Week 4 Football Release
BIG TEN FOOTBALL RELEASE - WEEK 4 | STANDINGS | MEDIA GUIDE | SCHEDULE
- Week 4 of the 2024 Big Ten season features 12 games, featuring four conference matchups. Nebraska will play host to Illinois on Friday night, with USC visiting Michigan, Northwestern at Washington, and Iowa traveling to Minnesota on Saturday. The complete Week 4 slate appears to the right.
- Eleven of the Big Ten’s 18 teams were recognized in this week’s Top 25 polls, released on Sunday. The AP poll included seven teams, No. 3 Ohio State, No. 9 Oregon, No. 10 Penn State, No. 11 USC, No. 18 Michigan, No. 22 Nebraska, and No. 24 Illinois, with Iowa and Indiana listed among those receiving votes. No. 3 Ohio State leads six Big Ten teams listed in the US LBM Coaches Poll. The Buckeyes are joined by No. 6 Oregon, No. 8 Penn State, No. 12 USC, No. 17 Michigan, and No. 22 Nebraska, while Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Michigan State and Washington also received votes.
- Of the 43 teams who remain undefeated, nine of them reside in the Big Ten: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan State, Nebraska, Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State, Rutgers, and USC. The Big Ten is the only conference with more than seven unbeaten teams
- On Monday, the Big Ten announced its Football Players of the Week, presented by IFS.ai. Indiana senior quarterback Kurtis Rourke was named Offensive Player of the Week after passing for 307 yards on 25-of-33 and four touchdowns in the Hoosiers’ 42-13 win at UCLA. His 300 yards passing and 25 completions were the most by a Hoosier since 2022, and four touchdown passes were the most by an Indiana signal caller since 2020
- Maryland’s Dante Trader Jr. was named Defensive Player of the Week. The senior defensive back led the Terps with a career-high tying 11 tackles, an interception and a pass break-up in Maryland’s 27-13 win at Virginia. Trader’s effort helped Maryland’s defense hold the Cavaliers to 0 points and only 82 yards in the second half.
- Atticus Sappington, a junior place kicker from Oregon, was named Special Teams Player of the Week after making both of his field goal attempts and converting all five extra points in the Ducks’ 49-14 win over Oregon State.
- Minnesota’s Kerry Brown claimed Freshman of the Week after tallying the first two interceptions of his career in a 27-0 win against Nevada and 17 return yards, all on his second interception. Brown became the first Minnesota freshman since at leat 1990 to have multiple interceptions in a game. Brown finished the game with four tackles and two interceptions as Minnesota limited Nevada to 172 total yards.
- Michigan State defensive back Charles Brantley had a 100-yard interception return for touchdown in Saturday’s 40-0 win over Prairie View. The redshirt junior’s pick six was the 16th 100-yard interception return for touchdown in Big Ten history.
- After Saturday’s 27-0 win over Nevada, Minnesota has now recorded back-to-back shutouts for the first time since October 1962. The Gophers outscored Rhode Island and Nevada by a combined 75-0 in the two victories.
- Illinois’ 30-9 win over Central Michigan improved the Illini to 3-0 on the season for the first time since 2011. This marks the second time in program history and first time since 1974 that Illinois is 3-0 with a top-20 win.
- 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.