After polling SBNation writers I have counted the votes and determined the one, the only, the weekly Big Ten Coaches Power Rankings. Here are the results.
1. Mark Dantonio (Avg. Score: 1.11 LW: #1, 1.50)
Team Record (Big Ten): 71-30 (43-19)
2014 Record (Big Ten): 7-1 (4-0)
Last week: Home vs Michigan (W 35-11)
This week: Bye Week
Despite Michigan's attempt to raise the stakes (haha) in Saturday's game, Michigan State handedly defended the Paul Bunyan Trophy. Now Dantonio gets two weeks to prepare for Ohio State's visit to East Lansing, in a game that will most likely eliminate the loser from both the Big Ten Title race and the race for the playoffs.
I wish I had a higher spot for Dantonio. Rarely is jamming a TD up someone's butt a good thing, but I thought it was a fine message that deserved to be sent. Bonus points for not cursing at a press conference at which he personified "spitting mad".
2. Urban Meyer (Avg. Score: 2.23 LW: #2, 2.00)
Team Record (Big Ten): 30-3 (19-1)
2014 Record (Big Ten): 6-1 (3-0)
Last week: Away vs Penn State (W 31-24)
This week: Home vs Illinois
Urban Meyer and the bucks struggled to maintain their offense in Happy Valley after an explosive first half but in the end Urban Meyer left another game without a Big Ten Regular Season loss. Despite the goose egg in the second half, Ohio State managed to limit the damage and dispatched Penn State in OT. Now the Buckeyes have a home date with Illinois to rebound from a near loss before heading into East Lansing for one of the best matchups of the year.
Andy Ketterson had some comments that certainly wouldn't fly on Land-Grant Holy Land but this is a Michigan blog FER GOSH SAKES:
Urban Meyer would probably be higher if he had a soul or a spark of decency, but he doesn't, so there.
3. Bo Pelini (Avg. Score: 2.78 LW #4, 4.00)
Team Record (Big Ten): 65-25 (20-9)
2014 Record (Big Ten): 7-1 (3-1)
Last week: Home vs Rutgers (W 42-24)
This week: Home vs Purdue
Nebraska dispatched Rutgers easily in Lincoln behind a record setting day by Ameer Abdullah. With Illinois upsetting Minnesota, Nebraska should be the clear favorite to win the West and have a chance to make the playoff. As long as Abdullah continues to run at a Heisman level Nebraska will continue to win, but don't get trapped looking ahead to a date with Wisconsin.
Ketterson had Pelini ranked a little higher than most of the voters:
I've got Bo at #2 for not crapping the linens against Northwestern or Rutgers. High praise indeed, this time of year.
4. Gary Andersen (Avg. Score: 4.11 LW #6, 6.20)
Team Record (Big Ten): 14-6 (8-3)
2014 Record (Big Ten): 5-2 (2-1)
Last week: Home vs Maryland (W 52-7)
This week: Away vs Rutgers
From last week:
Wisconsin finally looked like Wisconsin last week as they shutout Maryland for three quarters and ran all over them. Andersen and the Badgers may be out of the Playoff race but they are definitely alive for a trip to Indianapolis if they can navigate a trip to Rutgers and defend their home turf against the Huskers. The West is very wild indeed.
Andy Ketterson as always had a comment:
Big leap for Gary Anderson. Wisconsin is becoming scary at just the right time.
5. James Franklin (Avg. Score: 6.33 LW #7, 8.20)
Team Record (Big Ten): 4-3 (1-3)
2014 Record (Big Ten): 4-3 (1-3)
Last week: Home vs #13 Ohio State (L 31-24)
This week: Home vs Maryland
From last week:
Franklin got an extra week to prepare for his first meeting with the Buckeyes but Happy Valley could turn Sad quickly if the Nittany offense isn't ready to hang with the big boys again.
Well for two quarters at least it looked like I was right until the Nittany Lions rallied to force OT. Unfortunately, the defense couldn't stop the Buckeyes on two attempts while the offense failed to convert in the second OT. On the bright side though, Penn State seems to have found an end to a funk that lasted about 10 quarters and should have a lot of momentum going into a home date with Maryland next week. Franklin does need to be careful though, bowl eligibility looked like a sure thing at 4-0 but now not so much.
6. Jerry Kill (Avg. Score: 6.78 LW #3, 3.80)
Team Record (Big Ten): 23-23 (11-17)
2014 Record (Big Ten): 6-2 (3-1)
Last week:Away vs Illinois (L 28-24)
This week: Bye Week
From last week:
Now the Bowl Eligible Gophers need to handle business in Illinois if they want to be considered true contenders for the Big Ten West.
Raise your hand if you thought Illinois was going to beat Minnesota this weekend...that's what I thought.
Minnesota, go sit in the corner and think about what you've done.
Jerry Kill goes from the upper echelon to the bottom for simply helming a Minnesota team that decided to start doing November Minnesota things a week early.
I really like you Jerry Kill. You have plan, you're making it work (albeit with some uncomfortable stumbles still), and your personality is perfect for Minnesota fans. Plus you're a heck of a dancer. But please for the love of Goldy make sure your defense plays like the defense we know it can be for a full game again. Halftime adjustments are sweet and all, but playing well from the start is the best way to avoid giving Tim Beckman a boost in this power poll.
7. Kirk Ferentz (Avg. Score: 7.44 LW #9, 9.20)
Team Record (Big Ten): 112-81 (66-57)
2014 Record (Big Ten): 5-2 (2-1)
Last week: Bye Week
This week: Home vs Northwestern
Don't you just love college football? All your team does is not lose and you jump two spots in the rankings.Kirk Ferentz and the Hawkeyes will remain a dark horse in the west until they either play a good team or lose to a bad one.
