The Big Ten ramps up league play this week with seven conference games on the slate.
Purdue and Rutgers both started Big Ten play with losses to the LA schools last week. This week, both step out of conference for the final time as the Boilers welcome Notre Dame to Ross-Ade while the Knights host Howard.
We have a big West Coast matchup on Saturday as the blossoming rivalry between USC and Oregon is renewed in the Coliseum. It is one of two conference games to feature a pair of ranked opponents.
Iowa travels to the Big House to face Michigan in the other one. We have both of those covered, along with UCLA visiting Maryland and Washington hosting Minnesota.
Rounding out our coverage of six games, we look at Indiana and Northwestern—both in our previews for the first time this season. The Cats visit Bloomington to kick things off on Friday night.
Rounding out our previews this week is Wisconsin at Penn State.
Northwestern Wildcats at No. 5 Indiana Hoosiers
Friday, September 25
5:00 PM PT, FOX
(Connor Onion, Robert Griffin III and Alexa Landestoy)
Line: Indiana –21
Over/Under: 49.5
Oh, the price that you pay for building expectations. Indiana fans are displeased with the performance of the Hoosiers following a 38-0 shutout of Western Kentucky.
Sure, it is the first time Indiana has posted back-to-back shutouts since 1993 and just the third time since the 1950s.
Well, need not worry, Hoosiers fans; Indiana will not make it three shutouts in a row. Northwestern will score some points.
The new-look Cats offense under Chip Kelly looks to have some bite, averaging 37.7 points in the first two outings and dominating Colorado 41-7 a week ago.
The question is, how much will they be able to score against an elite defense like Indiana?
Aidan Chiles has looked great to start the season, making good decisions and limiting the turnovers (no interceptions in 46 pass attempts).
Now, has Chip Kelly completely fixed him, or will we see the Chiles of old who forces passes or tucks the ball too soon once the pressure heats up? Indiana will try to bring the heat.
The same question applies on the other side of the ball with Josh Hoover.
The TCU transfer has looked sharp for Indiana this season, and his own turnover issues from the past seem to be fixed, but against a ball-hawking defense like Northwestern, will issues creep back into the fold?
Northwestern picked off a pair of passes vs. Colorado. The opportunistic Wildcats are currently fifth nationally with a turnover margin of +2.0 per game.
I think, in the end, Chiles plays much better, and Northwestern looks like a team that will be problematic for a lot of teams this season, but not for 60 minutes in this one.
The Indiana defense is too good, and the offense will wear out the Wildcats in the end. The first half might be tight, but the Hoosiers win comfortably in the end.
Winner: Indiana
ATS: Indiana
O/U: Under
UCLA Bruins at Maryland Terrapins
Saturday, September 26
10:30 AM PT, BTN
(Mark Followill, Rhett Lewis and Caroline Hendershot)
Line: UCLA –1.5
Over/Under: 56.5
The Bruins will look to open the season 4-0 for the first time since 2022. UCLA just beat a Purdue team that has now lost 19 straight Big Ten games, the longest conference losing streak in the country.
This week they will face a Maryland team looking for their first Big Ten win in a calendar year. The Terps dropped their last eight games of 2025 to finish 1-8 in conference play.
The Bruins look like a team ready to make some noise in 2026, with a big rebound season.
Maryland, sadly for Terps fans, looks like a team that might hope next season brings the same sort of turnaround for them under what will likely be a new head coach.
The Bruins have gotten excellent play from Nico Iamaleava this season. The QB is coming off a career-high 276 passing yards and three TDs in the win over Purdue.
Wayne Knight is the weapon that was missing from the Bruin offense last season. The back leads the nation in two categories, with eight rushing TDs and 8.85 yards per carry.
Maryland’s defense will have a hard time slowing down UCLA’s offense.
Defensively, the Bruins have allowed some yardage and points this season, but their seven forced turnovers are tied for the sixth-most in the nation this season.
This one will be a shootout.
Malik Washington has looked sharp under center for the Terrapins and has yet to turn it over. The Terps will end their Big Ten losing streak, but not this week.
Winner: UCLA
ATS: UCLA
O/U: Over
No. 17 Iowa Hawkeyes at No. 18 Michigan Wolverines
Saturday, September 26
12:30 PM PT, CBS
(Brad Nessler, Charles Davis and Jenny Dell)
Line: Michigan –5.5
Over/Under: 38.5
There was a HS football game in Indiana last week that went to overtime, and the final score was 5-2. This game seems like it has the potential to be similar.
I jest a bit, but the point remains: This one will not see a lot of points scored!
Both defenses are in the Top 10, and neither offense is going to be confused with the “Greatest Show on Turf” from the Rams in the early 2000’s.
The key for Michigan is Bryce Underwood. The Wolverines need their QB to make good decisions and create plays with both his arms and his legs.
The Hawkeyes will need to find a way to bottle him up and keep the passer (who is also the leading rusher for Michigan this season) under wraps.
The Wolverines have rebounded from their “win” over Western Michigan with victories over Oklahoma and UTEP.
The win over the Sooners resulted from their defense forcing some turnovers, including a key interception at the end. The Michigan defense was not able to do much of anything in that contest.
The Hawkeyes’ defense might be better than OU’s, and nobody enjoys an old-fashioned rock fight more than Kirk Farentz and the Hawkeyes.
Iowa has posted a pair of shutouts and held two of their first three opponents to under 200 yards of offense.
While the Hawkeyes are never going to look like an offensive juggernaut, the unit has gone over 500 yards twice this year. The last time Iowa posted a pair of such games in a regular season was 2006.
I think the Hawkeyes will run the ball and, quite simply, I trust them more in this one. They leave Ann Arbor with the win.
