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The baseball postseason starts today. Who ya got? (Hint: birds on a bat).

• Adjusting on defense will be key for Ohio State's trip to Northwestern. Christian Bryant's father is encouraged by all the support for the injured Buckeyes safety. Urban Meyer won't ever apologize for going into win-the-game mode.
• Northwestern is relishing this week's big-game atmosphere at home. Teammates are confident that Venric Mark will play this week. Pat Fitzgerald answered a reporter's phone.
• Michigan's offensive line is still in flux as it gets ready for Minnesota. Brady Hoke wants to get a second running back some early work versus Minnesota. Jake Ryan could potentially return at Penn State.
• Silas Redd's decision to transfer to USC backfired. Indiana-Penn State is a big game for both sides. Bill Belton has left 2012 behind him.
• Here are five wins to remember from Kirk Ferentz's success against Michigan State. Defense should rule the day in Iowa City.
• Michigan State is mixing and matching on the offensive line. Jamal Lyles is starting to make a difference at tight end for the Spartans.
• Nebraska defensive end Greg McMullen, an Ohio native, is eager for Big Ten play. The Huskers are confident in their quarterback situation despite health questions around Taylor Martinez.
• Minnesota got a commitment from a 2014 linebacker. The Daily Gopher asks some uncomfortable questions about Jerry Kill's team.
• Indiana has a tough road ahead as Big Ten play opens for the Hoosiers. Kevin Wilson went back to the drawing board during the bye week (subscription required).
• High praise is coming Illinois offensive coordinator Bill Cubit's way. Tight ends have taken on a larger role in the Illini offense. Big Ten losing streak? What Big Ten losing streak?
• Wisconsin has almost no margin of error in its quest to repeat as Big Ten champs. Gary Andersen feels good about the health of his team during the bye week and said star running back Melvin Gordon would be ready to play next week. Andersen is trying to learn from last week's loss.
• The bye week did not start off well for Purdue, as two young receivers were arrested on suspicion of theft.

Albert Einstein once said that insanity was doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

Obviously, Einstein didn’t play college football and didn’t account for the amount of chemistry gained by an offensive line from week to week (despite his work with chemistry).

But maybe on the football end of things Einstein had a point.

The Wolverines have been running with the same five up front. And for the most part (and especially of late), the results have been mediocre. The offensive line hasn’t opened enough holes for Fitzgerald Toussaint to really get going. And it hasn’t protected Devin Gardner enough to help him stave off the unnecessary turnovers.

Michigan coach Brady Hoke has talked about moving some guys around on the offensive line -- though left tackle Taylor Lewan and right tackle Michael Schofield would be safe. But with last weekend being the Wolverines’ first bye, it seems probable that if a change were coming, it would happen this weekend against Minnesota.

The Gophers’ defensive line allowed 246 rushing yards to Iowa last weekend in a 23-7 loss. Iowa’s offensive line opened up major holes in the run game as it picked up 13 of its 22 first downs on the run.

The Wolverines’ offensive line hasn’t been nearly that effective.

On Monday the depth chart showed no changes in the starting lineup, but Hoke said that he would know more after Michigan’s practice on Tuesday.

“We've talked a lot and done a lot during the bye week,” he said. “We got two real good work days with Tuesday and Wednesday, and I think really probably after Tuesday, we'll have a little better indication which way we want to go.”

If the Wolverines do decide to make a change, it seems most likely that redshirt sophomore Graham Glasgow would move to center and redshirt sophomore Chris Bryant would fill in at left guard, keeping redshirt freshman Kyle Kalis at right guard.

Hoke also brought up Joey Burzynski, so he could possibly be a guy competing for time, if the coaching staff decides that the group might be better off with Glasgow at center or any other mix that they “wouldn't have a problem making a change if that's what we deem we ought to do.”

But unlike most other position groups, changing up one player or one small piece can have a much larger domino effect in how the chemistry of the line operates. But according to Schofield, that wouldn’t be a problem because offensive line coach Darrell Funk has been moving players in and out of the line up all season.

“The whole season we’ve been shuffling guys in and out, trying to get guys going, like younger freshmen, get them reps,” Schofield said. “We’re just trying to get everyone acclimated.”

And while everyone might be acclimated and the chemistry is important, Hoke said that there are also other factors -- productivity, which this group, no matter how much chemistry it might have, hasn’t achieved.

“That might be more critical than chemistry,” Hoke said. “We've got to put the guys in there that give us the best opportunity to be successful.”

