I dont think we can ignore the matchups but the tOSU and TOE were favored in those matchups. Maryland is the lone upset between these two conferences and they were playing in Baltimore so its tough to read much into the 1st week of the year so saying the record is the say all end all doesnt hold up in these conversations (i.e. look at how the playoff committee treats Ws and Ls).
Clearly UT is a better team now than they were in week one, clearly ISU is a better team now than they were in Sept and the same could be said for most other schools. What can't be ignored is who on your schedule is truly feared by other opponents. For TOE it is PSU and Wisky (the latter being unimpressive at this point in the year). No one is scared of playing MN, Purdue, Indiana, IL, UNI, NIU, or Nebby). FWIW i think NW, Mary, ISU, PSU, and WISC all put solid teams on the field but none are considered Elite at this point in the season. TOE has a good draw for a schedule (all but PSU are in Kinnick and ISU was the first game of the year).
To say TOE doesnt have a favorable schedule is disingenuous. On the other hand, to say they have not been impressive in how they have handled their schedule, is also disingenuous. they can be a good team and have a weak schedule.
Is the BigXII stacked this year? no, but top to bottom it is a tougher schedule than what TOE faces. There is no doubt TOE, TCU, OSU, and Tex on the road are all tougher games and environments than TOE faces on their schedule while ranked WVU and Tech (likely ranked at 5-2 by then) at home are tough matchups.
I'll give credit where it is due, though PSU has been a disappoinment so far, it is the toughest environment on either teams schedule. Maybe UT can rival it but only in attendance. That one game is not enough to justify this schedule for IA as tough though.