CONFERENCE FOOTBALL REPORTS

at No. 12 Michigan State 30, Penn State 27: Payton Thorne threw two touchdown passes and ran for another to lift the Spartans. Kenneth Walker III rushed for 138 yards and a touchdown in 30 carries as Michigan State bounced back from last week’s 56-7 loss to Ohio State. Sean Clifford threw three touchdown passes, two to Jahan Dotson, for the Nittany Lions, who closed the regular season with five losses in their last seven games. Thorne connected with Jayden Reed on a 20-yard scoring pass on fourth and 15 with 5:10 left to give Michigan State some cushion.

at Minnesota 23, No. 14 Wisconsin 13: Tanner Morgan overcame an interception that was returned for a first-half touchdown, leading the Gophers on three scoring drives after halftime to surge past the Badgers, take back Paul Bunyan’s Axe and give Iowa the Big Ten West Division title. Morgan led Minnesota on a sprint into the end zone to hoist the 73-year-old trophy on their home field for the first time since 2003. Wisconsin running back Braelon Allen was held to 47 yards in 17 carries after having topped the 100-yard mark in each of his previous seven games.

at Purdue 44, Indiana 7: Aidan O’Connell tied a career high with four touchdown passes and Zander Horvath ran for another score as the Boilermakers won the Old Oaken Bucket for the first time since 2018. Purdue has won four of five to post its highest single-season victory total since 2006 with eight. The Hoosiers have lost their last eight games and suffered their first winless conference season since 2011.

Maryland 40, at Rutgers 16: The Terrapins earned their first bowl berth since 2016 as quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa threw three touchdowns and ran for another. Tagovailoa finished 21 of 30 for 312 yards. The yardage gave him 3,595 yards, breaking the single-season school record of 3,499.

at Illinois 47, Northwestern 14: Brandon Peters threw for 242 yards and a touchdown in the rout for the Illini, who are hoping a resounding victory to end the regular season will secure their second bowl bid in five years.