8. Randy Edsall (Avg. Score: 8.11 LW #5, 5.50)
Team Record (Big Ten): 18-27 (2-2)
2014 Record (Big Ten): 5-3 (2-2)
Last week: Away vs Wisconsin (L 52-7)
This week: Away vs Penn State
From last week:
Wisconsin has been vulnerable this year and offers a good chance for Edsall and Maryland to prove that they are more a contender than a pretender in the Big Ten.
Welp. So much for being a contender in the Big Ten. Much like Rutgers, after a good start Maryland has floundered against the upper echelon of the Big Ten. Now they travel to Happy Valley before hosting the defending conference champs. Fun.
Edsall is now in free fall since Maryland took a MAC style beat down from Wiscy. OK, bad analogy, the MAC probably has a winning record against the B1G the last couple of years.
Andy Ketterson
9. Pat Fitzgerald (Avg. Score: 8.22 LW #10, 9.30)
Team Record (Big Ten): 58-50 (29-39)
2014 Record (Big Ten): 3-4 (2-2)
Last week: Bye Week
This week: Away vs Iowa
From last week:
Much like Ferentz, Fitz got a promotion for doing absolutely nothing, so I guess this poll is based on the same promotional process as the US Government... Political jokes aside, Northwestern will travel to Kinnick Stadium this weekend as they try to keep bowl eligibility hopes alive.
10. Kyle Flood (Avg. Score: 9.78 LW #11, 9.60)
Team Record (Big Ten): 20-14 (1-3)
2014 Record (Big Ten): 5-3 (1-3)
Last week: Away vs #16 Nebraska (L 42-24)
This week: Home vs Wisconsin
At least the next game isn't at Wisconsin, but still this stretch is brutal for Rutgers. Like so many Big Ten teams, Rutgers looked good in the non-con before being beaten black and blue by the old guard of the conference. Maybe they'll make some noise against Wisconsin this weekend, but at the very least they couldn't do worse than Maryland... could they?
Andy Ketterson had some strong words for the Scarlet Knights Coach:
Flood moves way down solely for getting Nova killed in a situation where he should have been running out the clock. So, you've gained about 10 yards the entire quarter, but you're now going to go 99 in just over a minute?? Only the walking brain fart that is Hugh Freeze was dumber last weekend.
11. Darrell Hazell (Avg. Score: 10.00 LW #8, 9.00)
Team Record (Big Ten): 4-16 (1-11)
2014 Record (Big Ten): 3-5 (1-3)
Last week: Bye Week
This week: Away vs #15 Nebraska
Well for every Ferentz and Fitz who rise on a bye, there's one Hazell who falls on a bye. Maybe the voters are simply preparing themselves for the inevitable outcome this weekend in Lincoln... A BOILERMAKER UPSET!!!
Not everyone was down on Hazell this week though, Andy had some positive words for the Boilermaker Coach:
Darrell Hazell moves up just because Purdue plays with a pulse this year. That's fairly astounding.
12. Kevin Wilson (Avg. Score: 11.67 LW #12, 10.40)
Team Record (Big Ten): 13-30 (5-22)
2014 Record (Big Ten): 3-4 (0-3)
Last week: Bye Week
This week: Away vs Michigan
And then there's Indiana who didn't change at all during the bye week. He and the Hoosier's will head into Ann Arbor next weekend in a game that the NCAA assures me somebody must actually win. I'm not entirely sold on that concept myself, but who knows!
The battle in Ann Arbor this weekend decides who gets to be the worse of the B1G East. I would put Wilson at the bottom, but at least he makes sure his players aren't playing with concussions or are driving stakes into opponent's fields before a game where they are 2+ TD underdogs.
13. Tim Beckman (Avg. Score: 12.33 LW #14, 13.50)
Team Record (Big Ten): 10-22 (2-18)
2014 Record (Big Ten): 4-4 (1-3)
Last week: Home vs Minnesota (W 28-24)
This week: Away vs #16 Ohio State
Beckman did get the big win for Illinois, but it still may not save his job.
Beckman moves up a little, but I'm sure it's not for long.
14. Brady Hoke (Avg. Score: 14.00 LW #13, 12.80)
Team Record (Big Ten): 29-18 (16-12)
2014 Record (Big Ten): 3-5 (1-3)
Last week: Away vs #8 Michigan State (L 35-11)
This week: Home vs Indiana
I'm not sure which is a better indication of where this program is; the result of the game or the fact that I cared about Minnesota losing then Michigan? The program has reached the point where it has turned hardcore fans like me apathetic and that is not a good sign. Hoke took 100% of the last place votes and I have a feeling he will be there for as long as stays in Ann Arbor.
Chris H. had some thoughts on StakeGate:
I'm not a Michigan fan and even I'm ready for you to be fired Brady Hoke. "I am aware but not fully aware" is something Tim Brewster would say after his players did something ill-advised.
While Andy Ketterson had some poignant thoughts on Rich Rod hidden behind some great humor:
Brady, Brady, Brady. It's like he's actively looking for new ways to embarrass the Blue these days. I swear, if a story broke that he walked into a Golden Corral, declared the Wolverines could win the SEC, then jumped up on table & pooped on it, I wouldn't even bat an eyelash. Seriously. How was he still employed Monday morning? If RichRod had done anything close to these things, he would have been murdered like Ben Gazarra in Road House.