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Week 5 is upon us, which means the meat of the Big Ten schedule is approaching.
There are still a handful of non-conference games to settle, but for the most part this is the week where we take the first deep dive into conference play. Now the results really begin to matter.
Here is what we’re wondering about or looking to see from B1G teams in Week 5, in order of scheduled kickoff time:
Iowa — Will this show play on the road?
Yes, the Hawkeyes have won a road game. But a trip to Ames for a regularly-scheduled beating of Little Brother is not a true road test. The Hawks fly East of the Mississippi for the first time this year for a Friday night showdown with surprisingly unbeaten Maryland.
Certainly, Iowa looks well-equipped for winning away from home with its reliance on creating turnovers and limiting offensive mistakes.
Maryland — Are the Terps ready for the big time?
Despite its first 4-0 start in 5 years, Maryland remained overlooked by pollsters this week. And that’s understandable — wins over Howard, Illinois and Kent State are not going to raise eyebrows. However, Maryland’s season-opening win over West Virginia is starting to look pretty solid following the Mountaineers’ near-miss at then-No. 4 Oklahoma.
If Mike Locksley’s squad takes down the No. 5 Hawkeyes, you can bet they’ll no longer be slept on. There’s little question that Taulia Tagovailoa is the best quarterback Iowa’s stout defense has faced this year, and likewise the Hawkeyes are his biggest challenge.
Michigan — What adjustments will come out of the Rutgers game?
Rutgers dared Michigan to pass all game in Week 4, and the Wolverines never decided to bite.
Michigan’s dedication to the run continued to work in the first half just as it has all season, but Rutgers gained the upper hand in the second half, limiting the Wolverines to a single first down.
Wisconsin’s defense has the ability to do for 60 minutes what Rutgers did for 30. If quarterback Cade McNamara is ever going to be used as a weapon, this will need to be the game where we see it.
Wisconsin — Is Graham Mertz still driving the car?
As discussed here following Wisconsin’s 41-13 loss to Notre Dame, Badgers quarterback Graham Mertz is 0-5 against ranked teams in his career with 2 touchdowns and 15 turnovers.
Bad news. Michigan is ranked 14th.
If Mertz is still the starter, this certainly feels like a prove it or lose it game for the Big Ten’s lowest-rated passer.
Illinois — Can the Illini avoid another Group of 5 loss?
You have to hand it to Illinois AD Josh Whitman — the man really found a way to saddle his first-year football coach with an unnecessarily difficult non-conference schedule.
The Illini have already lost to UTSA, a team I expect to creep into the Top 25 by the end of the season. They’ve traveled to Virginia, where they were spanked. And now Bret Bielema’s bunch has to host a talented Charlotte team that opened the year with a win over Duke.
Illinois should still win this game, but it’s going to be a four-quarter battle. Memo to Josh: try to find at least one opponent where the walk-ons can get some playing time next year.
Minnesota — Will the Gophers rebound or meltdown?
In my previous life, I covered LSU’s disastrous loss to Troy, which was widely expected to be the beginning of the end of Ed Orgeron’s tenure. A week later, the Tigers bounced back with an emotional win at Florida. Two years later, Coach O and the Tigers were national champions.
I don’t think PJ Fleck’s Gophers are going to get quite that much bounce out of their loss to Bowling Green, but if the program is moving in the direction it still appears to be, I would not want to be Purdue this week. Minnesota will have something to prove.
Purdue — Who is quarterback, and who is he throwing to?
Jeff Brohm uncorked a quarterback controversy when he lifted Jack Plummer for Aidan O’Connell in the second half of Purdue’s 13-9 win over Illinois. O’Connell was far from great — he threw interceptions on his first 2 drives — but ultimately led the Boilers on a 94-yard, game-clinching touchdown drive.
The injury-riddled Purdue offense desperately needs receiver David Bell to make his way back from concussion protocol. As the slog against Illinois showed, the offense can’t do much without him.
