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Saturday night was a really special night if you enjoy individual performances.
Penn State’s Saquon Barkley and Trace McSorley put on a show inside Beaver Stadium on Saturday night, eviscerating Michigan’s defense as the Nittany Lions clobbered the Wolverines 42-13. Both players looked like Heisman candidates against one of the nation’s top statistical defenses.
There were several other B1G players who had outstanding performances on Saturday night, but none were quite as special as the show Barkley and McSorley put on in Happy Valley. Still, I guess it’s only fair that we give those other players a little respect this weekend, too.
Here are the B1G Game Balls from Week 8:
Trevor Morris, Rutgers LB – Morris had a big afternoon, tallying 15 total stops and a pass deflection against Purdue. The linebacker was a tackling machine for the Scarlet Knights and made a couple big stops on the day. Morris was one of the several reasons why the Boilermakers had trouble closing drives on Saturday.
Hunter Niswander, Northwestern P – It might be weird to find a punter on this list, but if you watched the Iowa-Northwestern game, you’ll understand this is definitely appropriate. Niswander punted five times with three of those landing inside the 20-yard line. His 80-yard punt that pinned Iowa at its own 2-yard line even proved to be the turning point in the contest.
Jonathan Celestin, Minnesota DB – A pick-six late in the game all but sealed Minnesota’s first B1G win of the season. Celestin’s outing wasn’t huge, posting just five stops and the interception returned for touchdown, but it was his timing that lands him one of our coveted Game Balls.
Saquon Barkley, Penn State RB – It took Barkley just 43 seconds before he broke free for a 69-yard touchdown run to put Penn State ahead on Saturday. After that, it was all Nittany Lions. Barkley finished the day with 108 rushing yards, 53 receiving yards and three total touchdowns in a 42-13 win over Michigan.
Troy Fumagalli, Wisconsin TE – He probably wasn’t the top offensive performer for Wisconsin, but he provided Alex Hornibrook with a solid target in the passing attack. Fumagalli caught seven passes for 83 yards to keep the Maryland defense off balance and the Badger offense moving down the field
Cody White, Michigan State WR – White was one of the few bright spots for Michigan State’s offense in a 17-9 win over Saturday. The receiver hauled in six passes for 99 yards in the victory, and was the top receiver of the afternoon. He came up with big catches on each of the Spartans’ scoring drives, which all proved to be key receptions.
Kobe McCrary, Minnesota RB – 153 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries was good enough for Kobe McCrary to receive one of our Game Balls this week. This was a must-win game for Minnesota and P.J. Fleck, and the Gophers needed a big performance from one of its better offensive players. McCrary might not have been the most likely source, but he delivered in a big way.
Stanley Green, Illinois DB – Even though the Illini fell short, Stanley Green had a great defensive outing. He recorded 13 tackles, including six solo stops and recorded an interception for Illinois. It wasn’t enough to win, but Green certainly deserves some recognition for his contributions.
Trace McSorley, Penn State QB – McSorley was sensational in every facet of the game Saturday night. Aside from one interception early in the contest, the quarterback was flawless. He completed 17-of-26 passes for 282 yards and a touchdown. He was shifty with his legs, rushing for 76 yards and three touchdowns on 11 carries. So yeah, McSorley had a pretty nice evening in Happy Valley against Michigan.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB