1. Ohio State Buckeyes 5-0
Besides being undefeated and the defending national champions, the Buckeyes have the conference's best road win with a 24-6 dismantling of 4-1 Washington in Seattle, even if their Week 1 win over then-No. 1 Texas has been tarnished.
Freshman quarterback Julian Sayin has settled in-- he's 12-14 for 515 yards and seven touchdowns on passes of more than 20 yards. The OSU defense ranks No. 1 in scoring defense and No. 3 in yards per play defense.
2. Oregon Ducks 5-0
The Ducks get a strenuous test this Saturday as upset-minded Indiana comes to town, the Hoosiers No. 7 in the AP poll.
Though their White Out win has been tarnished after the Nittany Lions' collapse in Los Angeles, the Ducks have been efficient on offense and explosive on defense. They still haven't lost a regular season game in the Big Ten, 11-0 through two seasons.
They currently rank No. 6 in the country in scoring offense and No. 6 in scoring defense, though the Hoosiers will challenge that with an offense that averages 7.5 yards per play.
3. Indiana 5-0
The Hoosiers strength of schedule hasn't been good, but they've been explosive, with eight touchdown passes of more than 30 yards and two 70-yard scores on the ground.
Their run game averages 267.8 yards per game while the defense has tallied 16 sacks and 49 tackles for loss.
A relentless defense. pic.twitter.com/eOERHIo5NQ
— Indiana Football (@IndianaFootball) October 5, 2025
4. Michigan 4-1
This ranking gains clarity as the Wolverines travel to USC Saturday as a 2.5-point underdog, but two straight conference wins at Nebraska and 24-10 over Wisconsin at home put them in the fourth spot.
They're 14th nationally in yards per play defense at 4.27 ypp. New quarterback Bryce Underwood has found his groove as a runner and passer, throwing for 1,003 yards while rushing for 181 yards and three touchdowns.
5. Illinois 5-1
Illinois' 63-10 loss to Indiana is an alarm bell, but their 34-32 win over USC on a last-minute field goal puts them at the top of the second tier of Big Ten teams. They host Ohio State on Saturday.
6. USC 4-1
The Trojans passing attack makes them a dangerous opponent for anyone, Jayden Maiava throwing to Makai Lemon and Jakobi Lane, but their defense remains suspect, ranking next-to-last in the Big Ten against the pass.
While Jayden Maiava was far from perfect against Illinois, I loved his display of touch in the intermediate game. Whether it was hook zone defenders wedged between deep zones, or getting it over curl flats, he layered the ball extraordinarily well.pic.twitter.com/HK0qTcUFj4
— Nick Martin (@themicknartin) October 3, 2025
7. Washington 4-1
The Huskies escaped with a 24-20 come-from-behind win at Maryland after being completely shut down against the Buckeyes at home. After some injuries the offensive line is becoming an issue, 15th in the league in sacks after giving up six in the loss to OSU.
8. Nebraska 4-1
After a loss at home to Michigan, a win over Michigan State, the Huskers travel to Maryland in the Big Ten's separation Saturday. Something that's not being talked about much nationally is how much Dylan Raiola has grown as a quarterback in his sophomore season. He's thrown for 1,331 yards and 12 touchdowns with just two interceptions while completing 74 percent.
9. Iowa 3-2
The Hawkeyes come out of their bye week with a chance to make a move towards a nicer bowl with upcoming games against two reeling opponents, Wisconsin and then Penn State.
9. (tie) Penn State
The Nittany Lions are in an awful place as a program after two devastating losses, but they're still a talented, senior-laden team. They have a get-right home game against Northwestern before a road game at Iowa.
10. Maryland
A tough loss to the Huskies tarnished a 4-0 start, but the Terps have definely found something in freshman quarterback Malik Washington. The defense held up well against the Huskies and gets another chance to prove that the uptick is real against Raiola and the Cornhuskers at home.
11. Rutgers
The passing attack is real but an 0-2 start in Big Ten play suggests it could be a long year. With a road game in Seattle Friday night and then Oregon at home, the bowl hopes waver.
12. Minnesota
The Gophers got trounced in the Horseshoe but PJ Fleck has his squad on track for another winning season with four straight games ahead against the bulging middle of the conference before a road game to Oregon in November.
13. Michigan State
In the old PAC-12 Jonathan Smith made a living beating one or two teams a year he had no business beating, but he's yet to duplicate that magic in East Lansing.
14. UCLA
Nico Iamaleava engineered a shocking upset over Penn State, and now he has a road game against the Spartans, who rank 16th in the conference in pass defense.
15. Purdue
With three straight losses since leaving the Group of 6 portion of the schedule, the Boilermakers would be in danger of relegation if college football installed it.
16. Wisconsin
The Badgers haven't scored more than 17 points against any opponent outside their 42-10 win over MIddle Tennessee.
17. Northwestern
The Wildcats own a home win over UCLA but it might be their only one in conference unless they beat Purdue on October 18. Their best asset is a pretty good running game that averages 196 yards a game.