Ohio State — How short is CJ Stroud’s leash?
Stroud is the Buckeyes presumed starting quarterback going into the Rutgers game after getting a breather against Akron. But backup Kyle McCord played well enough against the Zips to make one wonder whether Ryan Day will cut the cord should Stroud struggle against the Scarlet Knights.
Stroud has 3 interceptions, and Rutgers is second in the B1G with 8 takeaways.
Rutgers — Can a moral victory turn into a real one?
Rutgers showed plenty of heart at Michigan, taking the Wolverines to the wire despite coming into the game as 20-point underdogs. And if not for their own mistakes, the Scarlet Knights should have won.
“Nobody’s here for moral victories,” Greg Schiano said after the game. “We came here to win the game, and that’s what we fully expected to do.”
Ohio State provides an opportunity for the Scarlet Knights to take that next step. But unlike Michigan, OSU has a multi-dimensional offense that won’t be easy to slow down.
Indiana — Will Penix ball out against a Top 10 team?
Indiana’s schedule has been nothing short of insane this September.
Just 5 weeks into the season, the Hoosiers will play their third game against a current Top 10 foe with a trip to Penn State.
This would be as good a time as any for quarterback Michael Penix Jr. to return to the form that made him a star last season. He initially made that leap against the Nittany Lions last fall, when his dramatic dive for the pylon on a 2-point conversion sealed Indiana’s 36-35 overtime win. He struggled in losses to Iowa and Cincinnati this year with 6 interceptions, but rebounded nicely with a 373-yard performance at Western Kentucky in Week 4.
Penn State — Will the Nittany Lions exact their revenge?
Penn State entered last season with high expectations before the loss to IU sent them plunging into a pit of despair. The Nittany Lions went from the preseason Top 10 to 0-5 before all was said and done.
A win over Indiana would put Penn State in exactly the opposite position this year — 5-0.
By all means, Penn State should have won last year’s game handily, outgaining IU 488-211 and maintaining a 20-minute edge in time of possession. Chances are they’ll want to make this one hurt for the Hoosiers.
Michigan State — Can the pass defense zap Zappe?
The Spartans are somewhat vulnerable to the pass, ranking 13th in the B1G with 265.8 yards allowed per game. And this week they’re facing a Group of 5 quarterback who has the ability to put the Spartans secondary under stress.
Western Kentucky’s Bailey Zappe, a grad transfer from FCS Houston Baptist, slings the ball all over the yard. He’s second nationally with an average of 408 yards per game. Even though the Hilltoppers have only played 3 games, he’s sixth in the country with 13 touchdown passes. Measured in passer rating, he’s third behind only Coastal Carolina’s Grayson McCall and Pitt’s Kenny Pickett.
This will be a tougher test than most Michigan State fans may realize.
Northwestern — Who’s the quarterback?
The Wildcats have played 3 quarterbacks in the past 2 weeks with none of them screaming “I should be the starter!”
It would appear that Andrew Marty is the best option given his performance in relief of Hunter Johnson at Duke, but he was sidelined with an injury for the Ohio game. It’s not yet clear if Marty will have the green light at Nebraska.
Ryan Hilinski, who started against the Bobcats, was an extremely modest 12-of-20 for 88 yards.
Nebraska — Turning the corner or falling off a cliff?
The Huskers finally look like they’re on the verge of getting to the place people thought Scott Frost might take them when he was hired — but their special teams keep getting in the way.
Major special teams gaffes cost Nebraska potential road wins at Oklahoma and Michigan State. This may actually be one of the better teams in the Big Ten West, but Frost can’t afford to lose his team after back-to-back heartbreakers.
Alex Hickey is an award-winning writer who has watched Big Ten sports since it was a numerically accurate description of league membership. Alex has covered college football and basketball since 2008, with stops on the McNeese State, LSU and West Virginia beats before being hired as Saturday Tradition's Big Ten columnist in 2021. He is an Illinois native and 2004 Indiana University graduate.