Neither Adam nor I vote in the Associated Press, USA Today coaches' or Harris polls. We do get a lot of customer service satisfaction survey emails, though. And we have a say in the weekly ESPN.com power rankings. Here's what we said this week:

Adam's Top 25

1. Alabama
2. Oregon
3. Clemson
4. Stanford
5. Ohio State
6. Georgia
7. Texas A&M
8. Florida State
9. LSU
10. Louisville
11. Oklahoma
12. UCLA
13. South Carolina
14. Washington
15. Miami
16. Baylor
17. Northwestern
18. Florida
19. Arizona State
20. Wisconsin
21. Michigan
22. Oklahoma State
23. Fresno State
24. Maryland
25. Mississippi

Brian's Top 25

1. Alabama
2. Clemson
3. Oregon
4. Ohio State
5. Stanford
6. Georgia
7. Florida State
8. Texas A&M
9. LSU
10. Louisville
11. Miami
12. Oklahoma
13. UCLA
14. South Carolina
15. Washington
16. Northwestern
17. Baylor
18. Florida
19. Arizona State
20. Wisconsin
21. Fresno State
22. Michigan
23. Ole Miss
24. Texas Tech
25. Northern Illinois

Ohio State fans, direct your anger to Mr. Rittenberg for ranking you No. 5. In all seriousness, the Buckeyes probably will have to make a big statement this week and have teams ahead of them falter to get up to the No. 2 spot. First order of business: Keep winning. ... Big Ten teams are in mostly the same place on both our ballots. Neither of us punished Wisconsin much for losing at Ohio State. ... I bumped down Michigan another notch after UConn got hammered 41-12 by Buffalo. Not a good development for the Wolverines' image. ... Adam ranks future Big Ten member Maryland for the first time, while I welcomed in Northern Illinois, which is 2-0 vs. Big Ten teams this season.

What does your top 25 look like this week?

Want to talk about last weekend's games or the big ones coming up this Saturday? Well, come on by my Big Ten Monday chat, and we'll discuss all of it.

The chat kicks off in less than an hour, at 3 p.m. ET. Here's the link. See you there.

The Big Ten and its television partners have finalized kickoff times and TV plans for the games of Week 7 (Oct. 12).

Here they are:

Noon ET

• Indiana at Michigan State, ESPN2
• Nebraska at Purdue, Big Ten Network

3:30 p.m. ET

• Northwestern at Wisconsin, ABC regional (ESPN or ESPN2 in outer markets)

5 p.m. ET

• Michigan at Penn State, ESPN

Open weeks: Ohio State, Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota

Linking back and linking forward ...

• Tom Dienhart's Big Ten lessons from Week 5 and latest power rankings.
• Ohio State is the king of the Big Ten after its win against Wisconsin. Some good observations on Ohio State's big win. It doesn't appear that Buckeyes safety Christian Bryant can receive a medial redshirt. Braxton's back in a big way.
• Wisconsin's path back to Indianapolis for the league title game has narrowed. The open week gives the Badgers a much-needed chance to regroup.
• It's too bad the annual Ohio State-Wisconsin series will end, Bob Hunter writes.
• Iowa might be a better team than it realizes, Mike Hlas writes, and it's certainly better than advertised, Andrew Logue writes. Hawkeyes QB Jake Rudock puts the pieces together.
• Minnesota coach Jerry Kill defends his decision to stick with Philip Nelson at quarterback. Third down isn't the money down for Minnesota these days. The Gophers' lack of Big Ten experience showed up Saturday.
• The national spotlight will be on Northwestern this week. The Wildcats need to win a shootout to beat the Buckeyes. Former Northwestern coach Gary Barnett will be on hand for the game.
• Lessons from Illinois' dominant win against Miami (Ohio). Illinois shouldn't take Saturday's strong performance for granted.
• Nebraska simply must win and advance during October to set up a pivotal November, Sam McKewon writes. Huskers WR Kenny Bell deals with adversity on and off the field this fall. A new movie tells the story of Nebraska's passionate fan base.
• Purdue's mistakes are piling up with the losses this season. It will be a long climb for Darrell Hazell's Boilers. The grades for Purdue's latest setback not surprisingly aren't good. Boilers freshman QB Danny Etling shows promise in his debut but is far from satisfied.
• Mark Snyder explores whether Michigan's offense or defense is the stronger unit. The Wolverines fall in the AP poll despite not playing.
• Graham Couch explains why MSU is more than a basketball school. Despite continued issues on offense, Michigan State is improving this year. More on why Alabama pulled out of the series with MSU and other schedule notes.
• Penn State recruit Daquan Worley continues to turn heads this season. Grading the Lions after nonleague play. A look at where Penn State's transfers are now. It's a new ball game for PSU coach Bill O'Brien.
• Indiana added 19 walk-ons over the weekend.

