There were four intra-conference matchups in Week 4, headlined by a pair of ranked affairs. Outside of conference play, the Big 10 went 5-3, leaving plenty of room for movement within the power rankings. How far should Illinois rise? How far should USC fall?
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Even by Big 10 standards, the Wildcats' offensive performance in Week 4 was horrendous. Quarterback Jack Lausch -- making his second start for Northwestern -- averaged 1.96 yards per attempt and threw two interceptions. Northwestern didn't score an offensive point until the second half and mustered up merely five points on the day as Washington dominated from start to finish. Lausch looked solid against a lesser Eastern Illinois, and it's likely they give him another shot next week against Indiana, but it's clear something needs to change offensively.
The Bruins rebounded from a blowout loss to Indiana in Week 3 with a solid showing against the 16th ranked LSU Tigers. UCLA did lose by multiple scores, but they were tied with LSU entering halftime, which is enough to get them out of the No. 18 slot. With matchups against Oregon and Penn State on the docket, UCLA will have plenty of opportunities to shoot up the rankings.
Three of the Boilermaker's first four drives ended with a turnover, putting the team in a 14-0 hole early. From that point on, it was an even game, with Oregon State winning 38-21. While the Purdue errors were self-inflicted, the Boilermakers aren't quite deserving of a bottom-two rank.
An 18-point win over Villanova doesn't look great on paper, but the Terps led 24-0 at the break and the game never got closer than 14. Tai Felton continued his streak of 100-yard receiving games with a 14-catch, 157-yard game. The senior wideout is one of three players in the country with at least 600 receiving yards. A week 2 loss to Michigan State at home still holds them back, but a win over the undefeated Hoosiers of Indiana next week would be massive for Maryland.
Aidan Chiles' turnover issues I highlighted after Week 2 came back to bite Sparty against Boston College in Week 4. The sophomore threw three interceptions in the four-point loss. The third came with 36 seconds remaining with the Spartans deep in BC territory, ending the team's comeback hopes. There's certainly enough talent on this team to exceed the No. 14 slot, but Michigan State has been far too sloppy this far.
The Golden Gophers had a chance to pick up a quality win, taking on Iowa in Minneapolis. Minnesota took a 14-7 lead into the break after scoring on back-to-back possessions to close out the first half. The final two quarters were all Iowa, with the Hawkeyes scoring on four straight possessions while the Golden Gophers totaled merely four first downs. Minnesota found nothing on the ground, combining for 79 yards on 21 carries. They'll likely be in another rockfight next week at Michigan.
Wisconsin was on bye in Week 4 which, all things considered, might have been a good thing for their ranking. Starting quarterback Tyler Van Dyke has been ruled out for the year with a torn ACL. Backup Braedyn Locke started four games for the Badgers last season in place of the then-injured Tanner Mordecai and averaged 192.3 yards per game with a 5:1 TD:INT. Locke is expected to be under center for the Badgers' road bout with USC in Week 5.
Rutgers was in control for most of Saturday's 26-23 win over Virginia Tech, but back-to-back touchdown drives with two-point conversions by the Hokies in the fourth quarter tied the game with 4:35 to play. The Scarlet Knights immediately shut down the comeback, as Athan Kaliakmanis delivered a 63-yard strike to Ian Strong on first down to put Rutgers in the redzone. Though they couldn't find the end zone, Jai Patel drilled a 24-yard field goal and the defense intercepted VA Tech quarterback Kyron Drones to close out the game. Rutgers will begin conference play next week against Washington.
Washington made a statement in its first conference game as a member of the Big 10, holding Northwestern to five points and merely 112 yards of offense. Will Rogers (223 yards, two touchdowns) and Denzel Boston (seven receptions, 121 yards, two touchdowns) were outstanding while the defense forced a pair of interceptions. The Huskies will travel cross-country in Week 5 for a matchup with Rutgers in Piscataway.
An overtime defeat at the hands of Illinois isn't a bad loss, but it comes at an inopportune time. Iowa and Michigan came up with strong wins while Indiana kept rolling, resulting in a four-spot slide for the Huskers. An ugly OT drive may have left a sour taste in Nebraska fans' mouths, but I saw it as a reminder that Dylan Raiola is still a true freshman. There's no need to panic here.
Saturday's 31-14 win over Minnesota was a classic Iowa game. Kaleb Johnson and Jaziun Patterson combined for 272 yards on 39 carries while Cade McNamara finished with just 62 passing yards. Iowa got off to a slow start and trailed at halftime, but their physical playstyle wore down the Golden Gopher defense late, opening up the door for Johnson to run wild. Though it hasn't always been pretty, the Hawkeyes have scored 30 or more points three times in four games after doing such once last season.
Another week, another dominant performance from the Hoosiers. Indiana had five different players rush for a touchdown as the team dominated the line of scrimmage. The Hoosiers have yet to commit a turnover and are averaging 50.5 points per game. Now, FIU, Western Ilinois, UCLA and Charlotte isn't quite the gauntlet other Big 10 team's have had to deal with this far, but Indiana is legit.
Making a quarterback change was an unfortunate, but necessary step for the Wolverines. While Alex Orji attempted merely 12 passes for 32 passing yards, he did the one thing Michigan asked of its signal caller: don't turn the ball over. It remains to be seen how far the Sherrone Moore-led Wolverines can go with this strategy but a win over USC certainly helps the resume.
The Trojans had a "welcome to the Big 10" moment in Week 4, going up against a Michigan team that played a style of football that was uheard of in the Pac 12. The Wolverines attempted 12 passes and threw for merely 32 yards and played a physical brand of defense. USC totaled 11 yards of offense across it's first four drives. USC failed in both of their chances to win, allowing a 10-play, 89-yard touchdown drive in the final four minutes of the game to go down by three points before turning it over on downs about 20 yards short of field goal range. They'll get Wisconsin in Week 5.
The Illini had arguably the most impressive win of any Big 10 team this week, traveling to Lincoln and defeating the 22nd-ranked Cornhuskers in overtime. Luke Altmyer carved up the Nebraska defense, completing 77.8 percent of his passes for 215 yards and four scores. The Fighting Illini had no issues moving the ball, with seven of their ten drives lasting eight or more plays. Two of the other three drives were derailed by fumbles, while the third was a six-play, 78-yard touchdown drive. Illinois' schedule doesn't get any easier with a road game against Penn State on deck and matchups with Michigan and Oregon looming, but the Illini have already proven their mettle.
Penn State further distanced themselves from a narrow win over Bowling Green in Week 2, shutting out Kent State 56-0. The Nittany Lions will face their first test of the season Week 5, welcoming Illinois into Happy Valley.
The Ducks were idle in Week 4 but benefitted from USC's narrow loss to Michigan, returning them to the No. 2 spot in the B1G power rankings. They'll face UCLA in California in Week 5.
After outscoring opponents 108-6 across the first two games of the season, Ohio State felt some pushback Saturday from Marshall. The Buckeyes and Thundering Herd were tied up after the opening quarter before Ohio State caught a stroke of luck. A muffed punt that would have given Marshall the ball inside the Ohio State 10 was nullified by an illegal formation. Just 19 seconds later, Quinshon Judkins and the Buckeyes were celebrating in the end zone. It was pure dominance by Ohio State afterward with a 49-14 final score. The Buckeyes will take a trip to East Lansing in Week 5.