Big Ten Conference News: Week 3 Football Notes

Marvin Harrison Jr. outjumps Arkansas State defender in Week 2 for a TD (courtesy OSU Athletic Communications)

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• Thirteen Big Ten schools will continue their non-conference schedules this weekend, while Illinois will enjoy a bye week. The complete Week 3 schedule appears to the right.


• Four Big Ten teams appear in the AP Poll this week. Ohio State leads the conference at No. 3, followed by No. 4 Michigan, No. 11 Michigan State and No. 22 Penn State. Minnesota, Purdue and Wisconsin are all receiving votes.

• Eight Big Ten teams remain undefeated on the season, as Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Ohio State, Penn State and Rutgers are all 2-0.

• Michigan and Minnesota currently rank among the top 15 nationally in both scoring offense and scoring defense. The Wolverines lead the nation in scoring offense, averaging 53.5 points per contest, while ranking No. 11 nationally in scoring defense (8.5 points per game). The Gophers rank No. 2 nationally in scoring defense (5.0 points per game), while ranking seventh in scoring offense (50.0 points per game).

• Five additional Big Ten teams rank in the top 20 in terms of scoring defense: Iowa (6th, 6.5 points per game), Michigan State (6th, 6.5 points per game), Wisconsin (11th, 8.5 points per game), Illinois (19th, 10.7 points per game) and Ohio State (20th, 11.0 points per game).

• The Big Ten boasts six top 15 FBS running backs in rushing yards per game: Illinois’ Chase Brown (1st, 165.3), Nebraska’s Anthony Grant (3rd, 142.7), Minnesota’s Mohamed Ibrahim (7th, 131.0), Wisconsin’s Braelon Allen (9th, 123.0), Michigan State’s Jalen Berger (11th, 113.5) and Penn State’s Nicholas Singleton (13th, 105.0).

• Penn State true freshman Nicholas Singleton ran for 179 yards and two touchdowns, scoring on runs of 44 and 70 yards in the Nittany Lions’ 46-10 victory over Ohio, earning him Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors. Singleton’s first career touchdown was the longest run for a Nittany Lion since Journey Brown’s 85-yard run versus Pitt in 2019, while his 179 yards are a school record for a Beaver Stadium debut.

• Ohio State found the end zone six times and added a field goal to down visiting Arkansas State 45-12 Saturday at Ohio Stadium. The Buckeyes’ 45 points marks the 21st time they’ve scored 45 or more points since Ryan Day became the full-time head coach in 2019 and the 28th time in 37 games they had 500 total yards. With the win, Day’s non-conference record improved to 10-3, with a home record of 20-1, moving him to 36-4 all-time. After his first 40 games, he is the second winningest coach in school history behind Urban Myer (37-3).

• Buckeye wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., who caught a career-high seven passes for 184 yards and three touchdowns on Saturday, became just the second wide receiver in school history to have multiple career three-touchdown games. He is currently second in the Big Ten in touchdown receptions, third in receiving yards and eighth in receptions.

• Tanner Morgan passed for 287 yards and a score over 2½ quarters and had one of Minnesota’s seven rushing touchdowns in a 62-10 victory over Western Illinois on Saturday. Mohamed Ibrahim (23 carries for 130 yards) and Trey Potts (10 carries for 79 yards) had two scores apiece on the ground for the Gophers. Gopher head coach P.J. Fleck has won 17 of his last 18 regular season non-conference games dating back to his time at Western Michigan. The Gophers have also won 24 of their last 25 non-conference games overall (including bowls), with the only loss coming last year to Bowling Green.

• Minnesota finished the game with 679 total yards, the third-most in school history and the most Minnesota has had in a game since 2004. The 62 points are their fifth-most in a game since 1930 and the team’s most in a game since 2006 against Indiana. The Gopher defense has gone 14 straight quarters without allowing an opponent to score 10 points and the 10 points allowed through the first two games is the fewest Minnesota has allowed since 1999. The Gophers have held 10 straight opponents below their total yard average and have held 14 straight teams to 27 points or fewer, their longest streak since 1962-65 (32 straight games).

• Michigan defeated Hawaii 56-10 on Saturday to improve to 18-0 in non-conference home games under head coach Jim Harbaugh. The Wolverines have now won consecutive games by 40 points or more for the first time since 1991. In his first career start, quarterback J.J. McCarthy went 11-of-12 passing for 229 yards and three touchdowns (91.7 percent). Only Tate Forcier (12-for-12, Sept. 25, 2010 vs. Bowling Green) and Devin Gardner (13-for-14, Aug. 30, 2014) have registered higher single-game completion percentages with at least 10 passing attempts for the Wolverines.

• The 2022 campaign features 94 All-Big Ten honorees (first-, second-, third-team or honorable mention) selected by either the coaches or the media last season. Ohio State leads the way, welcoming back 17 All-Big Ten honorees this season. Each team has at least one All-Big Ten performer returning this season, with 56 of the 94 returning All-Big Ten players coming from the East Division.

• This season’s Playoff Semifinals will take place Saturday, December 31, 2022, at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl and Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. The Los Angeles region will host the College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday, January 9, 2023, at SoFi Stadium. The College Football Playoff matches the No. 1 ranked team vs. No. 4, and No. 2 vs. No. 3 in semifinal games that rotate annually among six bowl games – the Goodyear Cotton Bowl, Vrbo Fiesta Bowl, Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, Capital One Orange Bowl, Allstate Sugar Bowl and Rose Bowl Game.

COURTESY BIG TEN COMMUNICATIONS