BIG TEN ROUNDUP : At 6-0, Wisconsin Off to Its Best Start Since 1912

Wisconsin is off to its best start since 1912, but the Badgers aren’t ready to start talking about the Rose Bowl.

Wisconsin moved to 6-0 Saturday with a 42-28 victory over Purdue at West Lafayette, Ind. Darrell Bevell threw for 204 yards and four touchdowns in less than three quarters and Brent Moss rushed for 139 yards.

Upcoming for the Badgers is a game at Minnesota before home games with Michigan and Ohio State.

Bevell was 15 for 20 before leaving the game with a sprain in his right hip. His final pass was a seven-yard touchdown pass to Matt Nyquist, giving Wisconsin a 35-0 advantage with 10:53 left in the third quarter.

“I’ll be back next week,” Bevell said.

The victory assured the Badgers, 6-0 and 3-0 in the Big Ten, of their first winning season since the 1984 team finished 7-4-1, and kept them in a tie for the Big Ten lead. The Boilermakers (1-5, 0-3) didn’t get across midfield until midway in the third quarter when Rick Trefzger, playing in place of Matt Pike, moved Purdue 80 yards in eight plays to score on an 11-yard pass to Jermaine Ross.

Illinois 49, Iowa 3--Ty Douthard scored three touchdowns and Chris Richardson kicked four field goals at Iowa City as Illinois enjoyed its best offensive outing in two years.

Last in the Big Ten in total offense, Illinois (2-4, 2-1) amassed a season-high 475 yards and tagged Iowa with its most lopsided conference defeat in Coach Hayden Fry’s 15 seasons. The Hawkeyes (2-4, 0-4) are off to their worst Big Ten start since 1973, when they finished 0-11.

Minnesota 28, Northwestern 26--Scott Eckers passed for three touchdowns in fog-shrouded Dyche Stadium at Evanston, Ill., and Minnesota held off a 13-point fourth-quarter rally by the Wildcats.

The Gophers (3-4, 2-2) broke a 13-game road-losing streak and won two in a row for the first time since 1990.

Northwestern (0-3, 2-4) trailed 28-10 early in the third quarter, but rallied to close the gap.