Big Ten West standings are getting updated with Week 11 results going final, and the race to Indianapolis is just about wrapped up!

Coming into the weekend, Kirk Ferentz’s Iowa program held a slim lead in the West, but a bit of separation has been created. In the afternoon slate, the Hawkeyes shutout Rutgers 22-0 to improve to 5-2 in B1G play.

To open the Saturday slate, Nebraska had a chance to stay in the race at one game behind Iowa while also securing bowl eligibility. Unfortunately, the Huskers committed 5 turnovers and lost the turnover battle while watching Maryland kick a last-second field goal to clinch bowl eligibility for the Terps.

Wisconsin and Minnesota were the other teams right behind the Hawkeyes entering Saturday, but both teams dropped the ball in a big way. The Badgers surrendered 24 first-half points to Northwestern as the Wildcats rolled to the finish line behind Ben Bryant. As for the Gophers, they gave up 49 points to Purdue in a lopsided defeat.

Illinois — by virtue of a walk-off win in overtime — also made things interesting in the West by beating Indiana. Bret Bielema’s squad now needs just one win to secure a bowl game.

As we prepare for the final two weeks of the season, Iowa is the first team to secure a share of the West title. The Hawkeyes can clinch it outright with a win over Illinois or Nebraska to finish the season.

Behind Iowa, there are 5 teams with identical 3-4 records in conference play. That means — for now — chaos is far from settled, but the Hawkeyes are certainly in the driver’s seat.

Here are the complete B1G West standings coming out of Week 11:

  • Iowa — 8-2 overall (5-2 B1G)
  • Northwestern — 5-5 overall (3-4)
  • Nebraska — 5-5 overall (3-4)
  • Wisconsin — 5-5 overall (3-4)
  • Illinois — 5-5 overall (3-4)
  • Minnesota — 5-5 overall (3-4)
  • Purdue — 3-7 overall (2-5)