The last time both of those schools were unbeaten after the first four games was in 1910. The last time Indiana and Illinois finished the same season with winning records was in 2007 — Indiana was 7-6, Illinois was 9-4.
A lot of football ranging from mediocre to bad has been played in Bloomington, Indiana, and Champaign, Illinois.
It's been more than two decades since either school won a Big Ten title. Illinois coach Ron Turner did it in 2001 when he guided the Illini to a 10-2 finish. John Pont was the coach when Hoosiers last won a Big Ten crown in 1967.
So there hasn't been much to crow about — until 2024.
Indiana beat FIU 31-7 in the opener, routed FCS squad Western Illinois in Week 2 and then grabbed everyone's attention by going on the road and
Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke, a transfer from Ohio who threw for 307 yards and four touchdowns against UCLA, is currently the top-rated quarterback in the conference. Wake Forest transfer Justice Ellison is among the top 10 in the conference with 290 rushing yards and four touchdowns going into Saturday's game at Maryland (3-1).
“I think this team has learned a lot, and I think they’ve developed some pretty strong intangibles,” first-year
Illinois under fourth-year coach Bret Bielema dispatched Eastern Illinois 45-0, got by then-No. 19 Kansas 23-17 and beat Central Michigan 30-9.
Illinois debuted in the
“I wanted those guys to understand, it's great, right?," Bielema said. “Now every week you kind of set the standard over again.”
The Illini's Luke Altmyer, who transferred from Ole Miss last year, leads conference quarterbacks with 10 touchdown passes. He was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week for his performance against Nebraska.
Besides Penn State, the other conference unbeatens are Ohio State, Oregon and Rutgers — all 3-0.
