The fourth week of the 2026 college football season has concluded and there were 10 games that involved the Big Ten Conference over the weekend.
Eight of the 10 games that were played had Big Ten teams battling one another for an attempt to take early steps toward the Big Ten Championship. Rutgers and Purdue were the only Big Ten Conference teams that played against a non-conference opponent. Here is a glimpse in what happened in each of the games in the fourth week of the 2026 Big Ten Roundup.
Friday: 29-23 Indiana vs Northwestern
The Wildcats gave the Hoosiers a fight, but the Hoosiers jumped on the back of senior running back Lee Beebe Jr. The veteran back put up 203 of Indiana's 271 rushing yards and he snagged himself a touchdown for his hard work.
Friday: 58-7 Rutgers vs Howard
The Scarlet Knights put on a show
with five touchdowns and a pair of field goals leading to an absolute blowout of the Bison. Senior defensive back Bradlee Jones had himself a day with two interceptions in the first half of the game to limit Howard's chances of putting up points early.
Saturday: 49-10 Notre Dame vs Purdue
The Boilermakers offense hit a wall as the Fighting Irish set up a tent in Purdue's backfield. Notre Dame's defense had six sacks, nine tackles for loss and a forced fumble returned for a touchdown by senior linebacker Drayk Bowen. The defensive touchdown was part of a 28-point second quarter that skyrocketed the Fighting Irish ahead of the Boilermakers.
Saturday: 42-19 Ohio State vs Illinois
The Buckeyes put up 14 points in every quarter except the third, which demonstrated the type of day junior signal caller Julian Sayin had with 367 passing yards and four touchdowns. However, the star of the game was junior wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, who caught 12 receptions for 217 yards and all four of Sayin's touchdown passes. Illinois was simply unable to stop Smith as he had three of his four touchdowns in the first half of the game.
Saturday: 41-27 Oregon vs USC
Oregon's senior quarterback Dante Moore was injured during the game, but former Nebraska junior signal caller Dylan Raiola was able to secure the win for the Ducks. He tore through the Trojans defense while completing 19-of-25 pass attempts for 288 passing yards and two touchdowns.
Saturday: 24-20 Wisconsin vs Penn State
The defenses controlled the game with Penn State's senior quarterback Rocco Becht throwing an interception and Wisconsin's senior quarterback Colton Joseph throwing three interceptions himself, including a pick-six. The difference came down to Joseph's ability to throw both of his touchdowns in the final three and a half minutes of the fourth quarter, while their defense held Becht and the Nittany Lions offense scoreless in the final quarter of play.
Saturday: 20-19 Iowa vs Michigan
The Hawkeyes took down the Wolverines with senior signal caller Hank Brown slinging two touchdowns in the fourth quarter. The game winner was the final play of the game and was a strike to junior wide receiver Reece Vander Zee, who had Brown's other touchdown of the day and lead Iowa in receptions with five for 66-yards.
Saturday: 54-3 UCLA vs Maryland
The Bruins decimated the Terrapins with four touchdowns on the ground by four different running backs. As impressive as the offense was, the defense might have been even more impressive with four interceptions of sophomore quarterback Malik Washington. Two of them happened on consecutive drives and were returned for touchdowns in the third quarter. UCLA seemed to be a complete different weight bracket against Maryland.
Saturday: 31-13 Nebraska vs Michigan State
The Cornhuskers offense quieted in the second half, but a 24-point first half was enough to blowout the Spartans. Former Bruins senior wide receiver Kwazi Gilmer started the scoring with a 44-yard touchdown in the first quarter. Gilmer led the game in receiving yards with 101 yards on four receptions.
Saturday: 27-24 Minnesota vs Washington
The Golden Gophers held onto their first half lead to survive the Huskies. Washington was behind 21-10 heading into half time, but their defense limited the Golden Gophers to two field goals in the second half. Washington's junior quarterback Demond Williams Jr. attempted a comeback with a passing and rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter, but it was too little, too late as the Huskies fell to a 3-1 overall record.
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: 2026 Big Ten Roundup-- Week 4 features shock and awe with close wins
