maryland, but the Wolverines couldn’t put the game away until late. Ohio State rolled against Minnesota. However, the Buckeyes looked uneven at the half, and several big plays in the third quarter helped them retain their undefeated season.

Michigan State beat Indiana. Iowa secured a berth in the Big Ten Championship game when it beat Illinois. Penn State (despite losing Drew Allar to injury) outlasted Rutgers, and Northwestern secured bowl eligibility by beating Purdue. Wisconsin and Nebraska went to the brink by going to overtime.

With Week 12 in the books, here are our latest power rankings.

Michigan Wolverines (11-0)

Michigan needed everything it had defensively to secure a victory against Maryland.

The offense was uneven all game, perhaps in part due to Roman Wilson leaving in the first quarter after being placed in concussion protocol. The defense allowed the Terps to move the ball regularly but made key stops and timely turnovers.

No Jim Harbaugh for a second straight week, and in the third, the Wolverines will face an undefeated, No. 2 Ohio State team.

Ohio State Buckeyes (11-0)

The Buckeyes didn’t look impressive until they did.

It was a balanced attack with Ohio State needing TreVeyon Henderson and the run game to supplement Kyle McCord and the pass game. But the game really turned in the second half when the defense made a key interception of Minnesota QB Athan Kaliakmanis with a long return, all but officially putting the game away. The offensive line didn’t have a great game in pass protection, which could signal issues next week with a trip to Ann Arbor.

Penn State Nittany Lions (9-2)

Penn State lost quarterback Drew Allar to injury but was thankful it could lean on its run game to secure victory against a tough Rutgers team.

Beau Pribula only attempted (and completed) one pass, but he also rushed for 71 yards on eight carries, leading the rushing attack that accumulated 234 yards and three touchdowns against the Scarlet Knights. The defense came up big, once again, allowing 229 total yards to the road team. The usually decent Rutgers run game managed 2.4 yards per carry en route to 99 total yards.

A Friday night game against Michigan State in Detroit looms.

Iowa Hawkeyes (9-2)

Iowa played yet another quintessential Iowa game and was rewarded for it, not just with a win, but also with the Big Ten West division championship. The Hawkeyes are guaranteed a trip to Indianapolis no matter how the rivalry game against Nebraska goes on Friday.

While Iowa allowed a fair number of passing yards to a pass-heavy Illinois team, it shut down the run game. Most importantly, the Hawkeyes produced a safety, which ended up being the difference.

Northwestern Wildcats (6-5)

Who would have seen this coming?

Northwestern fired Pat Fitzgerald before the season and entrusted 2023 with David Braun as the interim coach. Braun got the interim tag removed earlier in the week before the Wildcats played Purdue, and he rewarded fans in Evanston with the sixth win of the season — ensuring bowl eligibility.

This is a remarkable turnaround if there’s been one, and even if this win came at the expense of lowly Purdue, it’s a huge achievement.

Rutgers Scarlet Knights (6-5)

You can’t fault Rutgers for losing to Penn State, even a short-handed version, but it’s been a disappointing stretch after the Scarlet Knights had a hot start.

You have to start with the offense, which continues to be anemic, especially against good defenses. Now, the Nittany Lions have an elite unit on that side of the ball, but Rutgers needs to figure out how to move the ball with more ease. The defense also didn’t have its greatest game. PSU ran all over the Scarlet Knights. Perhaps the rivalry game against Maryland will be a get-right situation.

Maryland Terrapins (6-5)

Maryland gave No. 3 Michigan football everything it had in the closest game the Wolverines have played all season. And it did so after being down 20 not long before the half.

But the Terps frustrated the Michigan offense and were the first team to score on the Wolverines in the third quarter — all while putting up the most points any team has against this maize and blue team (24).

Call it a moral victory, but it ends up as a loss. Rutgers looms next week.

Wisconsin Badgers (6-5)

Even with a healthy(ish) Tanner Mordecai and Braelon Allen, Wisconsin still is in a bit of a struggle session, taking everything Nebraska had after being blown out last week.

The two West teams ended up going to overtime in Madison, and while the Badgers eked it out, it wasn’t pretty. But at least Luke Fickell is bowl eligible before facing a desperate Minnesota team next week.

Nebraska Cornhuskers (5-6)

Yes, Nebraska moves up despite the loss. Unlike Northwestern against Wisconsin last week, the Huskers found themselves in a fight with the Badgers. Now, it was a fight and given that Chubba Purdy was starting at quarterback instead of Heinrich Haarberg, it’s impressive the team from Lincoln could go into Madison and make it a game, taking Wisconsin to overtime.

Still, Nebraska is searching for elusive bowl eligibility after being shut out of the postseason the past several years. It will have to beat Big Ten West champs Iowa to secure more games beyond Friday.

Illinois Fighting Illini (5-6)

Moving back to 10, Illinois managed to pass the ball against defensively stout Iowa, but couldn’t do much more than that. The Illini are trying to get to bowl eligible after a stellar season last year, but with Luke Altmyer out again this past week and John Paddock leading the passing attack, it’s unclear whether or not Bret Bielema’s squad will get there.

Northwestern is next.

Michigan State Spartans (4-7)

Surprisingly, shockingly, MSU is back out of the basement after beating an equally as bad Indiana team that gave the Spartans all they could handle.

Katin Houser had an up and down day, passing for 245 yards and three touchdowns, but he also tossed two picks. The run game is still abysmal, as was the run defense. But the Spartans managed to keep IU QB Brendan Sorsby in check somewhat and it managed to hold on through a wild ride of a game.

A neutral site game in Detroit against Penn State is next.

Minnesota Golden Gophers (5-6)

Let’s be fair: Minnesota wasn’t going to beat Ohio State. And while the defense got some pressure on Kyle McCord, that’s about all it did in this one. Athan Kaliakmanis was abysmal, so was the run game. Meanwhile, the defense allowed Kyle McCord to put up 212 yards and two touchdowns, while TreVeyon Henderson ran for 146 and two more TDs. The only saving grace was it held Marvin Harrison Jr. to three catches for 30 yards and one touchdown.

The good news is the Gophers can reach bowl eligibility next week in a winnable game against rival Wisconsin.

Purdue Boilermakers (3-8)

Ryan Walters’ year continues to be tough and losing to Northwestern probably wasn’t on the preseason predictions for the Boilermakers.

No Hudson Card in this game meant an anemic passing attack, but the run game was impressive putting up 303 yards. But turnovers via two interceptions was killer, and who knows what would have happened if Card could have played.

A very winnable game against IU looms next week.

Indiana Hoosiers (3-8)

Though Indiana put up a fight against a struggling Michigan State team, it couldn’t pull out a win in the end. Next week marks the merciful end for a bad season for the Hoosiers.

Story originally appeared on Wolverines Wire