Big Ten West Power Ranking: Did Iowa Fall, Again?
By Jeremy Karll
No. 1 – Wisconsin Badgers 4-0 (1-0)
Last Week: 2
The crazy thing about Wisconsin is that they have the best resume in college football and could be the best team in the Big Ten this year, but barely anyone thinks they can win the Big Ten West. It’s clear that beating Georgia State by a mere six points was due to the Badgers overlooking them. They proved that by bouncing back and demolishing Michigan State 30-6 to start their unbelievably tough five game stretch off with a win.
The Badgers will now take on Michigan before a bye week, but then have Ohio State, Iowa and Nebraska in consecutive weeks. If Wisconsin somehow escapes this stretch 5-0, they would have a very good shot of being the #1 team in the nation.
For now, they’re #8, but have seemingly ended their quarterback controversy after the Big Ten named Alex Hornibrook Freshman of the Week. He threw for 195 yards, a touchdown and an interception in their win over the Spartans.
The most impressive thing about their win over Michigan State, though, was that they dominated the game without Corey Clement being effective. Clement scored twice, however he averaged a mere 2.3 yards per carry. For a run-heavy offense to rely on their freshman quarterback in a big game is risky, but Hornibrook and their defense stepped up.
Considering Wisconsin has faced both LSU and Michigan State already, holding their opponents to just 11.8 points per game is extremely impressive — seventh in the nation. They intercepted Tyler O’Connor three times and it’ll be near impossible to beat this team if their defense continues to be a wall.
Next: Iowa Football: Three Stars of the Game vs Rutgers
Most people are still expecting Wisconsin to lose to Michigan and Ohio State, however they won’t go down without a fight. The Badgers’ record at the end of the season might not show it, but they seem like the clear-cut best team in the Big Ten West at the moment.