How much heartburn can one team and one fan base take?

That's one of the lingering questions from Week 5 for Wisconsin, which dropped another close game Saturday in a 31-24 loss to Ohio State. That's 10 defeats by seven points or less since the start of 2011 for the Badgers, who have done this so much that we're starting to see reruns.

Prime example: Ohio State quarterback Braxton Miller's 40-yard touchdown pass to Corey Brown with one second to go in the first half covered the same distance as Miller's game-winning heave in the last half Wisconsin played in the Horseshoe, back in 2011. This time, safety Dezmen Southward was late in providing help after cornerback Peniel Jean peeled off, making an inexcusable mistake by letting a receiver get free in the end zone on the half's final snap.

“It’s basically a play that shouldn’t ever happen,” Southward said afterward.

The Badgers also had two potential Ohio State turnovers negated by penalties, one on a face-mask call that didn't look like a face-mask violation on replay and the other on an illegal punt formation. Kicker Kyle French also missed a 32-yard field goal -- the same distance he was being set up for at Arizona State.

The late-game problems can't really be blamed on the head coach's late-game management. Gary Andersen had his team in position to win at Arizona State until the officials botched the final seconds. On Saturday, he elected to have his team punt on fourth-and-1 from its own 17 with under seven minutes left, while trailing by 14 points. At the time, that looked like a potential mistake. But Wisconsin got the ball right back and scored a touchdown with 2:05 left.

The Badgers then tried a pooch onside kick that Bradley Roby had to knock out of bounds. In retrospect, with all three timeouts remaining, Andersen could have just kicked off and potentially gotten better field position after his defense held for a three-and-out. But it was a totally understandable call to try to get the ball back on the road.

Meanwhile, every decision seems to continue working out for Urban Meyer in his 17-game winning streak. I thought Meyer was a little more conservative than normal on Saturday night. It was very surprising, for instance, to see him not go for it on fourth and 2 from the Wisconsin 45 in the first half, instead trying the lame "Let's-try-to-draw-them-offside" technique before punting. Ohio State also played it safe in the fourth quarter instead of going for the kill shot. Miller's wounded duck pass before the touchdown at the end of the half should have been picked off.

But the Buckeyes -- who scored only seven points in the second half -- again came away unscathed. They have become the anti-Wisconsin, having won six games by seven or fewer points since the start of last season.

Badgers fans have to wonder when their heartburn will finally be soothed.

Take that and rewind it back …

Team of the week: Ohio State. The Buckeyes got their first major challenge of the season and pulled through in a tough game against Wisconsin. The environment in the Horseshoe was electric from start to finish and included a visit from LeBron James and this amazing halftime show by TBDBITL (try not to be impressed by the formation around the 4:30 mark). Seventeen in a row and counting.

Worst hangover: Minnesota. The Gophers thought they had made progress in getting ready for the rigors of Big Ten play and that this year's 4-0 start meant more than last year's. Instead, they got manhandled by Iowa in game No. 5 just like last season, leading to questions about what really has changed for this program.

Big Man on Campus (offense): We usually don't single out players from teams who lost for this honor, but the best effort we saw this past weekend came from Wisconsin receiver Jared Abbrederis. Ohio State thought it could slow down the Badgers' only notable receiving threat by putting All-America cornerback Roby on him. Not close. Abbrederis finished with 10 catches for 207 yards and a touchdown. His Twitter handle is @abbrecadabra, and how he keeps getting so open might just be magic.

Big Man on Campus (defense): Iowa linebacker James Morris had an outstanding game against Minnesota, recording eight tackles, a sack and an interception and leading the defensive effort that limited the Gophers to just 165 total yards. "He plays the way I expect him to,” Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said. “He’s a complete football player. Nobody prepares any harder, works any harder. He does things you would hope anybody would do. And he backs it up every Saturday." Ohio State's Ryan Shazier and Wisconsin's Chris Borland also had standout games, but what else is new in this star-studded linebacker league?

Big Man on Campus (special teams): Ohio State punter Cameron Johnston placed all six of his punts inside the Wisconsin 20-yard line and five of those inside the 10, helping the Buckeyes maintain great field position most of the night. The Badgers managed just three return yards on punts. "Our punt team is solid, and that's probably the star of our special teams," Meyer said.

