RECAPS OF SATURDAY’S OTHER BIG TEN FOOTBALL GAMES

No. 4 Michigan 42, Rutgers 7

PISCATAWAY, N.J.

Shea Patterson threw for 260 yards and three touchdowns, Karan Higdon ran for a pair of 1-yard scores and No. 4 Michigan kept its national championship hopes intact with a win over Rutgers. The Wolverines (9-1, 7-0 Big Ten, No. 4 CFP) have won nine straight and remain in first place in the conference’s East Division. They have a final tuneup against Indiana next week at the Big House before closing the regular season at No. 8 Ohio State. They showed no signs of a slip up against lowly Rutgers (1-9, 0-7) and kept the Scarlet Knights without a yard passing until the third quarter.

No. 21 Penn State 21, Wisconsin 10

STATE COLLEGE, PA.

Trace McSorley tied Penn State’s record for wins by a quarterback with his 29th, and 21st-ranked Nittany Lions beat Wisconsin. Miles Sanders ran for 159 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries, and McSorley completed 19 of 25 passes for 160 yards and a TD while matching Todd Blackledge’s victory total from 1980-82. DeAndre Thompkins caught a touchdown pass for Penn State (7-3, 4-3 Big Ten, No. 20 CFP), which held the Badgers (6-4, 4-3) to 125 yards in the second half and sacked backup quarterback Jack Coan five times. Jonathan Taylor ran 20 times for 185 yards and a touchdown, but Coan completed 9 of 20 passes for 60 yards with two interceptions. The Badgers have lost three of their last five games.

Northwestern 14, Iowa 10

IOWA CITY, IOWA

Isaiah Bowser ran for 165 yards and a touchdown and Northwestern upset Iowa to clinch a spot in the Big Ten Championship. The Wildcats (6-4, 6-1) will now await their opponent for the league title game in Indianapolis next month. Bennett Skowronek’s 32-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter gave the Wildcats a 14-10 lead. After a first half that yielded just three total points on a field goal from Iowa kicker Miguel Recinos, the scoring ramped up in the second. Bowser hit a hole for a 34-yard touchdown to give the Wildcats their first lead of the game. After Recinos missed a field goal to respond, Iowa safety Jake Gervase intercepted Clayton Thorson’s pass off a tip. Iowa cashed in just two plays later with Nate Stanley’s 28-yard touchdown pass to Ihmir Smith-Marsette.

Indiana 34, Maryland. 32

BLOOMINGTON, IND.

Peyton Ramsey threw two touchdown passes, Logan Justus made the go-ahead field goal with 2:32 left and the Indiana Hoosiers recovered a fumble in the final minute Saturday to preserve a victory over Maryland. The Hoosiers (5-5, 2-5 Big Ten) ended a four-game losing streak and kept their bowl hopes alive with the victory. Anthony McFarland rushed for a career-high 210 yards in relief of the injured Ty Johnson but the Terrapins postseason plans took a big hit with their third consecutive road loss. Maryland (5-5, 3-4) had a chance to rally for the winning score after Justus’ 42-yard field goal gave the Hoosiers a 34-32 lead. But backup quarterback Tyrrell Pigrome lost the ball on a sack near midfield with 52 seconds left and Nile Sykes recovered the fumble for Indiana.

Minnesota 41, Purdue 10

MINNEAPOLIS

Minnesota’s maligned defense held Purdue to season-lows in yards and points, and Seth Green had a touchdown rushing and passing for the Gophers in a win against the Boilermakers in the cold and snow. Redshirt freshman Mohamed Ibrahim ran for 156 yards for Minnesota, which played its first game under interim defensive coordinator Joe Rossi and posted its best showing in conference play after entering the game allowing 43.2 points and 507.7 yards per game. Gophers linebacker Blake Cashman forced a fumble and returned it 40 yards for a touchdown as Minnesota (5-5, 2-5 Big Ten) held Purdue to 233 total yards and 0 of 12 on third down. Senior quarterback David Blough was 20 of 31 for 142 yards passing for the Boilermakers (5-5, 4-3), who entered the game second in the Big Ten scoring with 35.8 points per game.

Nebraska 54, Illinois 35

LINCOLN, NEB.

Adrian Martinez threw for 290 yards and accounted for four touchdowns and Devine Ozigbo ran for 162 yards and three scores to lead Nebraska past mistake-prone Illinois. Illinois (4-6, 2-5 Big Ten) committed turnovers on four of five full possessions spanning the halves, and Nebraska (3-7, 2-5) converted them into 24 points. Wearing alternate uniforms to mark the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I, the Huskers rolled up 606 total yards on a raw afternoon when the wind chill dipped to 13 degrees. Illinois amassed 509 yards in the meeting of the Big Ten’s worst defenses. Martinez was 24 of 34 and threw for three touchdowns, and he ran 13 times for 55 yards a TD. Ozigbo broke a career-long 66-yard touchdown run in the second quarter and went 60 yards for another TD in the fourth to finish off the Illini.

Associated Press