Week Two is in the books! 12 of the 18 Big Ten teams scored 40 or more points this week in an offensive display. There have yet to be any conference matchups yet, but still some big ones. Here’s how the Big Ten did in Week Two:
Friday
FCS Western Illinois 7 @ Northwestern 42
Following a disappointing Week One showing against Tulane, Northwestern came out with its foot on the gas against in-state FCS Western Illinois. Once again, explore the rest of the site to find more coverage of this one!
Northern Illinois
9 @ Maryland 20
Maryland got out to a 3-0 lead and never looked back. Despite them only winning by 11, the Terrapins have looked the part with true freshman Malik Washington under center. He continued to impress, throwing for 254 yards and two scores, including a 42-yard touchdown pass to Shaleak Knotts. The schedule gets tougher soon, but for now, there’s not much to complain about.
Saturday
Florida International 0 @ No. 2 Penn State 34
No scorigami this week, but a shutout is a shutout. Penn State wasn’t the flashiest today, but the Nittany Lions still scored 34 points. Drew Allar threw for 200 yards and two touchdowns, while running backs Kaytron Allen and Nick Singleton combined for 220 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. Tight end Luke Reynolds flashed his potential as a go-to target for Allar as he hauled in seven passes for 58 yards. Penn State does have a big matchup coming soon, as Oregon is coming to Beaver Stadium in a few weeks. Until then, it’s FCS Villanova and a bye week.
No. 11 Illinois 45 @ Duke 19
Maybe Illinois is a legit playoff contender. I was skeptical coming into this one as the Illini were on the road against a Duke team with a big-time transfer at quarterback, plus they were only 2.5-point favorites despite the No. 11 ranking. Luke Altmyer led his offense into battle and came out victorious, throwing for 296 yards and three touchdowns. Hank Beatty continued his emergence from last week with eight receptions for 128 yards this week, while the Illinois defense forced five! turnovers. Big time win for the Illini as they are looking more and more legit.
Iowa 13 @ No. 16 Iowa State 16
The yearly battle for the Cy-Hawk trophy was once again down to the wire. It was a classic, low-scoring battle between the in-state rivals as Iowa State led 13-10 at the half. Iowa tied the game up at 13 in the third quarter, followed by back-to-back long drives resulting in punts. With just over eight minutes to go in the game, Rocco Becht led his Cyclones into field goal range on a 13-play drive that took over six minutes. For the second year in a row Kyle Konrardy was the hero for Iowa State, this time from 54 yards out. The Hawkeyes had under two minutes but failed to get anything, resulting in back-to-back wins for the Cyclones in this rivalry.
Kennesaw State 9 @ No. 23 Indiana 56
Right from the start, there was no doubt that Indiana had this one in the bag. Fernando Mendoza threw four touchdown passes, three of those to wide receiver Elijah Sarratt (he had nine catches for 97 yards). Lee Beebe Jr. had a good day on the ground, while the Hoosier defense forced seven Kennesaw State punts. Indiana is playing against an FCS opponent next, but has a date with Illinois at home the following week.
FCS Northwestern State 0 @ Minnesota 66
Nine different players scored a touchdown for Minnesota as the Gophers dismantled FCS Northwestern State. The Minnesota defense allowed only 42 total yards, forced four turnovers and scored two defensive touchdowns. The Gophers will face a test across the country against Cal and true freshman phenom Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele before they host Rutgers to begin Big Ten play.
FCS Grambling State 0 @ No. 1 Ohio State 70
Is anyone surprised? No. Julian Sayin threw for just over 300 yards and four touchdowns, with his only incomplete pass being an interception. Jeremiah Smith got back on track with five catches for 119 yards and two scores. Bo Jackson (Lamar ‘Bo’ Jackson, not the two-sport athlete) led the team in rushing yards, plus he had a score. Next up, the Buckeyes host the Ohio Bobcats after they upset West Virginia.
Oklahoma State 3 @ No. 6 Oregon 69
Dan Lanning said it perfectly here.
Miami (OH) 17 @ Rutgers 45
Athan Kaliakmanis followed up a strong Week One performance with another good showing in Week Two. He threw four touchdown passes as Rutgers got the job done at home against Miami (OH) just a week after barely scraping by against Ohio. The Scarlet Knights will be hosting Michael Vick’s Norfolk State squad before opening Big Ten play against Iowa in Piscataway.
