Big Ten Superlatives: Week 8
Penn State was off on Saturday. But, there were other games. Those other games saw some things happen. What happened? Read about it here. Best Win of the Week: UCLA Stays Unbeaten It was a slow start for the Bruins at home on Saturday against Michigan State. But, UCLA dominated the middle two quarters, scoring […]
Week 8 of the Big Ten football season brought some notable performances from various teams. UCLA started slow against Michigan State but dominated the middle two quarters, scoring four touchdowns and securing a 28-10 victory. The Bruins remain the conference's only unbeaten team heading into a challenging November schedule.
On the other side of the field, USC struggled mightily in Madison, Wisconsin, where they rushed for negative yards and dropped a 13-10 loss to Wisconsin. Quarterback Jayden Maiava was sacked five times and threw two interceptions, adding to the Trojans' poor showing.
Offensive Player of the Week honors went to Caleb Komolafe of Northwestern, who ran for nearly 300 yards in a 42-14 rout of Rutgers. Komolafe added 150 yards and a touchdown on the ground, leading Northwestern to a 6-1 season record.
Defensive Player of the Week for Indiana was Rolijah Hardy, who recorded nine tackles, two sacks, and forced a fumble in a 13-6 overtime victory against Michigan. Indiana's defense was clearly the standout in that game.
Illinois' Aiden Laughery was named Offensive Play of the Week for his 75-yard scoring run against Oregon. The Illini secured a win against the Ducks, a game in which Laughery's performance stood out as the biggest offensive play of the night.
Minnesota's Matt Kingsbury was awarded Defensive Play of the Week for his crucial interception in the fourth quarter against Iowa. Kingsbury recognized the play, held the running back for as long as possible, and then delivered a shot, forcing the turnover that helped Minnesota secure the upset win.
In terms of the biggest moments of the week, the Michigan-Indiana game had a stretch where more than 20 consecutive passes went incomplete, and the lone touchdown came in overtime. Northwestern was the only team to score over 30 points in the conference. Oregon's performance in Champaign left much to be desired, as they were now just 4-3 and 2-2 in the Big Ten, fueling questions about their chances at another national title.
Meanwhile, Iowa's game against Minnesota showcased a classic late rally, with the Gophers ultimately overcoming a 10-10 tie with a 98-yard drive in the final minutes.
Written by urgent.news from Yahoo Sports's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
