Week 1 Big Ten Power Rankings: Ohio State on TOP, Oregon at No. 2 with Dillon Gabriel | CBS Sports

Welcome back. The new era of Big Ten football is set to get underway this weekend, and our partners over at 24 over seven sports have released their week one Big Ten Power Rankings of course, new teams to keep an eye on include Oregon and Washington. The ducks finding their way to second in the first power rankings of the season, trailing only Ohio State. Meanwhile, the reigning national champs, Michigan, checking in at number three. The runners up, Washington at number seven. You can check out those full rankings live on 24 seven sports.com before you get there, let's break it down as we welcome in college football reporters Brandon Marcelo and Tom Fornelli of the cover three pod to discuss. These guys are reacting to this list. They didn't make it so I just want to make sure as we're reacting here that the fans at home know where we're starting here. We're going to start at the top with Ohio State. They're number one both in the AP and in these rankings. Brandon, I'll come to you first here on this one. They opened the season up against Akron. So it should be a win. If history tells us anything. But when you look at their schedule, do you see a hiccup at all here for Ohio State? Oh yeah, it's Oregon I think everybody's got that date circled on their schedule right now. And right now I've got Ohio State number one in my power rankings, so to speak. But I think Oregon, because of the way the schedule rolls out for them, is more conducive for Oregon actually winning the Big Ten. This year. In fact, they're my preseason pick to win the Big Ten because of the schedule and the way it shakes out for them compared to Ohio State. But listen, when you just look at it on paper right now as we go into the season, Ohio State has the most stacked roster in all of college football. So yes, put them number one. But 2 or 3 weeks into the season, things are going to shake up. Everybody out there needs to wipe the slate clean after the first couple of games of the season and actually see these teams and how they perform, because on paper there are like three teams out there. We go, oh, those teams are better than everybody else on paper. But when we start getting into these games, I think it's going to be very much an easier process of us going about putting these teams into tiers. But yes, put Ohio State number one. But that schedule is much more conducive for Oregon to win the Big Ten, not Ohio State. Yeah, it's an odd way to look at Ohio State's schedule this year because on the one hand, you could mention that they only play four road games. And one of those is technically a neutral site game at Wrigley Field against northwestern, in which history suggests you're probably going to see a lot more red in the stands than you will see purple. So it might feel like a home game for the Buckeyes. But then on the other side of that coin, two of those road games that they have to play are at Oregon and at Penn State. Two of their primary competitors in the Big Ten for a Big Ten championship this seaso. So you do look at this squad. And yes, it is far and away one of the most talented teams in the country. Defensively, they were already elite last season. They were able to retain a lot of that talent, which could have gone to the NFL and not been like undrafted free agents or late round picks. These were guys that could have been second, third, fourth round picks who decided to come back. You add Caleb Downs in the transfer portal. On top of that, you get Will Howard from Kansas State at QB. You get Quinshon Judkins out of the transfer portal from Ole Miss. This team is stacked like it is national title or bust for the Buckeyes, so while I don't know that they will win the Big Ten, I don't see how they could start the season anywhere. But number one in these power rankings, they are number one in these power rankings, number two in the AP rankings. I wanted to correct that there. Let's go over to Brandon's number one in the Big Ten. If he had his choice we're going to talk Oregon next. Of course they check in at number two on these power rankings. But there's a lot to be excited about when you think about the Oregon Ducks in a new conference, of course, they're going to have a new quarterback Heisman favorite Dillon Gabriel checking in there. Some new pieces as well. Tom, what excites you? Because we kind of already heard about from Brandon here, but what excites you about this Oregon team? And then Brandon, I'll have you follow. You know, there's been some hype or some sell jobs about this Oregon roster is possibly the most talented Oregon roster that we've seen in the history of the program. And I think there's a lot of truth to that, because what Dan Lanning has done a terrific job of since he took over the job, is kind of bringing that Georgia model of recruiting to where