Middle Tennessee 10 @ Wisconsin 42
No Billy Edwards Jr? No problem. Wisconsin led 14-10 at halftime and it looked a little scary, but the Bagers dominated the second half to secure the victory. Their defense only allowed 33 rushing yards and sacked Middle Tennessee’s quarterback Nicholas Vattiato five times. Six different Badgers scored touchdowns: three passing touchdowns from Danny O’Neil to three different receivers and three different rushing scores. Next up is a trip to Tuscaloosa to play Alabama.
No. 15 Michigan 13 @ No. 18 Oklahoma 24
Bryce Underwood did not have the best day at the office. He completed only nine of his 24 passes as Michigan struggled mightily on offense throughout this contest. Playing in Norman, Oklahoma, against a revamped Sooners team is no joke, as John Mateer put the nation on notice and himself into the Heisman conversation. The Wolverines’ play calling is a bit concerning to me, though. Chip Lindsey is calling plays like he still has Alex Orji and Davis Warren under center, not Bryce Underwood. Oklahoma repeatedly stacked the box and focused on stopping the run because of this. It didn’t help that Marlin Klein was out, but the offense was still way too one-dimensional. Justice Haynes did have a solid day, including a 75-yard touchdown scamper, but take that play away and he had only 50 rushing yards on 18 carries (about 2.8 yards per carry). Underwood will only get better as he is just a true freshman, but your first road game being in the environment it was in is not easy.
Akron 0 @ Nebraska 68
68 points is nothing to be mad about, no matter the opponent. Dylan Raiola had a great day through the air while Emmett Johnson ran his heart out. It was Luke Lindenmeyer who stole the show, though. He scored his first-ever touchdown and capped the day off with this moment:
Georgia Southern 20 @ USC 59
There’s one word to describe this game: offense. Jayden Maiava completed only 16 passes, but he totaled 412 passing yards and four touchdowns through the air. Makai Lemon caught four passes for 158 yards and two scores, while Ja’Kobi Lane made one of the more impressive catches of the season so far. Waymond Jordan has seemingly emerged as the lead back, carrying the ball 16 times for 167 yards and a score in this one after his time as a JUCO player. Yes, it has been two inferior opponents, but USC is looking dangerous this season.
Boston College 40 @ Michigan State 42 (2OT)
What a game. Aidan Chiles put his team on his back to come through in the clutch. He has a real receiving corps led by Nick Marsh and Omari Kelly, while Makhi Frazier has been solid on the ground. Chiles was sacked four times, but it didn’t end up mattering as he led a fourth-quarter field goal drive to send the game into overtime, in which he threw a touchdown and then ran one in himself before converting the two-point conversion to win it in double overtime. He accounted for all of Michigan State’s five touchdowns in this game. The Spartans also couldn’t have gotten this win without punter Ryan Eckley playing picture-perfect. He punted the ball three times, pinning the Golden Eagles inside their own 20-yard line all three times, with two of those being downed at the one-yard line.
FCS Southern Illinois 17 @ Purdue 34
Purdue has already eclipsed its win total from 2024! Despite being tied at 14 after the first quarter, the Boilermakers put it all together and got the victory. Devin Mockobee led the way with his 126 rushing yards and two scores, while Ryan Browne threw two touchdowns. The schedule becomes daunting as it’s USC next and Notre Dame the following week, but for now, Purdue fans can rejoice.
UCLA 23 @ UNLV 30
Apart from one throw in spring practices of his freshman season, Nico Iamaleava hasn’t been too impressive. While he can be a threat on the ground (rushed for 59 yards and a touchdown), his late-game interception handed UNLV the victory to propel them to 3-0 and keep the Bruins winless. While they did claw their way back into this one, it wasn’t enough to finish the comeback.
FCS UC Davis 10 @ Washington 70
Jonah Coleman is putting the nation on notice as possibly the best back of all. He carried the ball 15 times for 111 yards and five touchdowns! Demond Williams Jr. is also one of the better-kept secrets in college football, as he had another strong showing with 254 passing yards and a touchdown to go along with his 64 rushing yards and a rushing score. Washington could be a team to watch out for in the Big Ten.
