The Big Ten Conference remains top-heavy, with four conference teams included in the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches top 25 polls on Sunday.
Indiana (9-0, 6-0 B1G) remains one of the country’s best stories in 2024, beginning the year unranked and now jumping to No. 8 in the Associated Press Top 25. The Hoosiers also jumped three spots to No. 10 in the coaches rankings following their 47-10 thumping of Michigan State in East Lansing on Saturday. The Hoosiers joined Ohio State, Penn State and Oregon in the top ten as the other three programs have remained near the top of the polls all season.
Oregon (9-0, 6-0 B1G) is tied for the conference lead with Indiana after a road win at “The Big House” in Ann Arbor, Mich. The Ducks continued their strong season with a 38-17 victory over the Wolverines. The win kept Oregon at No. 1 in both polls – a spot the Ducks have held since overcoming Ohio State in Eugene on Oct. 12, 32-31.
The Buckeyes (7-1, 4-1 B1G) staved off another conference foe Saturday, keeping the Happy Valley crowd at bay in a 20-13 victory at Penn State. Ohio State prevailed over Nebraska 21-17 on Oct. 26, avoiding a critical slip-up prior to the Buckeyes’ top-ten battle. The win Saturday pushed Ohio State back to No. 3 in the AP and coaches polls. The Buckeyes have never been rated lower than No. 5 this season.
Penn State (7-1, 4-1 B1G) fell to Ohio State in a disappointing “Big Noon Kickoff” contest Saturday, dropping another key conference battle during James Franklin’s tenure. The Nittany Lions remained among the country’s elite, however, falling three spots to No. 6 in the AP poll and to No. 7 by the coaches. Penn State does not have a ranked opponent on its remaining schedule with tilts coming against Washington, Purdue, Minnesota and Maryland.
Ohio State and Indiana could have a potential play-in game for the Big Ten Championship game on Nov. 23 in Columbus. The Hoosiers will face unranked Michigan on Saturday in Bloomington before taking their second bye week prior to the contest with the Buckeyes. Ohio State has home games against Purdue, Indiana and Michigan to wrap up its regular season.
The Big Ten’s depth is now in question with the four previously mentioned squads the only programs voted into the top 25 of both major polls. Previously rated No. 24 Illinois fell Saturday to unranked Minnesota 25-17, marking back-to-back losses for Bret Bielema’s Illini. Nebraska had received votes every week of the season prior to the Huskers’ loss at Ohio State but failed to get back to their winning ways with a 27-20 home loss against UCLA.
Washington and Iowa both received votes in the Associated Press poll, while Illinois, Minnesota and Iowa received votes in the coaches poll.
The Southeastern Conference continues to dominate the rankings with eight programs currently rated in the top 25 in each poll. Georgia (No. 2), Texas (No. 5) Tennessee (No. 7 AP, No. 6 Coaches), Alabama (No. 11), LSU (No. 13 AP, No. 14 Coaches), Texas A&M (No. 15 AP, No. 16 Coaches), Ole Miss (No. 16 AP, No. 12 Coaches), Vanderbilt (No. 24 AP, No. 25 Coaches), and Missouri (RV AP, No. 22 Coaches) each received nods in this week’s polls. South Carolina also received votes in both polls.
The first College Football Playoff committee rankings for the 2024 season will be released Tuesday night. The playoff expanded from four teams to twelve over the off-season, with the five major conference winners automatically advancing into the twelve-team playoff. The highest-rated Group of Five conference champion would advance as well, with the remaining six spots earned by the committee’s highest rankings.
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