Winner: Iowa
ATS: Iowa
O/U: Under
Wisconsin Badgers at No. 13 Penn State Nittany Lions
Saturday, September 26
2:00 PM PT, Peacock
(Dave Flemming, Matt Cassel and Ashley ShahAhmadi)
Line: Penn State –10
Over/Under: 44.5
The Badgers visit Happy Valley this week as Penn State celebrates Homecoming Weekend. This one is interesting as we will start to see what these teams actually look like.
The Nittany Lions have looked like world beaters but have done so against inferior competition. Even in the 27-9 win at Temple, Penn State did not look like a team that is ready to challenge for any titles.
Wisconsin, on the other hand, has looked very solid in their two wins, both against teams they should look good against.
The Badgers fell quite handily to Notre Dame, but they kept it tight for a half. And the Irish just might be a team that is ready to challenge for titles.
I still think the Badgers will be in good shape this season with Colton Joseph at QB. He has been effective as a passer and has been able to use his legs to extend plays.
As much as I like Joseph, I like the supporting cast around Penn State’s Rocco Becht a lot better.
The Badgers will be improved this season, but look for a Happy Homecoming for Penn State
Winner: Penn State
ATS: Penn State
O/U: Under
No. 20 Oregon Ducks at No. 12 USC Trojans
Saturday, September 26
4:30 PM PT, NBC
(Noah Eagle, Todd Blackledge and Kathryn Tappen)
Line: Oregon –3
Over/Under: 61.5
The marquee matchup in the conference this week sees Oregon travel to USC. The Ducks will be looking to extend their four-game winning streak in the series.
The Trojans have not beaten Oregon since 2016, and in their last seven meetings dating back to 2012, Oregon owns a 6-1 mark, having gone 8-2 in their last 10 vs. SC.
The form this season has leaned towards the Trojans, but last week’s performances leave a few questions, and obviously the oddsmakers took note.
Oregon looked shaky, to say the least, in the first two weeks of the season but seemed to have gotten things right last week, albeit against Portland State.
Dante Moore looked polished playing only the first half, completing nearly 83% of his passes with four TDs and 280 yards.
Despite all that went right in the prolific shutout win over PSU, the Ducks still allowed two sacks, not terrible, but still indicative of what has plagued Oregon this season, especially in the loss to OSU.
Portland State probably should not be getting to the Oregon QBs, especially in the game that was played last week.
Oregon now ranks 102nd in the nation with 2.33 sacks allowed per game. That could be problematic for the Ducks against a Trojan defense that has gotten to the QB a fair amount this season.
USC looked about as good as any team in the nation heading into last week, but a shaky performance at Rutgers raises some eyebrows there. USC never trailed in the game, but they allowed the Scarlet Knights to stick around.
And this was against a Rutgers offense that did not look good against UMass and Boston College. The SC defense stepped up when they needed to, but questions have certainly arisen.
Jayden Maiava still looks like he is the best QB in the nation, and the SC defense will cause just enough issues for Dante Moore that I like USC to end their series losing streak in this one.
Winner: USC
ATS: USC
O/U: Over
Minnesota Golden Gophers at Washington Huskies
Saturday, September 26
8:00 PM PT, FOX
(Jack Kizer and Mark Helfrich)
Line: Washington –9.5
Over/Under: 46.5
The Huskies have the schedule set up so they can potentially make a lot of noise this season.
In order to do so, they need to make sure there are no slip-ups, and the Gophers could be the type of team that could cause a problem.
With USC on the horizon, Washington must not lose sight of the Minnesota team in front of them this week.
Both the Gophers and Huskies have been hit by the injury bug, particularly at the running back position.
Demond Williams has helped pick up the slack for UW, making plays with his legs. He will be a difference-maker in this one.
The Huskies have also been far more efficient in the turnover department with a +6-turnover differential on the season. Minnesota has only given the ball away twice but has not done a good job of creating miscues.
Drake Lindsey is a capable QB and makes good decisions, but I think Washington could force him into a couple of mistakes on Saturday.
It won’t be a comfortable win, but I think Washington gets it done. I could see a late Gopher score ruining the cover in a low-scoring game.
Winner: Washington
ATS: Minnesota
O/U: Under
Straight-Up Staff Picks for Selected Games
|
2026 Week 4 Games |
Dane Miller |
Stephen Vilardo |
Nick Bartlett |
Spencer McLaughlin |
Jack Follman |
| Clemson @ Cal |  Cal |
 Clemson |
Clemson |
Cal |
Clemson |
| Boise St at WMU |  Boise St |
Boise St |
Boise St |
Boise St |
Boise St |
| Colorado @ Baylor |  Baylor |
Baylor |
Baylor |
 Colorado |
Baylor |
| UCLA @ Maryland |  Maryland |
 UCLA |
UCLA |
UCLA |
UCLA |
| Utah @ Iowa St |  Utah |
Utah |
Utah |
Utah |
Utah |
| Oregon @ USC |  Oregon |
 USC |
Oregon |
Oregon |
Oregon |
| Arizona @ WSU |  Arizona |
Arizona |
Arizona |
Arizona |
Arizona |
| Ore St @ UTEP |  Ore St |
Ore St |
Ore St |
Ore St |
Ore St |
| AFA @ Nevada |  Nevada |
 Air Force |
Air Force |
Nevada |
Nevada |
| GA Tech @ Stanford |  Ga Tech |
Ga Tech |
 Stanford |
Ga Tech |
Stanford |
| Minnesota @ UW |  UW |
UW |
UW |
UW |
UW |
| Hawaii @ Wyo |  Hawaii |
Hawaii |
Hawaii |
Hawaii |
 Wyoming |
| Staff Records | 38-8 | 37-9 | 39-7 | 39-7 | 21-3 |
