By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Imagine predicting before the season that UCLA would be the last undefeated football team standing in the Big Ten.

Nobody would have taken you seriously, but here we are as Bob Chesney continues to do a Rami Malek-like impersonation of Curt Cignetti in how Chesney has gone from being the head coach at James Madison to having immediate success as a Big Ten head coach.

Chesney certainly has a long way to go to match what Cignetti has accomplished at Indiana, which is without question the greatest rebuild in the history of college football.

Cignetti resigned as the James Madison head coach after the 2023 season to take the Indiana job, and at the time, it didn’t draw much attention.

But Cignetti has since made Indiana elite in stunning fashion, winning a national title last season, and 22 straight games, a streak that just ended with last Saturday’s loss to Ohio State.

Chesney has his own streak going with UCLA improving to 6-0 with Saturday’s 17-7 victory over Wisconsin.

The Bruins also continue to climb in my power rankings, while there is a new basement dweller from the East Coast.

Injuries are certainly a factor with Ohio State and UCLA both currently without their starting quarterback. So a case could be made for moving them both down a spot or two in the rankings.

But for now, both teams will get the benefit of the doubt.

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1. Ohio State; 4-0, 6-1 – Ryan Day was in danger against Indiana of losing two games before January, which is grounds for dismissal in Columbus.

2. Indiana; 3-1, 6-1 – Curt Cignetti would look at this ranking and probably say is there a reason I should care about this ranking, this website, or this hack from Iowa City?

3. UCLA; 4-0, 6-0 – Thanks to being undefeated, UCLA football has climbed to No. 28 on the list of most popular things to do in the Los Angeles area from an entertainment standpoint.

4. USC; 3-1, 6-1 – The Trojans are one spot behind UCLA in this power ranking, but also three spots ahead of the Bruins on the list of the most popular things to do in the Los Angeles area, coming in at No. 25, and one spot behind feeding the pelicans.

5. Iowa; 2-1, 5-1 – Kirk Ferentz would look at this ranking and probably say that there still is way too much football to be played to know for sure where teams really stand, and that coming off the bye week, it’s important for his players to always focus on the fundamentals, on getting better each day, and on what it’ll take physically, mentally and emotionally to win in Minneapolis.

6. Oregon; 2-1, 4-2 – Nebraska fans, even the most delusional ones that are stuck in the past, have to be used to losing Big Ten games by now. But the way in which this past Saturday’s 17-14 loss at Oregon played out, with former Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola throwing the game-winning touchdown pass with 28 second remaining, had to be hard even for Nebraska fans to believe.

7. Northwestern; 2-1, 5-1 – The surging Wildcats found a way to win 24-21 at Michigan State this past Saturday, but having to look extra hard to find it is maybe a red flag moving forward.

8. Nebraska; 2-2, 5-2 – Nebraska now sort of resembles of the movie “Signs” in how it starts exceptionally well and catches your attention before fading into silly mediocrity because why would an advanced, intelligent species capable of space travel, but also allergic to water go to a planet that is 2/3 water?

9. Wisconsin; 2-1, 4-2 – The Badgers had more penalties (10) than pass completions (6) in their 17-7 loss at UCLA this past Saturday.

10. Minnesota;  2-1, 4-2 – PJ Fleck is sort of the equivalent of Glen Mason, but with body surfing.

11. Michigan; 1-2, 4-2 – The Wolverines now apparently have a quarterback controversy, and should also be 3-3 under first-year head coach Kyle Whittingham.

12. Washington; 1-3, 4-3 – It seems unlikely that Washington head coach Jedd Fisch is named after Jed Clampett from the Beverly Hillbillies since Fisch spells his first name with two Ds, but you never know.

13. Purdue; 2-2, 3-4 – The Boilermakers have yet to turn the corner under second-year head coach Barry Odom, but the Purdue campus is also just 47 miles from the Beef House. So you take the good with the bad.

14. Illinois; 1-2, 3-3 – The Illinois campus is only 44.5 miles from the Beef House.

15. Penn State, (Iowa State East); 0-4,  3-4 – Even Cyclone fans would be frustrated with being winless in conference play after four games, so imagine how Penn State fans feel right now.

16. Michigan State; 0-4, 2-5 – The Spartans were expected to struggle in Pat Fitzgerald’s first season as head coach, but there have been some bright spots, including the performances of former Hawkeye punter Rhys Dakin and former Iowa running back Jaziun Patterson. Dakin is averaging a whopping 51.0 yards on 18 punts, with a 44.1 net average, while Patterson has rushed for 327 yards and scored six touchdowns, including five rushing touchdowns.

17. Rutgers;  1-2, 2-4 – With the 37-30 victory over Maryland this past Saturday, Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano can now push to recruits that Rutgers is the Big Ten’s best team on the far East Coast.

18. Maryland; 0-4, 2-5 – The Terrapins enter a bye week having lost 12 straight Big Ten games, and that makes you wonder if it will ultimately be a good-bye week for head coach Mike Locksley, though in-season coaching changes never make a lot of sense.