Will Howard popped up, victory in hand and the homecoming the Ohio State quarterback longed for complete.

The Pennsylvania native who has long felt Penn State didn’t think he was good enough to play there signaled first down with his hand.

Once. Twice. Three times.

Howard might as well have kept going all the way to eight, the number of consecutive wins the fourth-ranked Buckeyes have over the third-ranked Nittany Lions after a 20-13 victory on Saturday that ended with a late goal-line defensive stand followed by Howard and Ohio State’s offense draining the clock with a drive that made up for in physicality what it lacked in precision.

“We willed ourselves to win that game,” said Howard, who grew up in the Philadelphia suburbs waiting for a scholarship offer from Penn State that never came.

Revenge was sweet, if a little sloppy. Howard threw a pick-6 on his first pass to put Ohio State in an early 10-point hole and later fumbled before crossing the goal line to cost the Buckeyes (7-1, 4-1 Big Ten) another score.

The Kansas State transfer atoned by throwing for 182 yards and touchdowns to Emeka Egbuka and Brandon Inniss. Howard added another 24 on the ground, the last seven of consequence coming on an option that sealed the game and led a not insignificant portion of the largest crowd in Beaver Stadium history (111,030) to send Penn State coach James Franklin into the tunnel under a chorus of boos, though not before a tense exchange with one fan.

“I own it all,” Franklin said after falling to 1-10 against a program that has treated Penn State more as a little brother than a rival.

The Nittany Lions (7-1, 4-1) saw their hopes of reaching the Big Ten Championship take a serious hit. And while it remains on relatively solid ground for the 12-team College Football Playoff, Penn State missed a chance to give its CFP resume some needed polish.

no. 1 Oregon 38, Michigan 17 >> In Oregon’s first Big Ten season, the top-ranked Ducks have beaten the conference’s traditional powers: Ohio State and Michigan. Dillon Gabriel threw a touchdown pass and ran for a score in another efficient performance from the Heisman Trophy front-runner, leading Oregon to a 38-17 win over the defending national champion Wolverines on Saturday. The Ducks beat the Buckeyes 32-31 three weeks ago.

No. 13 Indiana 47, Michigan State 10 >> Kurtis Rourke threw for 263 yards and four touchdowns, including two to Elijah Sarratt, and Amare Ferrell had two interceptions to lead No. 13 Indiana over Michigan State and its first 9-0 start in school history. Rourke, who missed last week’s game following surgery on his injured right thumb, completed 19 of 29 passes. The Spartans jumped ahead 10-0 before the Hoosiers scored 47 consecutive points. Indiana hadn’t trailed all season before Saturday. This is only the third season in Indiana history — dating back to the 1800s — in which the Hoosiers have won nine games.

UCLA 27, Nebraska 20 >> Ethan Garbers threw for two touchdowns, linebacker Kain Medrano returned an interception for a touchdown to start the second half, and UCLA held off Nebraska late to beat the Cornhuskers. The Bruins have won consecutive games for the first time under first-year coach DeShaun Foster following a 1-5 start. The Cornhuskers have dropped three straight and lost freshman quarterback Dylan Raiola to a crushing hit on their second-to-last possession.

Northwestern 26, Purdue 20, OT >> Joseph Himon II scored the first touchdown and the final touchdown at Purdue, leading Northwestern to an overtime victory. Himon had six carries for 78 yards and three catches for 34 yards as the Wildcats won their second Big Ten game. Purdue got the ball first in overtime but passed up the chance to kick a go-ahead field goal before turning the ball over on downs when it failed to convert on fourth-and-6 from the 21-yard line. Himon scored two plays later to hand the Boilermakers their seventh straight loss.

Iowa 42, Wisconsin 10 >> Kaleb Johnson rushed for 135 yards and three touchdowns and quarterback Brendan Sullivan rushed for a touchdown and threw for one as Iowa defeated Wisconsin 42-10 on Saturday night. The Hawkeyes (6-3, 4-2 Big Ten) rushed for 329 yards.