2025 Big Ten Football Power Rankings: August 31st

Aug 30, 2025; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; Indiana Hoosiers running back Kaelon Black (8) runs the ball against Old Dominion Monarchs safety Nickendre Stiger (2) during the first half at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Goddin-Imagn Images There was movement at the top and at the bottom of the Big Ten in week one and some shuffling in the middle of the pack. The Big Ten went 16-2 in week one with some impressive wins and very concerning losses. Subscriber Content Conference Favorites 1. Ohio State Buckeyes (1-0, 0-0) Last Week: 2 The Buckeyes reminded the nation who was top dog last year with a win over then No.1 Texas. The defense looked dominant and now the Buckeyes have a few weeks to get the offense clicking. Last Game: Win vs. #1 Texas 14-7 | Next Game: Sept. 6 vs. Grambling (1-0) 2. Penn State Nittany Lions (1-0, 0-0) Last Week 1: Penn State did nothing wrong other than that Ohio State’s win was more impressive and gives the Buckeyes an early edge on the Nittany Lions. Penn State gets FIU next, so expect another blow out. Last Game: Win 46-11 vs. Nevada | Next Game: Sept. 6th vs. FIU (1-0) 3. Oregon Ducks (1-0, 0-0) Last Week: 3 The Ducks looked better than expected on offense and as dominant as expected on defense. Next week is a step up in competition with Oklahoma State coming to Eugene. Oregon will be right in the Big Ten race all season. Last Game: 59-13 vs.Montana State | Next Game: Sept 6th vs. Oklahoma State (1-0) Playoff Contenders 4. USC Trojans (1-0, 0-0) Last Week: 6 Uh…is USC back? The offense certainly made a statement against an FCS foe. If the trojans can put up plenty of points, they can sneak into the next level quickly. Georgia Southern is a slightly better opponent, but USC should not have issues next week. Last Game: 73-13 Win vs. Missouri State | Next Game: Sept 6th vs. Georgia Southern (0-1) 5. Illinois Fighting Illini (1-0, 0-0) Last Week: 5 The Illini did what they were supposed to do against an inferior foe. A trip to Durham to face Duke is next week. This will be a good test to see exactly where Illinois stands. Last Game: 52-3 win vs. Western Illinois (0-0) | Next Game: Sept. 6th at Duke (1-0_ 6. Michigan Wolverines (1-0, 0-0) Last Week: 7 Michigan looks like they have their quarterback. New Mexico hung around a little longer than expected though. A trip to Oklahoma will be a huge test for true freshman Bryce Underwood. Last Game: 34-17 win vs. New Mexico | Next Game: Sept. 6th at No. 18 Oklahoma (1-0) 7. Indiana Hoosiers (1-0, 0-0) Last Week:4 IU dominated the stat sheet, but not the scoreboard. While IU got the win, they fall with other teams doing a better job of taking better care of business. IU has two weeks to clean it up before Ill Last Game: 27-14 Win vs. Old Dominion | Next Game: Sept. 6th vs. Kennesaw St. (0-1) On Solid Footing 8. Minnesota Golden Gophers (1-0, 0-0) Last Week: 8 Defense ruled the day for the Gophers as the offense needs to get its sea legs. Minnesota should be able to light up the scoreboard against Northwestern State Last Game: 23-10 Win vs. Buffalo (0-0) | Next Game: Sept. 6th vs. Northwestern State (1-0) 9. Nebraska Cornhuskers (1-0,0-0) Last Week: 9 While the Huskers won, it didn’t look like the improvements from last year were there yet. The defense certainly looked better. Next week should let the offense build more confidence against Akron in Memorial Stadium. Last Game: Win 20-17 vs. Cincinnati (0-0) | Next Game: Sept. 6th vs. Akron (0-1) 10. Washington Huskies (1-0,0-0) Last Week 10 Jonah Coleman ran the ball well and the offense looked good. Giving up 21 to Colorado State could be concerning, but Washington is better than last year. They can iron out the issues next week against UC Davis. Last Game: 38-21 Win vs. Colorado State (0-0) | Next Game Sept. 6th vs. UC Davis (1-0) 11. Iowa Hawkeyes (1-0, 0-0) Last Week 11 It was a slow start for the Hawkeyes who found themselves down 7-3 early, but the offense rallied and the defense did what Iowa’s defense does. The Cy-Hawk game could determine how each team’s season goes. Last Game: Win 34-7 vs. Albany | Next Game Sept. 6 at No. 22 Iowa State (2-0) 12. Rutgers Scarlet Knights (0-0,0-0) Last Week: 12 Rutgers looked like they were going to steamroll Ohio last week and held off a furious rally to win 34-31. The Scarlet Knights get another MAC foe at home. Can they put them away quicker? Last Game: 34-31 Win vs. Ohio | Next Game Sept. 6th vs. Miami (OH) (0-1) Can They Take a Step Forward? 13. Michigan State Spartans (1-0,0-0) The Spartans raced out to a big lead in the first half and looked like a much better team than 2024, however they were outscored 6-2 in the second half with an uninspiring performance. MSU gets Boston College next week who beat them in Chestnut Hill last season Last Game: 23-6 Win vs. Western Michigan | Next Game: Sept. 6th vs. Boston College (1-0) 14. Wisconsin Badgers (1-0, 0-0) I thought about dropping the Badgers to the basement, but they pitched a shutout. However, it feels like the Badger faithful are out on Luke Fickell. The Badgers get Middle Tennessee State before a trip to an angry Alabama team. Last Game: 17-0 Win vs. Miami (OH) | Next Game: Sept. 6th vs. Middle Tennessee (0-1) The Basement 15. Maryland Terrapins (1-0, 0-0) Last Week: 17 The Terrapins didn’t look spectacular, but they did enough to move up the basement stairs. They can climb out next week, but beware Northern Illinois is lurking and looking for another P4 upset. Next Game: 39-7 Win vs. FAU | Next Game: Sept. 6th vs. Northern Illinois (1-0) 16. Purdue Boilermakers (1-0, 0-0) Last Week: 18 Look, it was just Ball State, but many people predicted an upset. Purdue shut the Cardinals out and drew 53,000+ fans coming off a 1-11 season. The Boilermakers should make it two in a row with Southern Illinois visiting next week. Last Game: 31-0 Win vs. Ball State | Next Game: Sept. 6th vs. Southern Illinois (1-0) 17. UCLA Bruins (0-1, 0-0) Last Week: 14 UCLA had high hopes coming into the year with a big splash at quarterback. That hope lasted about a quarter as UCLA got buried by Utah and looked terrible on defense. The Bruins head to play a good G5 team on the road in UNLV. Next Game: 43-10 Loss vs. Utah | Next Game Sept. 6th at UNLV (2-0) 18. Northwestern Wildcats (0-1, 0-0) Last Week: 16 That was ugly and there is a new worst in the Big Ten. Northwestern went to Tulane and left with their tails kicked. David Braun should be on the hot seat, but I don’t know if Northwestern cares enough to make that call. If the Wildcats can’t look good against Western Illinois, they may not win another game. Last Game: 23-3 Loss at Tulane | Next Game Sept. 5th vs. Western Illinois Subscribe to get access Read more of this content when you subscribe today. Log in

2025 Big Ten Football Power Rankings: August 31st

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2025 Big Ten Football Power Rankings: August 31st

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