Big Ten links: Iowa in the national polls, key injuries & much more

It is difficult to believe Iowa is ranked in both polls for the first time since ? 2010?

This is the ninth different Iowa team to get ranked during the 17-season Kirk Ferentz era. Four of those teams - 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2009 - ended the season in the Top 10. This is a good sign.

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Indiana has a big game at Penn State this Saturday. How will the Hoosiers perform coming off an emotional near-win vs. No. 1 Ohio State? It will tell us a lot about this IU squad. And it would help the Hoosiers? cause if QB Nate Sudfeld and RB Jordan Howard are OK after battling ankle injuries.

Indiana head coach Kevin Wilson said he didn't believe either injury was serious, but added he wasn't sure if one or both players would be available for Saturday's contest. If Penn State gets into a shootout with Indiana, it likely will be doomed since its passing game too often goes stagnant.

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Tough blow for Michigan, as DE Mario Ojemudia is out for the season with an Achilles injury suffered at Maryland.

Through five games, Ojemudia is Michigan's third-leading tackler with 19 stops on a defense that has excelled. He's also second on the team with six tackles for loss, and second in sacks with two. With Ojemudia now out, Michigan will look to senior Royce Jenkins-Stone as the starting buck linebacker. Jenkins-Stone has 12 tackles (one for a loss) on the season. Behind Jenkins-Stone, redshirt freshman Lawrence Marshall is listed as the backup at the buck spot, according to Mlive.com.

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Mike Griffith of Mlive.com says the mounting injuries for Michigan State could mute expectations. He?s correct.

Against Purdue, two more starters went down and will be out for the foreseeable future. Starting safety R.J. Williamson suffered a torn bicep, had surgery, and is out until the regular-season finale or the bowl game. Backup offensive tackle Dennis Finley, who was starting in place of the injured Jack Conklin, broke his leg and is out for the season. That?s in addition to TE Josiah Price, WR Macgarrett Kings, OT Jack Conklin and OT Kodi Kieler missing the Purdue game due to injuries in previous weeks. Seven projected starters have missed at least one game. This is a full-blown crisis situation in East Lansing.

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Wisconsin?s home loss to Iowa has put the Badgers in a can?t-afford-to-lose spot as they go to Nebraska.

Know this: Since the Big Ten began divisional play in 2011, eight division champions have been crowned. Only one team has won its division with more than one loss. That was UW in 2011, which finished tied with Penn State at 6-2 atop the Leaders Division but won the title because of a 45-7 victory over the Nittany Lions in the regular-season finale. Jeff Potrykus of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says UW's main issues Saturday are twofold: First, the staff must find ways to jump-start an offense that couldn't run the ball consistently and missed too many pass plays in the loss to Iowa. Second, the members of the defense have to resist the urge to look warily at their counterparts on offense and ask: Can you guys give us a hand?

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Nothing to see at Minnesota ? no quarterback controversy ? now move along, young man.

Gophers coach Jerry Kill insists that there is ?no controversy? at quarterback, hinting Mitch Leidner will remain the starter, with freshman Demry Croft getting phased in gradually when Minnesota plays at Purdue.

?Mitch is not the reason we?re struggling so much,? Jerry Kill said. ?… There?s no controversy or any of that stuff. It?s just, we didn?t play very good.?

?Everybody?s going to make a big deal out of [Demry Croft?s debut],? Kill said. ?But it?s not as big a deal as everybody will make out of it.?

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The devil is in the details. And it?s the details-the little things-that are killing Nebraska, says Sam McKewon of Omaha.com.

NU should be 4-1. The talent profile says so. The games themselves, with just minutes left, said so. Nebraska is 2-3 because Mike Riley needs to manage the operation better. And now that Nebraska is 2-3, Riley stands to get a lot of heat and drama from fans who have been pulled in 12 different directions by hundreds of voices adding their two cents to the dialogue. Could Riley?s Nebraska tenure had started any worse?

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Looky here: Dan Duggan of NJ.com has Northwestern No. 1 in his Big Ten power poll. I like it.

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Bill Landis of Cleveland.com wonders if Ohio State should use J.T. Barrett as a red zone quarterback.

The Buckeyes have been terrible in the red zone. Ohio State is 121st in the country in scoring touchdowns in the red zone, six touchdowns in 16 tries. I have a better idea: How about Barrett be the full-time QB?

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It was cool to see former Purdue great Mike Alstott inducted into the Buccaneers Ring of Honor. He was one of my all-time favorite players to watch in West Lafayette.

In the 40-year history of Tampa Bay?s NFL franchise, there arguably has never been a more popular player than Alstott, a bruising, punishing runner who accounted for 5,088 rushing yards and 71 total touchdowns.

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