The entire Big Ten seems to be in a holding pattern.

Even after a week which saw five conference games and just three out of the conference, there is little clarity.

That is to be expected this early, but mostly it’s because we have yet to have the first huge clash among B1G East Division powers.

With all apologies to Wisconsin-Iowa this past weekend, the Ohio State at Penn State game is going to be the first B1G game this season which truly establishes a pecking order. The East has proven to be better than the West Division so whoever wins the OSU-PSU clash at Happy Valley will have a tremendous advantage in the East, and possibly occupy the best position for a College Football Playoff berth.

Iowa lost a chance to establish itself as the West Division favorite, with the Badgers rallying back to win late at Iowa City. Wisconsin now has to be a heavy favorite to claim the division and a trip to Indianapolis for December’s B1G Championship Game.

All else pretty much went as expected so little changed in this week’s projections:

Bowl Game Matchup
CFP Semi (Cotton) Penn State vs. Georgia
Rose Bowl Ohio State vs. Washington
Citrus Bowl Michigan vs. Auburn
Outback Bowl Wisconsin vs. Kentucky
Holiday Bowl Michigan State vs. Utah
TaxSlayer Bowl Iowa vs. South Carolina
Pinstripe Bowl Maryland vs. Syracuse
Heart of Dallas Bowl Minnesota vs. North Texas
Quick Lane Bowl Northwestern vs. Virginia
San Francisco Bowl Indiana vs. USC