Fun with numbers (via ESPN Stats & Info): Ohio State’s Miller was 9-for-11 for 107 yards and had three of his four passing touchdowns off play-action Saturday. He has completed more passes off run fakes against Wisconsin (17) in his career than any other opponent. … Meanwhile, Badgers QB Joel Stave threw the ball 25 times without using play-action and completed just 13. It was only the third game in the last four seasons that a Wisconsin quarterback attempted at least 25 passes without a run fake; the Badgers have lost all three of them. … Illinois' Nathan Scheelhaase has completed 21 passes that have gone for at least 20 yards. That's tops in the Big Ten and tied for eighth in the nation. … Remember how frustrating it was to watch Iowa continually come up short of the sticks on third down last season? That's not the case this year for the improved Hawkeyes. They're converting on 52.5 percent of their third-down tries, good for 13th best in the country. … Northwestern has scored 83 points off turnovers in four games, the most in the nation. … Purdue's opponents have committed just 12 penalties in five games, second fewest of any team in the FBS. The Boilers' penalty margin is the worst in the country, as they have committed 30 themselves for a minus-18 margin.

Next weekend the Wolverines begin their hunt for the Big Ten title. Here’s a quick look ahead at what Michigan will face through the rest of the season:

Minnesota | Oct. 5

Big Ten rank:
Total offense: No. 10
Total defense: No. 7


Michigan will open its Big Ten season at home with the Gophers and although Minnesota has started its season 4-1, those numbers don’t tell the whole story. The Gophers are two wins away from being bowl eligible despite the fact that QB Philip Nelsonhas thrown just two touchdowns. What Nelson has thrown is interceptions (four of them) and the run game hasn’t really been established yet, but the defensive line has been relatively effective (with the exception of the Iowa game) and could wreak havoc on Michigan if it doesn’t figure out its interior offensive line problems.

Penn State | Oct. 12

Big Ten rank:
Total offense: No. 7
Total defense: No. 4


Freshman quarterback Christian Hackenberg has already thrown for more than 1,000 yards this season. He has been helped out in the air by junior wide receiver Allen Robinson, who’s arguably the best receiver in the Big Ten. In fact, 12 different Nittany Lions have caught passes this season so the Michigan secondary will have its hands full, especially if caught playing soft coverage like it has early this season.

Indiana | Oct. 19

Big Ten rank:
Total offense: No. 1
Total defense: No. 11

Facing Indiana and Michigan State will be two interesting games for the Wolverines to have back to back, because the IU offense should test the Michigan defense far more than its defense will test the Michigan offense. Then, the exact opposite will be true when Michigan travels to East Lansing. Like Penn State, the Hoosiers will look to really attack the Wolverines downfield, taking their shots when they can. Indiana is eighth in the nation in passing yards per game (348.5), which has resulted in scoring 44.5 points per game. Now, their defense will be another subject all together, but this could be a very high scoring game depending on how the Wolverine defense responds.

Michigan State | Nov. 2

Big Ten rank:
Total offense: No. 11
Total defense: No. 1

Who knows whether Michigan State will still have a quarterback controversy when November rolls around, but one thing is for sure: its defense will be stout. The Spartans are giving up just 13.3 points per game, good enough for 10th in the country. Their defense -- barring injuries -- should continue to progress through the next month, and if their offense picks up and gains steam, this could be a really tough game for the Wolverines, especially because it’s on the road.

Nebraska | Nov. 9

Big Ten rank:
Total offense: No. 4
Total defense: No. 12


Nebraska’s defense is kind of a mess right now. Any team that allows 38 uncontested points to anyone is in a bad place defensively (and offensively, too). Taylor Martinez’s turf toe will likely be cleared up at this point, so we’ll see if he comes back with a reinvigorated sense of urgency that spills over to the rest of his offense. This game was a big turning point in last year’s season (lost Denard Robinson, saw and said good-bye to Russell Bellomy), this year it could be the same since it’s in a string of Legends Division matchups.

