Week three shook up the Big Ten board in a few spots, but the top of the league still runs through Ohio State. Even after the Buckeyes watched a 20-point lead disappear in a loss to Texas, they remain the standard in both the conference and college football as a whole. That collapse was hard to swallow, especially in a game that looked like it should have been a statement win.
Indiana also stays near the front because the Hoosiers keep flattening opponents, even if the level of competition hasn’t told us much yet. Their Big Ten slate is getting closer, and that should give a clearer read on what they really are in 2026.
Michigan got the kind of result it badly needed, knocking off No. 11 Oklahoma and giving the conference a lift in the process. The Wolverines still come with plenty of skepticism, but a ranked win is a ranked win, and it pushed them up three spots into the middle of the league picture heading into week four.
Iowa was one of the biggest movers after edging Iowa State by three points. The offense still doesn’t inspire much confidence, but the Hawkeyes earned a major result and climbed three spots in the rankings because of it.
Nebraska also made a jump, moving up five spots after putting 56 points on the board. The number looks impressive, but it came against the MAC, and Anthony Colandrea is still a concern. In a conference that can expose weak spots fast, the Cornhuskers remain something of a question mark despite the rise.
The same kind of uncertainty hangs over Oregon, only louder. The Ducks should be good, and the roster says they should be good, but an eight-point loss to Oklahoma State sent them tumbling four spots. That’s the kind of result that keeps raising the same ugly question.
USC’s defense is another issue worth watching. Two weeks ago, the Trojans blanked an opponent, but this past weekend they gave up 30 points to Louisiana. That side of the ball remains the thing that could drag them down again.
Penn State stays put for now. The Nittany Lions let Temple linger longer than they should have, and they still haven’t shown enough to climb. There’s room to rise later, but not until they prove more on the field.
UCLA moved up a spot after handling San Diego State without much drama. It wasn’t flashy, but the Bruins stayed unbeaten and continued to stack wins. They’ve been solid so far, and they could end up being a sneaky team in 2026.
Washington had a win-and-drop kind of week. The Huskies beat Utah State 16-14, but that kind of finish doesn’t inspire much confidence. They haven’t faced strong competition, and even the games in front of them have been tougher than they should be.
Illinois took the biggest hit. A narrow loss to the defending ACC champs Duke is one thing, but the questions around the Illini are piling up fast.
An easy test in week three was supposed to help, and now Ohio State is next. They have plenty to answer for.
Wisconsin slid two spots after a game that should have looked more dominant than a 36-9 win over Western Illinois. That came on the heels of getting demolished by Notre Dame, and right now the Badgers don’t look like a team with much traction.
Minnesota stays at No. 13, and the reasons are pretty simple. The Golden Gophers aren’t good, but the bottom of the Big Ten is thin enough that they’re hanging around there anyway. A 25-point loss to a middling Mississippi State team didn’t help matters.
Maryland has a chance to climb quickly if it keeps winning like this. The Terrapins blew past UConn by 24 points, and there’s interest there, especially at quarterback. But after years of disappointment, they still need to show it against a decent opponent.
Michigan State handled Eastern Michigan, but there isn’t much trust yet in the new Pat Fitzgerald regime. The roster doesn’t have a lot of talent, and the quarterback situation remains suspect at best.
Northwestern sat out last week on a bye, but the next stretch will tell us a lot. Colorado, No.
4 Indiana, and No. 14 Penn State are all coming up, and that should sharpen the picture on the Wildcats fast.
At the bottom, Purdue had the weekend’s best chance to change its standing, and it still ended the same way. The Boilermakers came close to their first power four win in years against Wake Forest, but they fell short and remain at the very bottom of the Big Ten.
In Other News...
Illinois Already Has Two Problems It Must Fix Fast
Illinois went into its non-conference meeting with Duke hoping to keep building momentum and reach the kind of 3-0 start it wanted before the Ohio State game loomed on the schedule, but instead it came away with a loss that exposed a couple of early concerns. The Illini had trouble with tackling and never found enough consistency on offense, particularly after halftime, when the scoring dipped and the game slipped away.
Bret Bielema now has a short window to sort through what went wrong before Illinois turns to Southern Illinois. The issues are not subtle, and the staff will be looking for answers quickly, because the next stretch will ask whether this was a one-game stumble or the start of problems that need immediate fixing. [Read more 🡒]
Illinois Is Chasing A Wing Prospect Who Could Change Its Future
Illinois has positioned itself early with AJ Williams, a top-five recruit in the class of 2027 whose rise has already made him one of the more intriguing long-term targets on the board. The Georgia wing, who plays for Eagles Landing Christian Academy, included Illinois in his top 10 after the Illini first offered him in July, following his showing with Team CP3. For a program always looking to keep its pipeline of national-caliber talent flowing, getting in this early matters.
Williams is the kind of prospect who can force a staff to picture how he would fit before the rest of the roster even settles into place. Illinois has been weighing its wing rotation and broader roster balance, and a player with his blend of upside and versatility would only add to that conversation. The competition is already real, though, and the next steps in his recruitment should tell a lot about how serious Illinois can be about turning an early offer into a future win. [Read more 🡒]
Illinois Is Making An Early Push For A Frontcourt Priority
Illinois has already built a strong early footprint in its 2027 recruiting class with a pair of committed shooting guards, but the staff is clearly working to balance that out with size. The latest sign comes from Darius Wabbington, the five-star center from the 2027 class, whose recruitment is starting to pick up across the country as his official visits take shape.
Wabbington, a 6-foot-11 frontcourt priority ranked No. 12 nationally, has moved his trip to Champaign up from Oct. 23 to Sept. 18. That places Illinois in an important early window as he also lines up visits to Indiana, Arizona, North Carolina and Texas, giving the Illini a chance to make their case before the rest of the schedule unfolds. [Read more 🡒]