they're landing big ticket items out of the high school ranks, which you have to do to continue winning at this at this game in this day and age. But he's also kind of sub you know, subletting it through the transfer portal by getting big names like Dillon Gabriel to come in to replace Bo Nix. So that way you're not relying on a more unproven commodity. You get a kid who's probably the most experienced quarterback in the country at this point. I feel like he's been around for the last decade. The question will be Oregon was very talented last year, too, but they couldn't get past Washington no matter how close they were in two games. So there is that question about the ducks. It's like, you know, they're good. You know they're going to be at the top of the Big Ten. But when they get that home game against Ohio State, can Dan Lanning's team finally get over the hump and get that premiere marquee win to really solidify this program as a legit national title contender? Yeah, I'm with you, Tom. Listen, this Oregon team to me is the most incomprehensible and incomparability here to Georgia, just the way they're built in the trenches. And dare I say, Oregon might actually be better next year with Dante Moore at quarterback and all those pieces with another year under their belt, especially the high school recruiting that they've been doing there the last three years under Dan Lanning and getting them developed and ready going to 2025, having said that, how often in college football do you replace a 15 000 yard passer in Bo Nix with another 15,000 yard passer in Dylan Gabriel? The answer? Spoiler alert never. It's never happened. This is the first time ever this Oregon team is primed to make a run to a championship this year. But boy, they might even be better top to bottom in 2025 than they are going into this season. And this season they're a Big Ten contender. And as a result, a contender for the national championship. They will open the season against Idaho this weekend. But to your point earlier, Brandon, they do have Ohio State on October 12th. And then they'll head to the big House on November 2nd. So I'm curious where these rankings will look when those games roll around. Let's talk about the national champs next. We got the Michigan Wolverines checking in at number three on the list. Obviously, gentlemen, there has been so many changes since they won it all a year ago. A new head coach, a new quarterback. Hopefully no sanctions or new suspensions happening up in Michigan. But I do want to go back to the quarterback situation. And Brandon, I'll come to you first here. Both Alex Orji and David Warren are the options. Sharon Moore still not sure who's going to be his starter. I guess my question to you is how much of the season will be impacted by Sharon Moore's decision to pick either Alex Orji or Davis Warren as the quarterback in the quarterback spot? There is not as important as it is at, say, maybe in Ohio State. Even or even like, say at LSU, where it's such contingent on what happens with the quarterback. Having said that, I think it's very possible we see Michigan do something like they did a couple of years ago, where they might end up playing two quarterbacks in the first few weeks of the season to kind of get a feel of what this team best reacts to around there. It's crazy to say this, but Davis Warren a walk on a preferred walk on actually has more pass attempts in his Michigan career than Alex Orji. But Alex Orji is that dynamic guy. Can run, he can do a lot of things on his feet, but the problem is, is he's been struggling in practices and in scrimmages. Last week just threw three interceptions, according to our team site reporters at 24 seven sports. So there's some hesitation there to name him right now because they want him to continue to compete and keep going forward. But having said that, I would not be surprised against Fresno State that we see both quarterbacks out there, not just because Michigan might blow out Fresno State, but because they want to see how both quarterbacks do out there in direct competition. But an incredible story here around Davis Warren a walk on fought off cancer a couple of years ago has gone through a lot. And here he is in position to potentially potentially start for Michigan. But in the end I think it will be Alex Orji. Yeah. What surprises me most, though, about the power ranking here is that Michigan to me for defending national champion, has been written off. I feel like and to see them at number three in these power rankings goes against the grain of what I've typically seen when it comes to ranking Big Ten teams, but I'm happy to see it because I tend to agree. I don't think Michigan is just going to completely fall off the face of the earth, even with all of the changes and even with the questions at quarterback going into the season. Because if we look to the other side of the ball defensively, we