Week 9 of the 2026 college football season has concluded and Big Ten defenses were in the holiday spirit as they spooked offenses on Halloween.
There were nine Big Ten Conference games that were played on Halloween and there were plenty of scary plays that left college football fans screaming. Here is what happened in each of those games in this week's Big Ten Roundup.
Saturday: 30-0 Iowa vs Wisconsin
The Hawkeyes shutout the Badgers with two long scoring drives to begin the game and a dominating display of defense to silence Wisconsin's offense. Iowa pried the ball away Wisconsin three times with two turnovers occurring in the fourth quarter which allowed the Hawkeyes to swoop in and upset Wisconsin with an impressive shutout.
Saturday: 20-17 Illinois vs Maryland
The Fighting Illini and the Terrapins were evenly
matched throughout the game, even though Illinois had nearly double the amount of rushing yards in the game. Illinois secured the win as Maryland gave up 10 points in the fourth, which included the game-winning, 26-yard field goal off the foot of senior kicker Ethan Moczulski.
Saturday: 28-21 Michigan vs Rutgers
The Wolverines take their second conference win of the season, scoring a touchdown in all four quarters. The Michigan defense made life difficult for Rutgers, as they struggled to efficiently complete passes, but they were able to keep it a close game. However, Michigan's offense was efficient and effective under freshman quarterback Tommy Carr, who completed 22-of-27 passes for 266 passing yards and touchdown. A trio of backs in the backfield pushed the offense forward as they compiled 161 yards on the ground and three touchdowns.
Saturday: 31-17 Penn State vs Purdue
The Boilermakers walked into the Nittany Lions' den and were mauled by their defense and ground game. Penn State's defense had two interceptions, a sack, three tackles-for-loss and six pass deflections to limit Purdue's chances of finding their third conference win of the season. On the other side of the ball, Penn State nearly had two 100 yard rushers with junior running back Cam Wallace having 135 yards on the ground and a touchdown on 22 carries and senior running back Carson Hansen rushing for 96 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries.
Saturday: 27-0 UCLA vs Nevada
The Bruins startled the Wolf Pack by picking up three UCLA interceptions on Nevada's first three drives of the game with the final interception being a pick-six that extended UCLA's lead to 10-0 in the first quarter. The turnovers slowed down afterwards, but the defense didn't. UCLA's defense ensured the Bruins would walk away with the win as they wrecked havoc all over the field with three sacks, nine tackles-for-loss and five pass deflections. The game ended as expected, a fourth interception that extended UCLA's undefeated streak to 8-0.
Saturday: 23-16 Indiana vs Minnesota
Defense wins championships and the Golden Gophers defense nearly forced the upset against the reigning National Champions. Indiana turned the ball over twice with an interception and fumble ending possible scoring drives. On top of that, Minnesota allowed just one touchdown in regulation and limited Indiana to field goal attempts. The winner came in overtime with a one-play 25-yard strike by Indiana ended up being the game-winner.
Saturday: 17-10 Washington vs Nebraska
The Huskies strung together their second-consecutive conference win of the season with a massive 14-point fourth quarter to steal the game away from the Cornhuskers. Two of Nebraska's three turnovers came in their first two drives of the game and the Huskies defense kept nipping at the Cornhuskers with four sacks, nine tackles-for-loss and four pass deflections.
Saturday: 34-26 Oregon vs Northwestern
The Ducks were playing from behind with the Wildcats leading 20-13 at the end of the first half. Oregon was able to rally back in the second half with three touchdown's to give the Ducks their third conference win of the season. Two of the second half touchdowns came from junior signal caller Dylan Raiola, who ended the game completing 70 percent of his passes for 336 passing yards and three touchdowns.
Saturday: 30-18 USC vs Ohio State
The Trojans took down one of college football's best teams with their offense leading the way early with 14-points in the first. Ohio State's defense settled in after the first quarter and limited the Trojans to just 16-points in the rest of the three quarters. However, USC's defense was even better with just one touchdown allowed all game, as they limited the Buckeyes star wideout Jeremiah Smith to 10 receptions for 83 yards and Ohio State's lone touchdown.
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: 2026 Big Ten Roundup Week 9-- Halloween filled with scary defenses