Northwestern | Nov. 16

Big Ten rank:
Total offense: No. 5
Total defense: No. 9

Hello, Pat Fitzgerald. We’ll know quite a bit more about his team after this weekend’s matchup with Ohio State, but this will likely be a close game when the Wolverines come to Evanston, Illinois. The two-quarterback system works well for the Wildcats and last season Trevor Siemian and Kain Colter accounted for three touchdowns and 183 yards in the air, while Colter and running back Venric Mark picked up 186 yards and one touchdown on the ground. Their offense has looked a bit different without Mark this season but he should be back by the time this game happens so the Michigan defense will be truly tested. Defensively the Wildcats have quite a bit to shore up -- they haven’t been good on third down or in the red zone (which are places where Devin Gardner has excelled). It’s a long way off, but this could be a pivotal game in the Legends race.

Iowa | Nov. 23

Big Ten rank:
Total offense: No. 8
Total defense: No. 2

Sophomore quarterback Jake Rudock has looked more and more comfortable and the Iowa defense seems to be picking up steam as well. They have three linebackers on the Butkus Award watch list and the defense has given up just 79.2 rushing yards and 186.3 passing yards per game. This could be another big game in the Legends Division as it’s a road game -- several players have said over the years that one of the most difficult Big Ten stadiums to play in is Kinnick Stadium. In the Wolverines’ last four trips there, dating to 2003, they’re 1-3. And of late, the road hasn’t really been Michigan’s friend, so this could be yet another big test.

Ohio State | Nov. 30

Big Ten rank:
Total offense: No. 3
Total defense: No. 5

This will be huge no matter what. Generally, you can put aside the statistics and records and anything else that might matter going into any other game, and just wait for the 60 minutes to play out. Last season the Buckeyes shut out Michigan in the second half and forced the Wolverines into four turnovers. Like every year, feel free to look forward to the last Saturday in November. This will be a game.

The first truly significant Big Ten game of 2013 is in the books, and Ohio State, thanks to the return of quarterback Braxton Miller and a stout run defense, found a way to prevail. As a reward, the Buckeyes remain atop the Big Ten power rankings heading into another showdown this week at Northwestern.

It's not much consolation to Wisconsin or its fans, but there might not be a better two-loss team in the FBS than the Badgers, who displayed a lot of fight in Columbus even after top running back Melvin Gordon injured his knee. We've been more impressed with Wisconsin than 4-0 Michigan or 3-1 Nebraska, so we're keeping the Badgers in the No. 3 hole for now.

Iowa makes a major move up the rankings after its impressive win in Minneapolis, while the Gophers take a tumble.

Half of the Big Ten spent Saturday on the couch, so there wasn't much movement in the power rankings.

One last look at last week's rankings.

And away we go ...

1. Ohio State (5-0, 1-0 Big Ten; last week: 1): Welcome back, Mr. Miller. The Ohio State quarterback returned to the field with a bang Saturday night, firing four touchdown passes and completing 17 of 25. Carlos Hyde also seemingly has reclaimed his place atop the running back depth chart, and Ohio State's young defense took a step against Wisconsin's power run game Saturday night. The Buckeyes now must figure out how to replace standout safety Christian Bryant as they face another test this week at Northwestern.

2. Northwestern (4-0, last week: 2): After two uninspiring performances against weak competition, Northwestern knows it must elevate its play significantly against Ohio State in what will be the most anticipated game of the Pat Fitzgerald era. Expect running back Venric Mark to return against the Buckeyes, as Northwestern will need its zone-read game to be in top form to keep pace with Ohio State on the scoreboard.

3. Wisconsin (3-2, 1-1; last week: 3): Credit the Badgers for a strong effort in Columbus despite a shaky start, a disastrous end to the first half and the loss of running back Melvin Gordon to a knee injury. But Wisconsin once again came up just short on the road. Despite another single-digit loss, Wisconsin can take away some positives from Columbus, namely the play of quarterback Joel Stave and wide receiver Jared Abbrederis. But the Badgers, who are off this week, will need some help if they want to return to Indianapolis.

4. Michigan (4-0, last week: 4): No team needed the off week more than Michigan, which had plenty to clean up following near disasters against Akron and Connecticut. Quarterback Devin Gardner's decision-making skills will be under the microscope against Minnesota, and the Wolverines' line play also will be in the spotlight against a Gophers team that has improved up front.

5. Nebraska (3-1, last week: 5): No one wants to hear Bo Pelini talk about execution anymore. It's time for Nebraska's defense to show some improvement, or it will be a long Big Ten season in Lincoln. After an open week, the Blackshirts will face a good test from Nathan Scheelhaase and an Illinois offense that doesn't resemble the unit we saw last season. Quarterback Taylor Martinez's health will be an interesting story line this week.

