Rick Osentoski-US PRESSWIRE
The Big Ten is loaded with solid players at the quarterback position and many of them performed well in week three. The top two from my power rankings last week remain the same, while some toppled over and seemingly cost their team the game.
Braxton Miller continues to look like the best of the Big Ten, while Andrew Maxwell was on the right track in the first two weeks, but took a fall in the rankings this week and will need to pick up the pieces to return to the top three. Week three also saw many new faces take over at quarterback, some because of poor play and others because of injury.
Take a look at this week’s edition of Big Ten quarterback power rankings.
1. Braxton Miller, Ohio State Last week: 1
Miller finds himself at the top spot for the second straight week and rightfully so. He was 16 for 30 passing with 249 yards and four touchdowns through the air in the win against Cal on Saturday. The uber-talented sophomore is an early season Heisman candidate not just because he can throw, but he can run the ball, too. He had 12 rushes for 75 yards and another touchdown. It’s been a great start for young Braxton and will most likely have a field day on Saturday against a winless UAB team at home.
Season: 48-78, 611 yards, 7 TD, 2 INT
2. Taylor Martinez, Nebraska Last week: 2
Martinez was the season’s first No. 1 in the power rankings, but has since been surpassed by an on-fire Braxton Miller. Martinez helped his cause for top spot consideration in week three with a 13 of 14 passing performance with 180 yards and two touchdowns. He has been extremely accurate this season and has silenced many of his harshest critics who said he can’t throw. He added a rushing touchdown to his season total, giving him two on the season with over 150 yards rushing. He may be the most accurate quarterback in the conference and will improve on his numbers this week against Idaho State.
Season: 56-79, 713 yards, 7 TD, 1 INT
3. Denard Robinson, Michigan Last week: 4
Robinson is one of the most explosive players in all of college football and he is a joy to watch. The top three in my power rankings are all dual-threats, but Denard is the best runner out of them all. Although he may be the least accurate of the three, he makes up for it with his legs, racking up another 100-yard performance and a touchdown in a win over UMass, 63-13. He did have his best passing game of the season, completing 16 of 24 passes for 291 yards and three touchdowns. He may have trouble through the air this week against a tough Notre Dame defense on the road.
Season: 41-75, 699 yards, 6 TD, 4 INT
4. Robert Marve, Purdue Last week: 5
What can we say about Marve? Well, the kid is a gamer. He looked as if his season would be cut short due to an ACL tear, the third of his career. However, he shocked everyone this week by making it known that he intends to come back and play the rest of the season with the serious knee injury. Senior Caleb TerBush filled in for Marve after he went down against Notre Dame in week two and TerBush started in week three and was expected to be the Boilermakers quarterback for the remainder of the year. Marve plans to be back and was taking reps with the offense this week, although head coach Danny Hope doesn’t anticipate the Tampa-native will be back for the conference opener against Northwestern on Sept. 29.
Season: 41-56, 414 yards, 4 TD, 1 INT
5. Andrew Maxwell, Michigan State Last week: 3
Maxwell has heard it all. After a poor performance against rival Notre Dame last week, the junior quarterback has seen his approval rating in East Lansing go from sky-high to rock bottom. Although his stat line wasn’t as bad as some other quarterbacks last week, he seemed to have taken a step back in his progression as a starter. He was 23-45 with 187 yards and the Spartans failed to get into the red zone in the loss to the Fighting Irish Saturday. This could be the wake-up call that Maxwell and the offense need to get going, because if they don’t pick the pieces up and put everything together, it could be a long season for Michigan State. Good confidence boosting game coming up on Saturday against Eastern Michigan.
Season: 65-114, 710 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT
6. Matt McGloin, Penn State Last week: 8
McGloin led the Nittany Lions to their first victory of the season in week three against Navy, 34-7. The senior quarterback had his best game of the season, completing 13 of 21 passes for 231 yards and four touchdowns. Yes, I said four touchdowns. Although he has had accuracy issues all season long dealing with a new offense and a new head coach, he looked solid and continues to move up the power rankings. He will most likely add to his touchdown total of eight when they play host to Temple on Saturday in their last game before Big Ten play.
