The Big Ten vs. SEC debate might have taken on a new dimension in Week 1 of the college football season.
While top-ranked Ohio State and defending national champion Indiana came out swinging Saturday, some other Big Ten teams were on the back foot despite being heavy favorites — which could raise questions about the conference’s perceived strength after three consecutive CFB Playoff titles.
A Saturday full of surprises was capped by a stunning win by No. 16 Michigan, which beat Western Michigan 13-12 on a 47-yard TD pass by Bryce Underwood to J.J. Buchanan as time expired (and after officials put a second back on the clock after the game seemingly had ended on a prior Hail Mary pass). The Broncos, who fell to 0-9 against the Wolverines, were 28-point underdogs.
It didn’t go quite so smoothly, either, for second-ranked Oregon, which fell behind 17-7 to 25-point underdog Boise State in the second quarter at home Saturday. The Ducks eventually rallied for a 34-27 win over the Broncos on a 62-yard touchdown pass by Dante Moore to Dakorien Moore.
Boise State takes the lead over No. 2 Oregon 👀@BroncoSportsFB
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 5, 2026
📺: CBS pic.twitter.com/5Nex7coCns
And there were some distressing signs beyond the conference’s powerhouses.
After Rutgers opened its season on Thursday night with a stunning upset defeat to UMass after being favored by 30 points, Michigan State (a 10-point favorite) struggled to beat Toldeo 30-20 in its home opener Friday with new coach Pat Fitzgerald.
Favored by 23 points on Saturday, Nebraska was on the ropes early at home against Ohio, falling behind twice before managing a 14-13 halftime lead.
The Cornhuskers began putting things right in the third quarter and opened a 28-13 lead. But the Bobcats struck back with a TD and two-point conversion to close the deficit to seven early in the fourth quarter. Nebraska finally pulled away to a 49-21 victory.
Ohio wastes NO time 😳 Nick Poulos finds Riley Neer for 68 yards on the first play of the game@wendys pic.twitter.com/3MzLjd2RLX
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) September 5, 2026
The lackluster performances can be written off as early season rust, but they take on new significance in the context of the Big Ten-SEC rivalry that has become one of the dominant narratives of the offseason (beyond what’s transpiring in courtrooms across America).
Indiana coach Curt Cignetti threw down the gauntlet at Big Ten Media Day with a subtle shot at the SEC while declaring his own league’s supremacy
“The Big Ten is the best league in football,” Cignetti said. “We don’t have a hype machine up here in the Midwest; we believe everything’s earned, not given. When we fall short, we say, ‘We fell short.’ We don’t cry a river and whine and complain. And that’s why we’re the best.”
The head-to-head stats also have been clear: Aside from seeking its fourth consecutive national title, the Big Ten is 8-2 vs. the SEC in the postseason over the past two years.
The plaudits were pouring in on the pregame shows Saturday morning with Urban Meyer, who won national titles as a coach in the Big Ten and SEC, among those proclaiming that the Big Ten “now is the strongest conference in college football.”
That’s an easy case to make if Ohio State, Indiana, Oregon and Michigan somehow were to advance to the semfinals of this year’s College Football Playoff.
But it gets trickier during the regular season if the bottom half of the conference is laboring to defeat schools on the lower end of the FBS.
On the flip side, Big Ten powerhouses Ohio State and Indiana did their part to bolster the conference’s reputation Saturday.
The Buckeyes are favorites to win the Big Ten and a national title, and their stars were in midseason form in the opener against Ball State. Quarterback Julian Sayin connected with Heisman Trophy hopeful Jeremiah Smith (who is projected as a high first-round pick in the NFL Draft) on an early 48-yard touchdown, and Ohio State jumped out to a 28-3 halftime lead as Sayin threw three TD passes and rushed for another.
Even without Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza, Indiana picked up where it left off in its College Football Playoff championship victory over Miami in January. The Hoosiers rolled out to a 21-6 lead over North Texas behind new quarterback Josh Hoover, a transfer from TCU who played through a bloody nose from a facemask penalty.
