Around the Big Ten: Week One

Week one has wrapped up in this season of college football and it surely didn’t disappoint. All over the U.S., the Big Ten showed out on the field, leading to four Big Ten teams being ranked in this week’s edition of the AP Poll. Let's take a look at the action:

No. 2 Michigan

Overall, it was a pretty quiet day for the Wolverines, which is exactly what they were looking for. The team performed well in their 30-3 at-home victory over ECU.

The absence of Jim Harbaugh did not seem to put too much of a knot in their plans. The Wolverines will host UNLV this weekend at home, in another game that should be a cakewalk for them.

No. 5 Ohio State

Yikes. This game could have gone wrong for the Buckeyes and derailed their entire season. This game against the Indiana Hoosiers exposed this team early in the season as a team that could be prone to upsets.

While this was only one game and OSU wound up winning 23-3, it still shows cracks in the foundation of Ryan Day’s team. A team with the talent of OSU should never let a team like Indiana be within one score at halftime.

No. 7 Penn State

The Drew Allar era is here and kicked off in a big way on Saturday night. In the Nittany Lions’ 38-15 victory over West Virginia, Allar threw for 325 yards and three touchdowns.

While the kicker and defensive line looked shaky, to say the least, Nittany Lions fans have something to look forward to this season.

No. 19 Wisconsin

Luke Fickell kicked off his coaching tenure at Wisconsin with a bang this past weekend with a commanding win over Buffalo, 38-17.

Looking at this game, Chez Mellusi is going to be a problem for Big Ten defenses all season. The running back ran for 157 yards and two touchdowns. The only negative I have from this game is that the team took a little while to get going.

With only a four-point lead at the half, this team’s gonna need to come out with some more firepower in future games.

Minnesota

The Golden Gophers inched out a week one win vs. Nebraska in a highly defensive game. The game, which ended 13-10, showed that Minnesota‘s running game is not going to be the same as last season.

Minnesota running back Sean Tyler rushed for only 41 yards this past weekend. This rushing game will have to improve to give Minnesota a fighting chance in the Big Ten.

Rutgers

In a shocking turn of events, Rutgers made some noise this past weekend. The Scarlet Knights dominated the Northwestern Wildcats by a 24-7 score.

This was the perfect way to start their season and gives them some much-needed momentum as they head into a somewhat difficult part of their schedule.

While they play Temple this coming weekend, the next two weeks, featuring Virginia Tech and Michigan, will be a true test for their season. Look for them to be a sneaky contender in the Big Ten this season.

Iowa

Iowa needed a resurgence at offense this season after heavily relying on defense for wins last season.

Luckily for the Hawkeyes, Michigan transfer Cade McNamara could give them just that. The new quarterback threw for two touchdowns in the Hawkeyes 24-14 win over Utah State this past Saturday.

Look for the transfer quarterback vs. Iowa State this weekend.

Ethan Ellis is a third-year student majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, please email ece5133@psu.edu.