The Big 10 is back. And what a fantastic weekend of college football it was.
College football had already been phenomenal over the course of the season’s first seven weeks, but with the addition of powerhouse programs such as Michigan, Penn State and Ohio State, the week felt complete.
For many college football fans, the season had not felt the same without the conference in action.
On Saturday, the Big 10 made quite an impact, as we saw multiple upsets, teams that looked a bit rusty but were able to hit their stride at just the right point, and a multitude of new players that were every bit as good as they had been said to be.
One of those new players was Michigan quarterback Joe Milton, a Pahokee, Florida product, who filled the void left by Shea Patterson, who graduated after last season. Milton proceeded to pick apart No. 21 Minnesota’s defense in his first collegiate start, as he went 15/22 passing for 225 yards in Michigan’s 49-24 victory. He also was third on the team in rushing with 52 yards on eight carries, including a huge 23 yard run. He also found his way into the end zone on a designed quarterback run midway through the third quarter.
His play was nothing short of spectacular. But if there was one team that surpassed the rest in its performance, it was Rutgers. Under new head coach Greg Schiano, who began his second term at the helm of the Rutgers program on Saturday, the Scarlet Knights broke a 21-game conference losing streak, beating Big 10 heavyweight Michigan State, 38-27. It was also the first time that Rutgers had won its conference opener since joining the Big 10 in 2014.
Nobody was as proud as Schiano postgame.
“I’m really proud of our guys. Our coaching staff, our support staff, and most of all, our players,” Schiano said as reported by On the Banks. “They’ve worked incredibly hard in a very difficult environment for a long time. It’s great to get it started with a victory.”
Penn State head coach James Franklin was as frustrated with his No. 6 Nittany Lions as Schiano was proud of his unranked Scarlet Knights. In a mental mishap, Penn State running back Devyn Ford sprinted into the end zone with just over a minute left, leading Indiana 21-20. This might have been the first time in which nearly every Penn State fan was mad because Ford crossed the goal line. Had he simply taken a knee, the Nittany Lions would have escaped with the victory. Instead, Indiana got the ball back, marched the length of the field before quarterback Michael Penix Jr. pushed his way into the end zone on a quarterback sneak with under 20 seconds to play. The Hoosiers then converted the two point conversion (on a Penix run up the middle, what else?), tying it up at 28 apiece and sending it into overtime. Penn State quickly scored, and on the ensuing possession, after Indiana countered with a touchdown. Indiana head coach Tom Allen then made a make it or break decision. The Hoosiers would go for two and one of two things would result. Either the Hoosiers would convert and win the game, or miss it and the contest would go down as a near upset. Long story short, the former occurred. Penix pulled a rabbit out of a hat, as he twisted, turned and juked before diving for the pylon. It was a charge towards the goal line that few saw coming, the Penn State defense included.
It took about five minutes to review, but in the end, the two point conversion was confirmed. Indiana had just upset the nation’s No. 6 team at home. And what was more incredible was that, had Ford stopped one yard before he did, the opportunity to comeback wouldn’t have been there for the Hoosiers.
The win ended up putting Indiana in the AP Top 25, and was the Hoosiers first win over an AP Top 10 team since 1987.
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