The Whistlestop Tour: Week 6 of Big Ten Football

The Whistlestop Tour: Week 6 of Big Ten Football

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The Whistlestop Tour: Week 6 of Big Ten Football
WEST LAFAYETTE, IN – OCTOBER 10: Purdue Boilermakers running back Fame Ijeboi (2) runs with the ball during the college football game between the Purdue Boilermakers and Minnesota Golden Gophers on October 10, 2026, at Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, IN. (Photo by Zach Bolinger/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

What was THAT?

The last few years of Purdue football have been dismal, so to see us walk out and lay the absolute smack down on a good Minnesota team fresh off of big wins over Washington and Michigan was stunning. Last week Purdue was in control for most of the game against Illinois. Last night it was absolutely dominant.

I have to say, it was a very pleasant surprise.

I am not sure where the rest of this season will go, but now gets two teams that started in the top 25, but have fallen pretty badly and might be fraudulent. It then gets Maryland, who is busy being Maryland this year. That’s a possible five game win streak, which is absurd.

The losses haven’t been bad, either. Wake Forest, Notre Dame, and UCLA are all probably going to be in today’s top 25 and they have a combined one loss (Wake at home to a really damn good Miami team). Purdue is not as bad as it has been, and might even be somewhat good!

Week 5 Power Rankings

  1. Indiana (Last week: 1, 6-0, 3-0) – Beat Nebraska 20-17 – Champs stay the champs and you’re going to have to stab them in the heart to get them out of there. The Hoosiers have won 22 in a row and a huge game against Ohio State is pending.
  2. Ohio State (Last week: 2, 5-1, 3-0) – Beat Maryland 45-16 – The Buckeyes efficiently processed Maryland without really breaking a sweat. How will they look against an Indiana team that stymied them last year.
  3. UCLA (Last Week: 4, 5-0, 3-0) – Beat Oregon 17-15 – Okay, so clearly at this point if you hire the James Madison coach you’re going to immediately turn your program around. Now the Bruins get the lovely schedule break and have a very favorable finishing slate.
  4. Iowa (Last Week: 10, 5-1, 2-1) – Beat Washington 41-24 – A nice bounceback win for the Hawkeyes all the way out in Seattle. Iowa has now been over 40 points in three of its six games.
  5. Nebraska (Last Week: 5, 5-1, 2-1) – Lost to Indiana 20-17 – The Huskers had Indiana on the ropes but couldn’t close the deal. That would have been a major win for program morale, but instead it is another gutting close loss.
  6. USC (Last Week: 8, 6-1, 3-1) – Beat Penn State 31-23 – The Trojans are settling in to their role as “fringe playoff team” for now, but getting Ohio State and Indiana back-to-back in a few weeks is rough.
  7. Northwestern (Last Week: 6, 4-1, 2-1) – Beat Ball State 45-14 – Only a slight drop for the Wildcats because Ball State might be the worst FBS team in the country. Still a really solid team.
  8. Oregon (Last Week: 3, 3-2, 1-1) – Lost to UCLA 17-15 – After a season with so much hype Oregon is in danger of missing the playoff. They need to watch themselves next against Nebraska.
  9. Purdue (Last Week: 11, 3-3, 2-1) – Beat Minnesota 41-13 – The offense looks lethal and the much-maligned defense has only given up 30 points the last two weeks, 14 of which came after the game was well in hand. It’s still a long time to a bowl game, but as of right now, Purdue is playing really well. Also, by land area, we have the largest swath of land in CFB Imperialism now.
  10. Minnesota (Last Week: 10, 3-2, 2-1) – Lost to Purdue 41-13 – I am sure a lot of Minnesota fans thought 2-1 in the Big Ten was reasonable at this point. The HOW they got there is the surprise.
  11. Wisconsin (Last Week: 9, 4-1, 2-0) – BYE –The Badgers had the week off, but they are technically undefeated in conference play. This week they go to UCLA and we will see how good they really are.
  12. Illinois (Last Week: 16, 3-3, 1-2) – Beat Michigan State 38-37 (OT) – The Illini move up for holding on to get a win in East Lansing after nearly botching it.
  13. Washington (Last Week: 12, 3-3, 0-3) – Lost to Iowa 41-24 – Can Purdue beat the Huskies for a third straight win? Will Purdue be a home favorite over a team that started the year in the top 25? The Huskies have been severely underwhelming, so Purdue needs this one.
  14. Penn State(Last Week: 13, 3-3, 0-3) – Lost to USC 31-23 – It probably has to suck to see James Franklin doing much better this year at VaTech. It has to REALLY suck that they could have hired Bob Chesney, but didn’t
  15. Michigan (Last Week: 13, 3*-2, 0-2) – BYE – And Michigan will remain this low, if not lower, until proven otherwise.
  16. Michigan State(Last Week: 17, 2-4, 0-3) – Illinois 38-37 (OT) – A valiant comeback, but not quite enough to get a win this week. It’s time now for the Pat Fitzgerald Revenge Game!
  17. Maryland (Last Week: 15, 2-3, 0-2) – Lost to Ohio State 45-16 – I saw a BTN commercial last night hyping this week’s Rutgers-Maryland game, which will be relegated to BTN Ocho in a “We’re contractually obligated to broadcast this game” status.
  18. Rutgers (Last Week: 18, 1-4, 0-4) – BYE – Everyone was saved from watching Rutgers football this week.

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