Northwestern, UCLA and USC Earn Weekly Football Honors

ROSEMONT, Ill. – Following Week 3 contests, the Big Ten Conference Football Players of the Week were announced Monday. Below are this week’s honorees:
 
Offensive Player of the Week
Aidan Chiles, Northwestern
Sr. – QB – Long Beach, Calif. – Downey
• Completed 17-of-22 passes for 241 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions, while also rushing for two scores on the ground in a 41-7 win over Colorado
• First Northwestern quarterback since 2001 and 26th Big Ten quarterback since at least 1995 to record a minimum of three passing touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns in a single game
• First Big Ten quarterback to post at least a 75% completion percentage, throw for 240 passing yards, throw for three touchdowns and rush for two scores in a single game since 2017
• Last Northwestern Offensive Player of the Week: Preston Stone (Nov. 24, 2025)
 
Defensive Player of the Week
Sammy Omosigho, UCLA
Sr. – LB – Crandall, Texas – Crandall
• Against Purdue, totaled a team-high 12 tackles (11 solo) while forcing two fumbles and recording 2.0 sacks for 21 yards
• First Bruin since at least the turn of the century to force a fumble in three straight games
• Notched the first multi-sack game of his career and hit the double-digit tackle mark for the second time
• Last UCLA Defensive Player of the Week: Ta’Shawn James (Sept. 7, 2026)
 
Special Teams Player of the Week
Caden Chittenden, USC
R-So. – K – Las Vegas, Nev. – Faith Lutheran
• Was perfect in the Trojans’ 42-35 road victory over Rutgers, converting both field goal attempts and all four PATs
• Accounted for 10 points, the second-most by any USC player in the game and the most he’s scored as a Trojan
• Last USC Special Teams Player of the Week: Ryon Sayeri (Nov. 17, 2025)
 
Freshman of the Week
Riley Wormley, USC
R-Fr. – RB – Euless, Texas – Carroll
• Produced 54 yards from scrimmage and a pair of touchdowns on just four touches, rushing three times for a career-high 52 yards and catching a two-yard touchdown pass against the Scarlet Knights
• Averaged an explosive 17.3 yards per carry with each of his three rushing attempts, gaining at least 12 yards and producing a first down or touchdown
• Last USC Freshman of the Week: Mark Bowman (Sept. 14, 2026)
 
2026 Big Ten Football Players of the Week
Sept. 7
O: Jayden Maiava, QB, R-Sr., USC
Co-D: Caleb Bacon, DE, R-Sr., PSU
Co-D: Ta’Shawn James, DB, Sr., UCLA
ST: Javon Tracy, WR, 5th-Yr., MINN
F: Jamal Rule, RB, Fr., NEB
 
Sept. 14
O: Anthony Colandrea, QB, Sr., NEB
D: John Henry Daley, DE, Sr., MICH
ST: Caden Buhr, PK, So., IOWA
F: Mark Bowman, TE, Fr., USC
 
Sept. 21
O: Aidan Chiles, QB, Sr., NU
D: Sammy Omosigho, LB, Sr., UCLA
ST: Caden Chittenden, K, R-So., USC
F: Riley Wormley, RB, R-Fr., USC