Season: 59-104, 688 yards, 8 TD, 1 INT
7. Kain Colter, Northwestern Last week: 10
If you’re looking for a quarterback with all the potential in the world that could sneak up on some people, this is your guy. Colter has been a part of a two-quarterback system for most of the season with Trevor Siemian, but is now emerging as the go-to guy. He had a solid game in the win against Boston College last week, passing for 144 yards and two touchdowns on only four incompletions and he also added 66 yards on the ground. He is starting to get more reps as the starter and will take advantage of South Dakota‘s weak defense this week at home.
Season: 37-56, 321 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT
8. Reilly O’Toole, Illinois Last week: NR
I’m putting O’Toole on this list simply because it isn’t certain when Nathan Scheelhaase will be back from injury for the Illini, missing two weeks already. With that said, O’Toole has been a solid replacement for the injured starter and the sophomore showcased his skills Saturday in a win over Charleston Southern, 44-0. He was 26 of 31 passing for 333 yards and five touchdowns. Illinois played stellar defensively and O’Toole’s offensive performance gave the Illini a complete game, something that they have not had all year. It will be interesting to see how they use him once Scheelhaase comes back.
Season: 38-48, 394 yards, 6 TD, 2 INT
9. Cameron Coffman, Indiana Last week: 11
Well, one positive about Coffman is that he is ranked higher in the quarterback power rankings than Indiana is in my team power rankings. The sophomore quarterback has been thrown into action early in the season due to a leg injury suffered by the starter, Tre Roberson. Roberson looked like he was on track for a big year and possibly a rare Indiana bowl appearance, but that was cut short in week two after he went down with a broken leg. Coffman has filled in nicely, although they lost to Ball State in an offensive batter, 41-39 at home. He was 24 of 35 for 251 yards and two touchdowns in the game and it was his first career start. He will face off against Northwestern following a week four bye.
Season: 40-57, 410 yards, 3 TD, 0 INT
10. James Vandenberg, Iowa Last week: 9
Vandenberg has been one of the biggest disappointments outside of Wisconsin‘s Danny O’Brien at quarterback in the Big Ten. He has yet to throw a touchdown this season and has yet to take control of a struggling offense that hasn’t handled a lesser opponent all season. He was 18 of 28 in week three with 228 yards in a close win against Northern Iowa, 27-16. If he doesn’t perk up and put up some solid number’s against a poor Central Michigan defense on Saturday, there might be a quarterback controversy in Iowa City.
Season: 59-103, 593 yards, 0 TD, 2 INT
11. Max Shortell, Minnesota Last week: NR
The sophomore filling in for injured MarQueis Gray has the size and skill-set to be a solid college quarterback. He is 6’6″, 235 pounds and posesses a strong arm. He is on my list for the time being because Gray will be out for at least a month. Although Shortell doesn’t have the speed and running ability that Gray had, he has a rocket arm and can keep the offense afloat while the starter gets healthy. He was 10 of 17 passing for 188 yards and three touchdowns in a win Saturday against Western Michigan, 28-23. He will make his first start this week against Syracuse.
Season: 15-23, 260 yards, 4 TD, 1 INT
12. Joel Stave, Wisconsin Last week: NR
Redshirt freshman Joel Stave is last on my third installment of Big Ten quarterback power rankings by default. The Wisconsin-native is looking like the new starter for Bret Beilema‘s Badgers. Although Bielema has yet to reveal who is starter is for this week’s game against UTEP at home, reports say that Stave has taken first-team reps with the offense all week. He has nice size at 6’5″, 225 pounds and will likely take over for the disappointing Maryland-transfer, Danny O’Brien. Stave came in for O’Brien for limited time last week in a close call against Utah State, throwing just six passes and completing just two for 15 yards. The Badgers survived 16-14, thanks to a last-second missed field goal by Utah State. This will be an interesting development process for the young quarterback.
Season: 2-6, 15 yards, 0 TD, 0 INT
