B1G Numbers: Hawkeyes’ highest ranking in 13 years

Unlike the Pac-12, which cannibalized itself Saturday when Oregon upset Stanford and Arizona clipped Utah, the Big Ten is keeping its College Football Playoff contenders safe from harm.

Ohio State and Iowa remained unbeaten, and once-beaten Michigan State wasn't thwarted by Maryland. You can't enjoy a piece of the playoff pie if you're stealing each other's forks.

And now, this week's Big Ten numbers:

1 -

Rutgers remained one win ahead of Maryland in the Big Ten standings. Rutgers (1-6) was idle, while Maryland (0-6) fell at Michigan State, 24-7. Rutgers and Maryland meet each other in a Nov. 28 season-finale for both unless Rutgers wins against Army and Maryland to finish 5-7 and a bowl game is forced to take a 5-7 team.

2 -

Iowa averages two more rushing yards (211.7) per game than passing (209.7). That's balance.

3 -

Northwestern's 21-14 win over Purdue was the 8-2 Wildcats' third-straight victory by one score and fourth of the season.

6 -

Michigan quarterback Jake Rudock threw a school-record six touchdown passes in the Wolverines' 48-41 two-overtime win at Indiana. Rudock passed for a career-high 440 yards. 'He's got ice water in his veins,” said Michigan Coach Jim Harbaugh. 'It's very impressive.”

11 -

Nebraska had 11 tackles for losses, including six sacks, at Rutgers.

13 -

At sixth, Iowa has its highest ranking in Associated Press' Top 25 in 13 years. The Hawkeyes were No. 3 in the Dec. 8, 2002 AP poll.

19 -

Michigan State quarterback Connor Cook's quarterback rating was a dismal 19.0 against Maryland. He was 6-of-20 with an interception before leaving with an apparent shoulder injury. Cook's passing efficiency rating this season is a shiny 143.0. He says he'll play Saturday against Ohio State.

20 -

Illinois managed a paltry 20 rushing yards in its 28-3 loss to Ohio State.

30 -

Urban Meyer's Big Ten regular-season record at Ohio State is 30-0.

35 -

Maryland turned the ball over five times at Michigan State. It has an FBS-high 35 turnovers.

68 -

Purdue scored on its first offensive play Saturday at Northwestern, a 68-yard pass from David Blough to Dominique Young. Things got harder.

259 -

Minnesota quarterback Mitch Leidner passed for 259 yards in the Gophers' 40-35 loss at Iowa. It was the fourth-straight 250-yard game for Leidner, tying Mike Hohensee's 33-year-old school record.

504 -

The 504 yards Minnesota surrendered at Iowa was the most it had allowed since it allowed 515 to Nebraska in 2011.

1,199 -

Indiana's Jordan Howard upped his season rushing yardage total to 1,199 with 235 against Michigan. Howard has played in just eight games. His 149.9 yards per game is third in the nation.

5,554

- The crowd of 42,287 that attended Saturday's Oklahoma State-Iowa wrestling dual was 5,554 fans larger than the 36,736 that saw the top-ranked Clemson football team play at Syracuse Saturday.