Big Ten power rankings after week 7: Iowa and Michigan State pick up big wins

The final play of the Michigan State-Michigan game is one of the craziest final plays that college football has ever seen. It will be remembered alongside Cal and Stanford where Cal lateraled the ball five times and ran through the band members en route to a game-winning touchdown. It will be remembered alongside Doug Flutie's "Hail Mary" that beat Miami. It will be remembered alongside the "Kick-Six" where Auburn took Alabama's missed field goal all the way back to the house in the Iron Bowl.

No. 12 Michigan controlled the game from start until the last 10 seconds against No. 7 Michigan State. It looked like "Big Brother" was about to reassert their dominance after dropping the last six out of seven against the Spartans. Now Michigan has two losses and will be left out of the College Football Playoff unless they can run the table and dominate Ohio State.

Big Ten East

What a week! The Michigan State-Michigan game was a classic. J.T. Barrett seems to be unstoppable when he comes into the game for Ohio State and Rutgers pulled off a miraculous fourth-quarter comeback.

1) #1 Ohio State (7-0, 3-0)

Ohio State's defense showed up last week but the real story of the game was J.T. Barrett. He came in twice in the first half when Ohio State was in the red zone. He scored both times. He then gashed the Nittany Lions for big runs and threw two touchdown passes, including a Tim Tebow-esque jump touchdown pass, in the fourth quarter to put the game away.

Should Cardale Jones still be the starter when Barrett continues to come off the bench and break big plays? The prevailing school of thought may be that if it ain't broke, don't fix it. The Buckeyes head to Jersey this week. The Ohio State secondary will be tested by Leonte Carroo if he is close to 100 percent.

Up Next: At Rutgers (3-3, 1-2)

2) #7 Michigan State (7-0, 3-0)

Mark Dantonio usually comes up on the right side of crazy finishes. The Spartans beat Notre Dame with a fake field goal in overtime in 2010. They beat Russell Wilson and the Badgers on a Hail Mary on the last play of the game in 2011. Now they stunned rival Michigan in the Big House in front of 110,000 people on one of the flukiest plays I have ever seen. There were at least three points in that sequence that Michigan could have possibly salvaged a win. Once again, it went Dantonio's way.

Connor Cook moved the ball well against the nation's top-ranked defense and is now 30-3 as a starter for Michigan State. The Spartans return to East Lansing to take on the reeling yet high-scoring Indiana Hoosiers.

Up Next: Indiana (4-3, 0-3) at home

3) #15 Michigan (5-2, 2-1)

Two plays have really changed Michigan's season. Rudock's fourth quarter pick-six against Utah and the punt attempt gone horribly awry against Michigan State. Michigan has lost their two games to two top-10 teams by a combined 11 points. Utah and Michigan State both have yet to lose this season.

Michigan has to put this agonizing loss behind them and focus on the task at hand. That task will be shutting down a Minnesota team that has not performed very well on offense this season.

The Wolverines have the bye week to stew in their own juices and get ready for the Golden Gophers.

Up Next: Bye

4) Penn State (5-2, 2-1)

Penn State got their wake-up call after Ohio State beat them by 28. Penn State hadn't played away from home in awhile and now they head to Baltimore where they will take on Maryland in what is fast becoming a budding rivalry game.

Hackenberg was sacked five times by the Buckeyes and seemed to injure his back during the game. His health will be an important factor for the Nittany Lions. Expect to see Saquon Barkley get close to 30 carries this week. He has been averaging an insane 8.3 yards per carry this season.

Up Next: at Maryland (2-4, 0-2) (in Baltimore)

5) Rutgers (3-3, 1-2)

The Scarlet Knights matched their comeback from last year's regular season finale against Maryland, coming back from a 25 point deficit to shock the Hoosiers in Bloomington. Leonte Carroo continues to dominate. It was an incredible performance considering how badly they were losing and the agonizing fashion that they lost their game last week.

This team pushed top-10 Michigan State to the brink. How will they fare against the top-ranked Buckeyes?

Up Next: #1 Ohio State (7-0, 3-0) at home

6) Indiana (4-3, 0-3)

The Hoosiers put 52 points on Rutgers over three quarters. The Scarlet Knights then ran off 22 points in the fourth quarter, capped off by a game-winning field goal as time expired.

It was a brutal loss, on par with Maryland's meltdown against Rutgers last season. Nate Sudfeld is back for the Hoosiers and looked good last week but Indiana is definitely missing the absence of their starting tailback. It doesn't get easier for Indiana as they head to East Lansing to take on the top-10 and undefeated Michigan State Spartans.

Up Next: at #7 Michigan State (7-0, 3-0)

7) Maryland (2-4, 1-2)

Mike Locksley has his first game as interim head coach and Maryland has had a week to prepare for the Nittany Lions. Maryland shocked Penn State in State College last year on a late field goal by Brad Craddock. Will this year's game also be a defensive battle?

Maryland and Penn State are both great at getting after the quarterback. Will Perry Hills be able to avoid pressure and break big plays like he did in Columbus?

Up Next: Penn State (5-2, 2-1) at home (in Baltimore)

Big Ten West

Iowa took control of the Big Ten West by dominating Northwestern, 40-10. They did it with their star running back injured and they did it on the road. No one looks capable of knocking off the Hawkeyes the rest of the way.

1) #12 Iowa (7-0, 3-0)

Their road triumph shows just how good this team is on both sides of the ball. Akrum Wadley ran for over 200 yards and four touchdowns in place of Jordan Canzeri. Beathard didn't make many mistakes and Iowa shut out Northwestern in the second half.

The Hawkeyes control their own destiny in the Big Ten West and they have a bye week before facing Maryland, Indiana, Minnesota, Purdue and Nebraska. Three of those are at home and none of them are ranked.

Up Next: Bye

2) Wisconsin (5-2, 2-1)

The Badgers smothered Purdue but will probably have more trouble against Wes Lunt and Illinois on the road. Wisconsin needs a win and help to get back to Indianapolis. Joel Stave will have to be on his game because the Illinois defense had an extra week to get ready for him.

Up Next: at Illinois (4-2, 1-1)

3) Northwestern (5-2, 1-2)

Northwestern is quickly spiraling downwards. They head to Lincoln to take on a hungry Nebraska team that is tired of losing in heartbreaking fashion. The Wildcats cannot afford another pedestrian game from Clayton Thorson.

Up Next: at Nebraska (3-4, 1-2)

4) Illinois (4-2, 1-1)

Illinois had a bye week last week. Now they host the Badgers. A win gives them a chance to challenge Iowa for the Big Ten West title. A loss means they are effectively out of the race.

Up Next: Wisconsin (5-2, 2-1) at home

5) Nebraska (3-4, 1-2)

Mike Riley picked up his first Big Ten win over Minnesota. Can they get win number two against a Northwestern team that is in a bit of a daze since they started 5-0?

Up Next: Northwestern (5-2, 1-2) at home

6) Minnesota (4-3, 1-2)

Like the Wolverines, the Golden Gophers have a week to contemplate their cringe-inducing loss. Then Michigan comes to town.

Up Next: Bye

7) Purdue (1-6, 0-3)

Purdue looked very bad in Camp Randall last week. The Boilermakers have a bye week and then will host Nebraska.

Up Next: Bye