Big News From the Big Ten: Week 6 of College Football

Here's everything you need to know across the Big Ten this week.

On Oct. 4, the Big Ten Conference sent out the sixth press release of the 2021 NCAA College Football Season. Here are the top storylines from the release.

Conference Play Continues

Five Big Ten matchups are on the schedule for the upcoming week. Every game is scheduled for Saturday and they are as follows; The University of Maryland at Ohio State University, Michigan State University at Rutgers University, The University of Wisconsin at the University of Illinois, Penn State University at the University of Iowa and finally the University of Michigan at Nebraska.

Undefeated Teams 

Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State and Penn State all head into the week with a 5–0 record. This number will go down by at least one team after this week as a result of the Penn State vs. Iowa game.

Top 25 Representation

Five Big Ten teams earned a spot in this week's Top 25 poll, with each team finishing in the Top 15 as well. Iowa tops the conference at No. 3, while Penn State is right behind the Hawkeyes at No. 4. Ohio State is next at No. 7, followed by No. 9 Michigan and Michigan State rounds out the conference at No. 11.

Wolverines All-Around Dominance

Michigan is once again rated in the Top 20 for both scoring offense and defense, coming in at 11th and 6th respectively. Iowa, Penn State, Purdue University and Nebraska also rank in the Top 20 in scoring offense.

Campbell Trophy Semi-Finalists Announced

13 Big Ten players were named semi-finalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy. The award is given to the nation's top scholar-athlete across all three divisions. The thirteen include offensive lineman Doug Kramer of Illinois, quarterback Jack Tuttle of Indiana, defensive lineman Zach VanValkenburg of Iowa, defensive lineman Aidan Hutchinson of Michigan, offensive lineman A.J. Arcuri of Michigan State, offensive lineman Connor Olson of the University of Minnesota, defensive lineman Ben Stille of Nebraska, offensive lineman Sam Gerak of Northwestern University, tight end Jeremy Ruckert of Ohio State, quarterback Sean Clifford of Penn State, running back Zander Horvath of Purdue, quarterback Noah Vedral of Rutgers and defensive lineman Matt Henningsen of Wisconsin.

Wolverines Invade Madison

For the first time since 2001, Michigan defeated Wisconsin on the road. The 38–17 victory pushed the Wolverines to 5–0, and the team was bolstered by 2.5 sacks from junior linebacker David Ojabo.

Buckeyes Annihilate Scarlet Knights

Ohio State earned a 52–13 road victory against Rutgers. This was the 20th straight Big Ten victory for the Buckeyes and was the 11th straight road victory and ninth straight road victory by over 20 points for the team as well. 

Hawkeyes Stay Hot

Iowa defeated Maryland 51–14 in its Friday night matchup, which was the 11th straight victory dating back to 2020. The Hawkeyes have held a 380–141 scoring advantage across this stretch and are on the best stretch since 2015-16, a year in which the team reached the Rose Bowl. Iowa has allowed 24 points or fewer in its last 27 games as well.

The Hawkeyes secondary dominated against the Terrapins and six different players earned an interception, tying a school record for most players intercepting a ball in a single game. The effort is also second all time in interceptions in a game for Iowa. The Hawkeyes lead the nation with 12 interceptions and its 76 since 2017 is also No. 1 in the nation.

Brown Bulldozes 49ers

Illinois defeated UNC Charlotte 24–14 this past weekend, and much of the success can be linked to the stellar performance of sophomore running back Chase Brown. The tailback had 257 rushing yards, which was the fourth highest total in Illini history and is third most in the FBS in 2021. All three efforts have come from the Big Ten.

Explosive Spartan Offense

Michigan State rode six first half touchdowns to cruise to a 48–31 victory over Western Kentucky last weekend. The Spartans put up over 500 yards of offense in the game and improved to 5–0 for the first time since 2015 and the 13th time in school history. Junior running back Kenneth Walker III ran for 126 yards and three touchdowns, while redshirt sophomore quarterback Peyton Thorne threw for 327 yards and a touchdown while adding 31 yards and a touchdown on the ground as well.

Repeat Information

All of the information below has appeared in past press releases. It will be summarized, but for more on this visit the older stories.

The Cotton and Orange Bowls will serve as the semi-final games in the CFP. 120 players in the Big Ten this season were All-Big Ten honorees in 2020.

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