Week 5 Football Release

BIG TEN FOOTBALL RELEASE - WEEK 5 | STANDINGS | MEDIA GUIDE | SCHEDULE

Week 5 of the 2024 college football season features a full slate of Big Ten Conference games for the first time this season. This week’s schedule includes eight games between conference foes, including conference openers for Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, Rutgers, Wisconsin, and the Big Ten debut for Oregon, as well as the first Big Ten home game for USC. The complete schedule is listed to the right.
This week’s AP and US LBM Coaches Polls include 11 Big Ten teams. Ohio State’s No. 3 ranking leads six teams in the AP Top 25, including No. 8 Oregon, No. 9 Penn State, No. 12 Michigan, No. 13 USC, and No. 19 Illinois, while Indiana, Nebraska, and Iowa received votes. The US LBM Coaches Top 25 also includes six teams: No. 3 Ohio State, No. 7 Oregon, No. 8 Penn State, No. 12. Michigan, No. 16 USC, and No. 21 Illinois, while five teams, Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska, Washington, and Rutgers, also earned recognition.
Of the 26 teams who remain undefeated, six of them reside in the Big Ten: Illinois, Indiana, Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State, and Rutgers. Two of them, Illinois and Penn State will meet in primetime on Saturday night in Happy Valley.
On Monday, the Big Ten announced its Football Players of the Week, presented by IFS.ai. Illinois’ Luke Altmyer and Iowa’s Kaleb Johnson shared Offensive Player of the Week honors. Altmyer went 21-for-27 for 215 yards passing and four touchdowns, as the Illini improved to 4-0 for the first time since 1951. Johnson recorded a career-high 206 yards on 21 attempts with a career-high three touchdowns in Iowa’s road win at Minnesota. The junior has recorded at least 100 yards in all four games, making him the first Hawkeye to do so since Mark Weisman in 2012.
Michigan’s Josaiah Stewart claimed Defensive Player of the Week honors after tallying four tackles, including three tackled for loss and a pair of sacks, to go with four quarterback hurries and a forced fumble in the Wolverines’ 27-24 win over USC.
Fellow Wolverine Tommy Doman was named Special Teams Player of the Week after averaging nearly 50 yards on his eight punts in Saturday’s win. Of Doman’s eight punts, five surpassed 50 yards with three downed inside the 15-yard line and two inside the 10. Doman also recorded three touchbacks in his five kickoffs.
Washington’s Khmori House earned Freshman of the Week accolades after recording his first career interception in Saturday’s 24-5 win over Northwestern. The true freshman finished the game with three tackles and played an integral role in a Huskies’ defensive effort that held the Wildcats to just 112 yards of total offense.
A pair of Big Ten games went down to the final seconds last week, as Illinois topped Nebraska in overtime, while Michigan topped USC on a game-winning touchdown in the final minute. Illinois quarterback Luke Altmyer posted his fourth touchdown pass, connecting with Pat Bryant from four yards out, to give the Illini a 21-2 lead on their first possession in overtime. The Illinois defense secured the victory, recording three sacks in Nebraska’s lobe overtime possession.
In Ann Arbor, USC overcame a 20-10 third quarter deficit, as Miller Moss found Ja’Kobi Lane for a 24-yard touchdown to take a 24-20 lead with 7:01 to play. Minutes later, Michigan’s Kalel Mullings broke free for a 63-yard run before scoring from one yard out to give the Wolverines their winning margin with just 37 seconds to play.
The top two teams in the regular season standings will meet in the 2024 Discover Big Ten Championship Game on Saturday, Dec. 7 at Lucas Oil Field in Indianapolis, Ind. The game, which will be broadcast on CBS for the first time ever, will be the first in conference history to match the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the overall conference standings.