6: Iowa (4-1, 1-0; last week: 9): We knew Iowa was an improved team, but we needed a little more validation. Kirk Ferentz's crew provided it Saturday with a dominant performance against Minnesota to ruin its rival's homecoming. The offense is significantly better behind quarterback Jake Rudock and running back Mark Weisman, and an opportunistic defense shut down Minnesota's run game and controlled the line of scrimmage. Iowa is minutes away from being undefeated and returns home to play Michigan State with a bunch of momentum.

7. Michigan State (3-1, last week: 7): The Spartans had a familiar to-do list during their open week -- fix the offense. Coach Mark Dantonio is sticking with Connor Cook as his starting quarterback, but Dantonio clearly wants to see more plays made from the signal-caller. Michigan State's offensive line can build off its performance at Notre Dame, but the Spartans need some chunk plays.

8. Penn State (3-1, last week: 8): Bill O'Brien once again has the offense moving, as the Nittany Lions' run game looks strong and freshman quarterback Christian Hackenberg is performing beyond his years. The bigger questions remain on defense, as Penn State rebounded against a woeful Kent State offense but must show it can contain more explosive attacks. The good news is we'll find out as Penn State opens Big Ten play against four strong offenses, starting this week at Indiana.

9. Illinois (3-1, last week: 10): Here come the Illini. The biggest surprise in the Big Ten completed nonleague play at 3-1 and heads to Nebraska with a lot of confidence, particularly on offense. Scheelhaase takes aim at a vulnerable Huskers defense after firing five first-half touchdown passes and finishing with 278 pass yards on 19-of-24. The big question now is, can he follow it up against a major-conference team after struggling against Washington? Illinois already has exceeded last year's wins total.

10. Minnesota (4-1, last week: 6): The Gophers take a tumble after a horrendous performance on homecoming against Iowa. It seems like Minnesota was a product of a weak nonleague schedule, as some of the small problems that surfaced against weaker competition became big problems against Iowa, which dominated the Gophers at the line of scrimmage. Quarterback Philip Nelson struggled mightily and didn't get much help from the run game. After Mitch Leidner provided a spark in Week 4, it will be interesting to see what Jerry Kill does at quarterback going forward.

11. Indiana (2-2, last week: 11): A regrouping week was in order for Indiana after nearly nothing went right against Missouri. Quarterback Nate Sudfeld must rebound from his first real brush with adversity (three interceptions). Indiana's defense faces another balanced attack in Penn State after failing to stop Missouri on the ground or through the air. After sluggish starts in both of its losses, IU needs a strong first quarter against the Lions.

12. Purdue (1-4, 0-1; last week: 12): The misery continues for Darrell Hazell's crew, but there's a reason to watch the Boilers for the rest of the season. The Danny Etling era is underway, as Hazell opted to burn the quarterback's redshirt after Rob Henry continued to struggle. Etling showed some promise in Purdue's loss to Northern Illinois, as the offense racked up 524 yards. An open week comes at a good time for the beleaguered Boilers and their young quarterback.

As most of the Big Ten watched Week 5 from the couch -- six teams had open weeks -- there wasn't too much movement in the polls.

Two of the Big Ten's ranked teams squared off in Columbus, and Ohio State prevailed by a touchdown, holding steady at No. 4 and No. 3, respectively, in the AP and coaches' polls.

Wisconsin paid a price for its second setback of the young season, falling out of both polls. We happen to think the Badgers are better than several ranked one-loss teams out there, but the voters look for reasons to drop teams, and Wisconsin's losses provide an out.

Northwestern moves up a spot in both polls, rising to No. 16 in the AP and No. 15 in the coaches', heading into this week's home showdown against Ohio State. Michigan moves up in the coaches' but drops in the AP, thanks to Florida's improved play, while Nebraska returns to the coaches' poll at No. 25.

Iowa's four-game win streak has earned the Hawkeyes a vote in the coaches' poll, while the voters aren't quite as sold on Illinois' surprising start.

Future Big Ten member Maryland cracks the AP Poll at No. 25, while Rutgers is receiving votes in both polls.

Here's how the league stacks up in both major polls:

AP

No. 4 Ohio State
No. 16 Northwestern
No. 19 Michigan

Receiving votes: Wisconsin (28th), Nebraska (29th), Michigan State (33rd)

Coaches

No. 3 Ohio State
No. 15 Northwestern
No. 17 Michigan
No. 25 Nebraska

Receiving votes: Wisconsin (28th), Michigan State (33rd), Iowa (T-36th)