Big Ten Roundup (Oct. 15): Iowa Buries Wisconsin, Illinois Stuns Maryland

Six different Big Ten football games were played during Week 7 of the 2023 college football season. Here are the results from each game on Saturday, highlighted by Iowa's defense-oriented victory over Wisconsin, and Illinois's stunning upset of Maryland.
Big Ten Roundup (Oct. 15): Iowa Buries Wisconsin, Illinois Stuns Maryland
Big Ten Roundup (Oct. 15): Iowa Buries Wisconsin, Illinois Stuns Maryland /

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Another week of Big Ten football is in the books. 

With it came three blowout wins for the the three undisputed teams at the top of the conference, and three rather shocking outcomes in the battles between the middling teams of the conference.

Here's everything you need to know in today's Big Ten Roundup:

Big Ten Saturday Game Results

Michigan 52, Indiana 7

It is important to remember that Indiana led 7-0 early in this game, the largest deficit Michigan has faced all season.

Then the next three quarters happened in the exact fashion everyone expected. Michigan is 7-0 and has yet to have been challenged. Indiana is 2-4 and reeling. 

Rutgers 27, Michigan State 24

Michigan State benched Noah Kim and instead started Katin Houser at quarterback. Houser led the Spartans to a 24-6 lead in Piscataway entering the fourth quarter, seemingly on the path to their first victory in weeks.

Then this happened. 

Fourth quarter gamecast recap from ESPN.
Fourth quarter gamecast recap from ESPN

Yeah. That's 21 straight points for coach Greg Schiano and the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, and it only took roughly seven minutes of play. Rutgers is 5-2 with a chance to be bowl eligible before November should it win in Bloomington next week. 

Iowa 15, Wisconsin 6

Iowa quarterback Deacon Hill finished with 37 passing yards and only completed 6 of his 14 attempts, and the Hawkeyes won by two scores. Kirk Ferentz can't keep getting away with this, and Wisconsin is now seemingly going to fail to win the West for the fifth season in a row. 

Illinois 27, Maryland 24

Truly the most inexplicable outcome of the day in the conference, and a hugely disappointing one for coach Mike Locksley and the Terrapins. 

Maryland was talked about as the fourth best team in the entire conference for much of the first half of the season. The scare it gave Ohio State in Columbus in Week 6 appeared to affirm that notion. Instead, the Terps turned around and lost at home to a reeling Illinois squad that entered the game at 2-4. 

This upset effectively does two things:

1) It gives coach Bret Bielema and the Fighting Illini new life to salvage this season. Illinois still has Indiana, Minnesota and Northwestern left on its schedule, and at 3-4, a bowl berth is definitely within reach.

2) It effectively kill Maryland's chance at taking a significant step forward following 2022's 8-5 campaign. The Terrapins should win against Northwestern in their next game, but their last four opponents on the schedule are Penn State, Michigan, a Nebraska team that beat Illinois by 13 and a 5-2 Rutgers squad. The hope for 9-3 Maryland seems all but dead, and 7-5 feels like the most likely outcome at this point. 

Ohio State 41, Purdue 7

The Buckeyes finally had a game where they did not mess around at all with an inferior opponent. Ohio State's defense sat on Purdue all game, as the score was 34-0 entering the fourth quarter. West Lafayette had been a house of horrors for the Buckeyes for nearly two decades, but Ohio State didn't even entertain that notion this Saturday.

Ryan Day's team looks ready to welcome Penn State to Columbus next Saturday. Speaking of the Nittany Lions ...

Penn State 63, UMass 0

There's a reason this was ranked as the most cowardly Big Ten homecoming game of the 2023 season

Related Stories:

  • JACK'S TAKE: Indiana rotated quarterbacks Tayven Jackson and Brendan Sorsby during Saturday’s 52-7 loss at Michigan, but neither made a convincing case to earn the starting job. Dexter Williams II is close to returning from injury, adding another layer to the decision. CLICK HERE
  • GAME STORY FROM IU VS MICHIGAN: Coach Tom Allen and the Indiana Hoosiers lost 52-7 to the Michigan Wolverines on Saturday in Ann Arbor. Indiana led early but quickly lost momentum and got blown out by one of the nation's best teams. CLICK HERE

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Jack Ankony
JACK ANKONY

Jack Ankony is a Sports Illustrated/FanNation writer for HoosiersNow.com. He graduated from Indiana University's Media School with a degree in journalism. Follow on Twitter @ankony_jack.