Big Ten Power Rankings: Where Are Oregon, Ohio State, Penn State Heading into Week 2?

The Oregon Ducks beat the Montana State Bobcats by a final score of 59-13 to kick off their 2025 season. All 18 Big Ten teams were in action.

Here are the Big Ten top 10 Power rankings heading into Week Two.

Oregon Ducks Big Ten Power Rankings Ohio State Buckeyes Penn State Nittany Lions Season Opener Week Two Dan Lanning — Oregon head coach Dan Lanning leads his team during the entry walk as the Oregon Ducks host the Montana State Bobcats on Aug. 30, 2025, at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Oregon. | Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Big Ten Top 10 Power Rankings

No. 1: Ohio State Buckeyes

The Ohio State Buckeyes are the defending national champions and are loaded with elite talent all over the place. Ohio State got their season underway with a low-scoring 14-7 win over the at the time No. 1 ranked Texas Longhorns.

Ohio State’s offense struggled to move the ball with first-year quarterback Julian Sayin, but their defense was nails and led them to the win. The Buckeyes are the clear-cut No. 1 team in the Big Ten right now.

No. 2: Penn State Nittany Lions

Penn State can be counted on every season for at least 10 wins under Coach James Franklin. The Nittany Lions are coming off a season where they fell just short of making the national championship game, losing in the semifinals to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

They bring back quarterback Drew Allar and started their 2025 season with a big blowout win over the Nevada Wolfpack.

No. 3: Oregon Ducks

The Oregon Ducks are the defending Big Ten champions, but Coach Dan Lanning’s team looks a whole lot different. Oregon has a new starting quarterback to go along with a running backs and receivers room that will miss their top weapons from a season ago.

This wasn’t noticeable in their Week One win, but it will be interesting to see if they can reach the level they were at last season as 2025 goes on and they face tougher teams than Montana State.

No. 4: Illinois Fighting Illini

Illinois opened up their season with 52-3 win over Western Illinois. The Illini were one of the pleasant surprises in the Big Ten last season and will look to make a playoff push in 2025.

No. 5: Michigan Wolverines

Michigan’s biggest issue in 2025 was their lack of quarterback play. The Wolverines may have found their guy in freshman phenom Bryce Underwood. Michigan beat New Mexico 34-17.

No. 6: USC Trojans

USC put on a clinic against Missouri State, beating them 73-13. The Trojans problem last season was closing games in the fourth quarter. Will that trend flip this season?

No. 7: Nebraska Cornhuskers

Nebraska snapped their nearly a decade run of not making a bowl game last season. They come into 2025 as a dark horse playoff contender, but didn’t look great against the Cincinnati Bearcats in their opener.

No. 8: Washington Huskies

The Washington Huskies should be one of the most improved teams in the Big Ten this season. In their first game against the Colorado State Rams, they were on the ropes through three quarters before pulling away late.

No. 9: Indiana Hoosiers

This ranking may be low for Hoosiers considering they won 11 games last season and made it into the College Football Playoff. However, they struggled mightily against Old Dominion in their opener. They will have many opportunities to move up this list.

No. 10: Iowa Hawkeyes

Iowa won their first game over Albany 34-7. The biggest question mark as always with Iowa is, is this the year their offense takes a step forward? The country will find out a lot about this team in their next game against the rival Iowa State Cyclones.