talked about Ohio State earlier. We talked about Oregon and the defensive line. This Michigan defense might be the best in the country. It might have three first round picks on it in Will Johnson, Kenneth Grant and Mason Graham might have two top five picks on it. This is going to be an elite unit. So there are a thousand questions on the offensive side of the ball. Alex Orji in the quarterback battle is obviously the biggest one, but they have to replace pretty much the entire offensive line as well. And we don't know what that's going to look like. But that kind of leads me to believe that Alex Orji will end up being the choice in the long run, simply because you might need a quarterback who's going to be able to make things happen with his legs if things break down in the passing game. But at the same time, if this defense is as good as I think it can be, Michigan might not need to score more than 17 points per game to beat just about everybody on its schedule. So I do think this Wolverines team is being slept on a bit, and I do think they are very much in contention for a Big Ten title and another playoff berth. Yeah, when it comes to that quarterback battle, Shannon Moore said they're going to see how practice rolls out this week, and he'll make a decision at some point before that game against Fresno State. So we'll have to keep our eye on it as we move forward. Let's continue down our power rankings list. We're now at number four, and that's where we find Penn State. Of course, James Franklin's Nittany Lions. It's now or never. I feel like given how easy the schedule is for some, the big headline here with Penn State, they won't have to play Oregon, Michigan or Iowa. They get the Buckeyes then at home. Tom, when you look at Penn State and sort of the running joke for them, they can't get past the big ones in the Big Ten. Is this the year when you don't have to compete with some of those bigger names? You kind of have a straight shot there to the college football playoffs. Is this the year we have to see Penn State and James Franklin win? It better be the year that Penn State gets into the playoff and wins. I mean, it's funny because it is mentioned like there's been plenty of talk about, you know, if the 12 team playoff had existed for the last decade, Penn State would have been in I think six times in the narrative surrounding the Nittany Lions would be a lot different than what it has been, because they have, time and time again, bumped their heads up against the Michigans and the Ohio states in the Big Ten East. But it's a double edged sword, because now that everybody thinks Penn State should be getting into the playoff, like we said, they have to get into the playoff now because those teams aren't on the schedule. They are no longer in the East. They have a much more manageable path to get there. So if they fall short, I think that you're going to see the heat on James Franklin's seat turned up quite a bit. Now, the good news is, I do think Penn State is good enough to get to the playoff this season. I think offensively, bringing in offensive coordinator Andy Kotelnicki from Kansas, I think will be a huge move for the Nittany Lions going forward because we saw during his time at Kansas and at Buffalo before that, he did not need, you know, four and five star personnel to make things happen. He did not need superstar receivers to figure out ways to get guys open, or tremendous offensive linemen to get running lanes to get guys room to run. Now he has some of that at Penn State. So it's really interesting to see what this Penn State offense is going to look like. I think it's going to be good for Drew Allen. I think it's going to be good for those running backs. And even though there isn't a marquee wide receiver on that roster, I'm telling you they are going to have some productive players at that position just because of Andy Kotelnicki, his ability to scheme guys open. I think it's going to look a lot easier for the Nittany Lions on that side of the ball this year, and defensively they're still going to be fantastic. So I think it's going to be a big season for Penn State. All right. We'll see it all unfold. They kick off against West Virginia this weekend. Let's talk about one of the other newer teams in the Big Ten. Of course USC coming in at number six on their power rankings. First ever in the Big Ten. You heard Josh Pate talk about the uphill battle that is the defensive side of the ball for Lincoln Riley. But he's hoping even with no Caleb Williams, that they will start off with a bang against LSU to open the season. Brandon, I'm curious your thoughts on that number six spot here in the power rankings and just your season outlook for the Trojans this year? Yeah, it's crazy to say this, but I was talking to Lincoln Riley a month ago and he said Brandon, we're rebuilding this year. He says, I don't think a lot of people outside of Los Angeles