Big Ten Week 9 Recap: Penn State avoids upset, Buckeyes win in Madison, a 4-way tie in the B1G West

The final weekend of October saw some interesting developments around the active Big Ten teams this weekend. Penn State was given a good scare at home by Indiana, Ohio State managed to get out of Wisconsin with a win and we now have a four-team tie for first place in the Big Ten West as we head into the final month of the regular season.

Oh, and don’t look now but Nebraska and Northwestern could each be going to a bowl game this season!

Michigan was one of the team taking the week off, so the Wolverines didn’t get one more chance to pummel an opponent before the first release of this season’s College Football Playoff rankings. But Ohio State should be feeling good about its position in the upcoming playoff rankings, and Penn State may benefit from an upset by Kansas over Oklahoma in the Big 12.

Here is a look at everything that went down in the Big Ten in Week 9.

Ohio State 24, Wisconsin 10

Ohio State quarterback Kyle McCord didn’t have a clean game with a pair of interceptions and getting roughed up a bit by the Wisconsin defense, but it once again helps having a guy like Marvin Harrison Jr. to throw the football too. Harrison caught 6 passes for 123 yards and 2 touchdowns as Ohio State managed to get a road win at Wisconsin.

The Badgers were hurt by the loss of running back Braelon Allen but the Buckeyes were also fueled by the return of their star running back, TreyVeon Henderson, who rushed for 162 yards in his first game in over a month.

Ohio State remains undefeated and is one step closer to setting the stage for a massive showdown with Michigan at the end of the season. Ohio State’s College Football Playoff ranking on Tuesday night should be promising, and could very well be higher than the Wolverines thanks to a tougher schedule so far.

Next up for Ohio State: at Rutgers

Next up for Wisconsin: at Indiana

Penn State 33, Indiana 24

Maybe Penn State had a bit of a hangover a week after a tough loss at Ohio State, but the Nittany Lions found a way to come up with the plays it needed in the final three minutes on both sides of the football to overcome a serious upset bid by Indiana.

Tied at 24-24 with just under three minutes to play after Drew Allar threw his first career interception (leading to Indiana tying the game on a field goal), Penn State got the big explosive play it has desperately needed with a 57-yard touchdown pass to KeAndre Lambert-Smith. The defense then added a safety on the ensuing Indiana possession and Penn State could breathe a higher sigh of relief.

Indiana scored on touchdown plays of 90 yards and 69 yards, and the Hoosiers put the most points on the scoreboard by a Penn State opponent this season. This was not a pretty win for Penn State, but they’ll take it and move on.

Next up for Indiana: vs. Wisconsin

Next up for Penn State: at Maryland

Northwestern 33, Maryland 27

Next up for Maryland: vs. Penn State

Next up for Northwestern: vs. Iowa

After a promising start to the season, Maryland dropped its third straight game with a disappointing result on the road at Northwestern. The Wildcats got a solid outing from quarterback Brendan Sullivan with 265 passing yards and a pair of touchdowns to help keep pace with Maryland’s Taulia Tagovailoa.

Tagovailoa passed for 274 yards and three touchdowns but Maryland turned the football over twice, with the first leading to a Northwestern touchdown and the second sealing the fate of the game in favor of Northwestern. Both turnovers were committed by Tagovailoa.

All of a sudden, Northwestern is in prime position to go to a bowl game in a season that was written off from the jump by so many, myself included!

Nebraska 31, Purdue 14

Nebraska‘s bowl drought could be coming to an end. A home win against Purdue brings the Cornhuskers just one win shy of clinching bowl eligibility for the first time since 2016! Coincidence or not, Nebraska is also on its first three-game winning streak since 2016.

While Nebraska’s offense may not be tearing up things on the field, the defense has seemingly been found with another solid outing against a Big Ten opponent. Nebraska held Purdue to just 195 yards of total offense and forced three turnovers by the Boilermakers. But Nebraska committed four turnovers as well. Matt Rhule has fans feeling positive about Nebraska again heading into November, and it has been a while since that could be the case.

Next up for Purdue: at Michigan

Next up for Nebraska: at Michigan State

Minnesota 27, Michigan State 12

Down two leading rushers for the game, Minnesota turned the football over to Jordan Nubin and it paid off in a big way. Nubin rushed for 204 yards on 40 carries with two touchdowns as Minnesota took care of a struggling Michigan State. Athan Kaliakmanis passed for 200 yards and the Gophers outgained the Spartans 400-299 despite losing the turnover battle 3-2.

The win by Minnesota puts the Gophers on top of the Big Ten West standings for now after Wisconsin lost to Ohio State. We now have a four-way tie for first place in the division between Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Nebraska, but Minnesota has already won head-to-head matchups with the Hawkeyes and Cornhuskers to take the top spot in the division at the end of October.

Next up for Michigan State: vs. Nebraska

Next up for Minnesota: vs. Illinois

Big Ten football standings

EAST DIVISION

WEST DIVISION

Bowl Eligibility Tracker

To be eligible for a postseason bowl game, a team is required to accumulate 6 wins in the regular season. Exceptions may come into play if bowl games still have spots to be filled, but the standard starts at 6 wins. Here is where things stand in the Big Ten with bowl eligibility after this week’s results.

Bowl eligible (5):

• Iowa

• Michigan

• Ohio State

• Penn State

• Rutgers

On the brink of bowl eligibility (4):

• Maryland

• Minnesota

• Nebraska

• Wisconsin

Ineligible:

• N/A

On the brink of bowl ineligibility (3):

• Indiana

• Michigan State

• Purdue

Story originally appeared on Nittany Lions Wire