Week 14 Football Release

• Entering the final week of the regular season, three teams remain in contention for berths into the 2024 Discover Big Ten Football Championship Game: Indiana, Ohio State and Penn State. The weekend action begins with a Black Friday doubleheader as Minnesota travels to Wisconsin at noon p.m. ET on FOX before Iowa hosts Nebraska at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC. The complete schedule can be found to the right. 
• The University of Oregon has secured the No. 1 Seed in the 2024 Discover Big Ten Football Championship Game. The 14th annual title game will be played on Saturday, December 7, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis and will feature the top two teams in the standings for the first time. The contest will be broadcast on CBS with kickoff set for 8 p.m. ET. Media can apply for credentials by visiting bigten.org/media.
• The Big Ten had five teams included in the College Football Playoff’s third rankings of the season on Nov. 26: No. 1 Oregon, No. 2 Ohio State, No. 4 Penn State, No. 10 Indiana and No. 23 Illinois. The CFP will release its next top 25 rankings on Tuesday, Dec. 3.
• Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Oregon, Ohio State, Penn State, Rutgers, USC and Washington have all secured bowl eligibility by reaching six wins this season, while Michigan State and Wisconsin need just one more win to become eligible. The Big Ten will continue to feature the largest bowl lineup in conference history.
• Five Big Ten teams appear in the AP Poll this week, highlighted by four of the top four. Oregon leads the conference at No. 1, followed by No. 2 Ohio State, No. 4 Penn State, No. 10 Indiana and No. 22 Illinois.  
• On Monday, the Big Ten announced its Football Players of the Week, presented by IFS.ai. Illinois’ Pat Bryant and Ohio State’s Will Howard shared Offensive Player of the Week honors. Bryant caught the game-winning touchdown with 0:04 remaining as part of a 197-yard, seven-reception performance to lead No. 24 Illinois to a 38-31 win at Rutgers. Howard extended his school single season and career records with his sixth game with a completion percentage of at least 80 percent by completing 22 of 26 passes for 201 yards and two touchdowns in the win over No. 5 Indiana. 
• Ohio State’s Cody Simon earned Defensive Player of the Week accolades after leading the Buckeyes’ defensive effort against Indiana’s 15th-ranked offensive unit with a game-high 10 tackles, including 2.5 quarterback sacks, and a forced fumble. The 10-tackle game was Simon’s third game this season with 10 tackles and his 2.5 sacks represented a career high for a single game. 
• Special Teams Player of the Week honors went to Iowa’s Drew Stevens. Stevens tied an Iowa program record set in 2004 and an SECU Stadium record, making all five field goals in Iowa’s 29-13 road win at Maryland. The junior tied a career-high with a 54-yarder and made two from 50+, becoming the first Iowa player to make multiple from 50+ since 1998. 
• Nebraska’s Jacory Barney Jr. was named Freshmen of the Week after setting career highs with nine receptions for 85 yards, bettering his previous highs of eight catches and 78 yards, in Nebraska’s win against Wisconsin. The newcomer rushed for 11 yards and had 54 yards in returns for 150 all-purpose yards. 
• Indiana and Ohio State currently rank among the top 10 nationally in both scoring offense and scoring defense. The Buckeyes lead the nation in scoring defense (10.7 points per game), while ranking 10th in scoring offense (37.8 points per game). The Hoosiers rank second nationally in scoring offense (41.3 points per game), while ranking seventh in scoring defense (14.6 points per game).
• Four additional Big Ten teams rank in the top 15 in terms of scoring defense: Penn State (7th, 14.6 points per game), Oregon (8th, 15.7 points per game), Iowa (12th, 17.7 points per game) and Minnesota (15th, 18.5 points per game). 
• Ohio State’s Seth McLaughlin and Oregon’ Dillon Gabriel were named finalists for the 2024 William V. Campbell Trophy on Oct. 23. The Campbell Trophy is presented annually to the nation’s top football scholar-athlete. The finalists will travel to the Bellagio Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas for the 66th NFF Annual Awards Dinner Presented by Las Vegas on Dec. 10, where one member of the class will be declared as the winner of the 35th Campbell Trophy and have his postgraduate scholarship increased to $25,000.

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