realize that we're rebuilding this year. And I was just like, I don't know necessarily that's the case, but they are rebuilding defensively. They had to just absolutely throw everything out there and change things up. And Anton Lin from across the city, there at UCLA to bring him on board. They're gotten bigger. They need to do that in this defensive scheme. They're changing to previously under Alex Grinch they were just lighter. They were trying to close gaps out there in the defense and chase the ball down, which we saw them chase the ball down quite a bit to the end zone in the previous couple of years. They need to be much more physical in the Big Ten. We all know that. I kind of like their schedule. They obviously don't have any back to back road games this year in the Big Ten, which would be troublesome for anybody off on the West Coast. But listen, they're going to score points. We know that Lincoln Riley does that. He's a quarterback. Miller Moss will be just fine. But defensively let's see them take a step forward. This is a team that definitely should be in the middle of the pack. The upper half potentially of the Big Ten. But I'm not so sold. On USC being a top 15 type of team this year, potentially rising in the rankings later this year and in this season opener. So important for USC and LSU both to set the tone for this season. LSU coming into this game zero and four in its last four season openers. This is a big one and I really kind of give the edge to LSU here because I think they've got things a little bit more figured out with the culture and a lot of returning pieces. As far as just the core, the tenets of what Brian Kelly believes. Whereas with Lincoln Riley, I think there obviously has been wholesale changes to LSU's defense this year as well. But also USC. It just seems like that they're trying to change a lot more on both sides of the ball a little bit new quarterback, but also they're trying to change things and how they do defensively. And my understanding is, is they're still learning quite a bit there where LSU is a little bit more ahead of the curve. So early in the season. I'm all like LSU here in this season opener against USC, we'll see how much of a rebuilding year it is. Depending on where they're at in the season. They're out in USC. Let's wrap this one up. Talking about the Nebraska Cornhuskers. They come in at number eight on the Big Ten Power rankings. Of course second year for Matt Rhule trying to get things back in order out in Lincoln. I want to read this quote to you both, gentlemen, and we'll end it here. Tom I'll come to you first. This is from the website that did the power rankings 24 seven sports. It says no. Michigan Oregon and Penn State in Big Ten play on the schedule there for Nebraska, setting up a chance to make a run for Indy and play in the Big Ten championship game. So Tom, when you hear that, I see your head kind of moving there. Do you agree or disagree? Oh boy. Nebraska and expectations. What could go wrong? I think that this is going to be an improved team for Nebraska. I do think they are going to get to a bowl game largely because of that schedule. But as far as getting to Indianapolis and getting to the Big Ten championship, I think that's a bit too much to ask. We got to take baby steps here. We got to get to bowl games. I think Dylan Raiola could be a great player, and I think he could end up being one of the best quarterbacks in the Big Ten next year or the year after this year. He's still a true freshman. I'm just hoping he shows progress and doesn't make too many big time mistakes that you see freshman make all the time. And I know Nebraska fans have seen a lot of their quarterbacks making a lot of mistakes in recent years. So just just consistency is all I'm hoping for from the Cornhuskers this season. Nebraska's got top 25 team right now just as far as talent, according to 24 over seven sports team talent composite seven of those top nine players on offensive, including Dylan Raiola, their quarterback. And you look at the schedule, they should start six and one, maybe seven and zero going into the Ohio State game. Look at the schedule. They believe that in Lincoln, Nebraska, the team believed that. The coaches believe that week two against Colorado circle that on the calendar. If they win that game, they will at least be six and 1 or 7 and oh, going to Ohio State. And then after that, boy, it is rough on that schedule, but there's going to be a lot of hype around this team if they do what they expect to do in the first half of the schedule, we'll have to see how it all plays out. They open the season against UTEp this weekend. Our Brandon Marcello and Tom Fornelli reacting to the first Big Ten Power rankings ahead of week one. Again, you can find those rankings on 24 over seven sports.com as well as all the latest in college sports, including recruiting the transfer portaand transfer