Nebraska’s matchup at Oregon suddenly looks a lot more interesting than it did a few weeks ago.
That’s the kind of week the Big Ten just delivered. The Huskers were inches from knocking off defending national champion Indiana, while UCLA walked into Eugene and handed Oregon its second loss of the season. Around the league, the results keep shaking the standings and raising the same question: is there a real power shift happening at the top?
For Nebraska, the stakes are obvious. The Huskers sit at 5-1 overall and 2-1 in the Big Ten, and a win Saturday night at Oregon would be a major step toward proving they belong in the conference’s upper tier.
The offseason consensus was that this game was a loss. After Nebraska’s 20-17 setback against Indiana, it starts to look more like a tossup.
And if former Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola is part of the story, it gets even better. Raiola came off the bench and helped Oregon beat USC, 41-27, when Dante Moore was out. But against UCLA, Raiola was benched early in the fourth quarter after a rough night in which he went 6-of-19 for 43 yards with zero touchdowns, two interceptions and a lost fumble.
“I mean Coach R [Matt Rhule] gave me a chance my first two years of college and nothing but love [and] respect for him,” Raiola said in a news conference after the loss to UCLA. “Coach [Dana] Holgorsen, Coach [Glenn] Thomas, my quarterback coach, and I mean the entire staff for two years that was my home and I truly feel like that I have relationships I still have on the team.
“And next week, all that matters is winning. And it’s going to be weird seeing that team across [the field] … But like I said, we got to prepare because from what we heard, they played a really good game today against Indiana and every team in the Big Ten’s good.”
The Bruins are one of the biggest surprises in the league so far. Bob Chesney’s team is 5-0 and 3-0 after going 3-9 and 3-6 last season, and the 17-15 win at Oregon says UCLA may be a real contender for a College Football Playoff spot. Nebraska does not face UCLA this season.
Oregon, now 3-2 and 1-1, had a bye before the UCLA game but still came up short. The Ducks were 30-2 under Dan Lanning at Autzen Stadium before the loss.
Indiana remains unbeaten at 6-0 and 3-0, but it doesn’t quite look like the 16-0 machine from last season. The Hoosiers host Ohio State on Saturday at noon.
That Buckeyes team still looks like the class of the conference. Ohio State improved to 5-1 and 3-0 with a 45-16 win over Maryland, and despite a fourth-quarter collapse against Texas, the Buckeyes have mostly played to type.
Washington, meanwhile, took another hit in a 41-24 home loss to Iowa on Friday night. The Huskies are now 3-3 and 0-3. Iowa’s offense may still make people squint, but the Hawkeyes are 5-1 and 2-1 after following their 31-14 loss to Ohio State with a convincing road win.
Illinois had its hands full but escaped East Lansing with a 38-37 overtime victory over Michigan State, stopping the Spartans on a two-point try to end it. Illinois is 3-3 and 1-2, while Michigan State fell to 2-4 and 0-3 after Nebraska handled the Spartans, 31-13, and Wisconsin beat them, 31-3, the next week.
Rutgers was off after its 47-15 loss to Indiana. The Scarlet Knights are 1-4 and 0-2 and head next to Maryland.
Penn State’s problems keep piling up, too. USC beat the Nittany Lions 31-23 in the whiteout game, and Penn State is now 3-3 and 0-3.
Nebraska doesn’t play Penn State this season or in 2026. USC, which is 6-1 and 3-1, keeps showing a strange mix of good and shaky with results that include a tough win at Rutgers, a home loss to Oregon and a close call against Washington.
Purdue may be the most surprising turnaround of all. The Boilermakers, coming off three straight losing seasons of 2-10, 1-1 and 4-8, beat Minnesota 41-13 to move to 3-3 and 2-1.
Minnesota entered the game at 4-2 and 2-1 after an emotional 20-14 win over Michigan. Purdue sophomore running back Fame Ijeboi, who played at Minnesota the past two years, rushed for 195 yards.
Northwestern also kept it moving, beating Ball State 45-14 to move to 4-1 and 1-1. New offensive coordinator Chip Kelly has the Wildcats averaging 35.4 points per game. Michigan and Wisconsin were both idle.
Each Monday, the conference results keep reshaping the picture for Nebraska and everyone else. Right now, the Big Ten looks far less settled than anyone expected.
In Other News...
Nebraska Has A Dylan Raiola Reunion Brewing With One Big Catch
The Ducks are heading into their matchup with Nebraska with a little more quarterback uncertainty than they would like, as Dante Moore remains in concussion protocol. If Moore cant go, Dylan Raiola would be the next man up, giving Oregon a familiar option with enough experience to handle a game of this size. It also would come with an extra layer of interest, since Raiola transferred from Nebraska and now could find himself on the opposite sideline from the program he once called home.
Raiolas recent play has been uneven, which is part of what makes this situation so intriguing for Oregon. He followed a strong showing against USC with a rough outing in the loss to UCLA, leaving the Ducks to weigh both his upside and the volatility that has shown up in his latest appearances. If he does get the nod, the game would carry obvious personal meaning for him, even before you get to the larger stakes of Oregon trying to keep its offense on track. [Read more 🡒]
Oregons Bear Alexander Controversy Just Put Dan Lanning Under Pressure
Dan Lanning spent part of Oregons game against UCLA dealing with more than just the scoreboard, as defensive lineman Bear Alexander became the center of a nasty sequence that drew immediate scrutiny. Video showed Alexander punching UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava while Iamaleava was on the ground, and the play helped contribute to a knee injury that is expected to end the quarterbacks season.
UCLA coach Bob Chesney called the incident egregious and regrettable, and the aftermath now puts Lanning in a difficult public spot as Oregon moves forward. He said Alexander will not be disciplined, viewing the punch as an effort to dislodge the ball, while Alexander has reportedly expressed remorse and said he did not intend to cause harm. [Read more 🡒]
Oregons Latest Loss Exposed A Ducks Problem Fans Cant Ignore
The fallout from Oregons loss to No. 12 UCLA has been about more than just a drop out of the top 25. It has forced the Ducks to confront the kind of questions that tend to follow a team when the results stop matching the expectations, and edge rusher Teitum Tuioti was among the players asked to address whether there were any deeper issues inside the locker room. His response centered on leadership and unity, the sort of steadying message teams lean on when a season starts to tilt.
There were still some defensive positives for Oregon to point to, but the bigger concern has been the offense, which has not held up its end as the margin for error keeps shrinking. With the conference title path now more difficult and the College Football Playoff picture fading, the Ducks are left trying to show the kind of cohesion that can salvage what is left. For a program that had been carrying higher hopes not long ago, the challenge now is less about style points than about whether the group can stay together through the downturn. [Read more 🡒]