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Week 12 B1G QB Rankings: On the biggest stage, Tanner Morgan delivers performance of a lifetime
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This week, perhaps more than any other time this season, quarterback play was critical pretty much across the board. Sure, there have been spatters of games here and there, but nothing quite like what we saw on Saturday.
Four of the five B1G games played this weekend were decided by one possession, providing fans with plenty of entertaining football. And in those close games, the guys under center were the most important. And because of that, we’ve seen a shakeup in the rankings.
Nobody deserves more credit this weekend than Minnesota’s Tanner Morgan, who completed 90 percent of his passes against a really good Penn State defense. It’s one thing to do that against Purdue, it’s another to do it against the fourth-ranked team in the nation. It was an incredible performance for the sophomore.
Two B1G quarterbacks won’t be ranked this week — Indiana’s Michael Penix Jr., who is out for the season with injury, and Purdue’s Aidan O’Connell, making his first career start. O’Connell, however, did have a fantastic outing, especially down the stretch against Northwestern.
Here’s our latest B1G QB rankings as we head into Week 12.
Unranked this week
Michael Penix Jr., Indiana (injured)
Aiden O’Connell, Purdue (first start)
12. Josh Jackson, Maryland
Last week vs. #1 Ohio State: 4-of-9, 35 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT
You have to go back to Oct. 5 to find the last time Jackson completed over 50 percent of his passes, and even then, it’s only happened three times this season. That’s partly due to injuries Jackson has suffered throughout the year, but he’s lacked the kind of consistency Maryland needs at the position, even when healthy. Saturday’s game against Ohio State was more of the same.
Last week: No. 12
11. Johnny Langan, Rutgers
Last week: OFF
Regardless of Rutgers’ record, Langan has looked decent at times, considering he started the year as a third-string quarterback. It’s going to be a brutal three-game stretch to end the year, though, playing Ohio State, Penn State and Michigan State.
Last week: No. 13
10. Aidan Smith, Northwestern
Last week vs. Purdue: 19-of-31, 184 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
For the first time in two months, Northwestern’s offense showed signs of life, and a lot of that had to do with Smith’s play. He accounted for over 200 yards of total offense and put the Wildcats in position to get its first B1G win of the season. This was, by far, the best outing of the year for Smith.
Last week: No. 14
9. Adrian Martinez, Nebraska
Last week: OFF
Bowl eligibility is at stake over the next three weeks. Martinez needs to play much better than he has in the first nine games if the Huskers want a postseason berth.
Last week: No. 10
8. Brian Lewerke, Michigan State
Last week vs. Illinois: 19-of-36, 251 yards, 1 TD, 3 INT
Early against Illinois, Lewerke looked like he’d have no trouble carving up the defense. He was running well and passing well. But as the game continued, his decision-making and ball security got worse. It cost the Spartans a chance to snap a three-game losing streak. In the last four games, Lewerke has six interceptions to just two touchdown passes. Not great.
Last week: No. 8
7. Brandon Peters, Illinois
Last week vs. Michigan State: 22-of-42, 369 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT
It’s fair to say that Peters hasn’t been the most productive quarterback in the B1G this season, not by a wide margin. But when the Illini have needed him to step up, he’s delivered. He pieced together some big drives late in Saturday’s game against Michigan State, including a game-winning touchdown pass with under :10 to play. Peters has proven to be clutch in some big moments all year.
Last week: No. 11
6. Jack Coan, Wisconsin
Last week vs. #18 Iowa: 16-of-25, 173 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
After struggling in losses to Illinois and Ohio State, Coan bounced back in a big way. Although he still had a few issues with turnovers against Iowa, he didn’t allow the previous two games to affect his performance this weekend. The week off probably helped Coan to shake that dreadful day against the Buckeyes and get his team an important win over the Hawkeyes.
Last week: No. 7
5. Nate Stanley, Iowa
Last week vs. #13 Wisconsin: 17-of-28, 208 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT
The knock against Stanley being unable to win the big one continues. While it’s absolutely fair to come to that conclusion, it’s also unfortunate, because he’s been such a solid quarterback for Iowa. He was arguably the better quarterback against Wisconsin on Saturday, but just didn’t make enough plays to get the win. It’s been the story of Iowa’s season.
Last week: No. 5
4. Shea Patterson, Michigan
Last week: OFF
An important stretch with games against Michigan State, Indiana and Ohio State is on the horizon for Patterson and the Wolverines. It’ll be fun to see how he rounds out his college career in this final month.
Last week: No. 4
3. Sean Clifford, Penn State
Last week vs. #17 Minnesota: 23-of-43, 340 yards, 1 TD, 3 INT
For most of the year, Clifford has done an excellent job of protecting the football and finding his playmakers. He really struggled to do that against Minnesota this weekend, throwing three picks in the loss. Clifford is still one of the top quarterbacks in the B1G, completing over 60 percent of his passes with a 3-to-1 touchdown-to-interception rate, but he had to drop after this performance.
Last week: No. 2
2. Tanner Morgan, Minnesota
Last week vs. #4 Penn State: 18-of-20, 339 yards, 3 TD, 0 INT
Another game completing over 90 percent of his passes, just a ridiculous accomplishment. Morgan helped Minnesota notch one of the biggest wins in program history, and is a huge reason why the Gophers are 9-0 and ranked (in the AP) top 10. Morgan is completing 68 percent of his passes, has 21 touchdowns and just four interceptions so far this season. He’s outperformed expectations everyone had this year.
Last week: No. 3
1. Justin Fields, Ohio State
Last week vs. Maryland: 16-of-25, 200 yards, 3 TD, 0 INT
Wouldn’t it be fun to see what Fields could do if he was forced to play a full game with potential consequences. I mean, that’s essentially the only thing missing from this kid’s resumé. We won’t get to see it next week when Ohio State plays Rutgers, but maybe against Penn State or Michigan to end the year.
Last week: No. 1
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB