Illini quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase earned a pair of Big Ten honors for his performance against Purdue on Saturday, as the conference announced Monday that Scheelhaase was named the Big Ten Offensive Player and Freshman of the Week. It is Scheelhaase’s first Offensive Player of the Week honor and fourth time this season that he’s been named the Freshman of the Week.
It’s safe to say (If I may paraphrase Milhouse Van Houten from The Simpsons) “everything’s coming up Scheelhaase!” or “the haase always wins.” He seems to have the Big Ten Freshman of the year award sewn up now. Although he will certainly get some stiff competition from the Wisconsin Badgers tailback James White.
Scheelhaase had a career game in Illinois’ 44-10 win over Purdue, completing 16-of-20 passes for 195 yards and a career-high four touchdowns with no interceptions. That resulted in a career-best 227.9 passer rating, which is the sixth-best single-game rating in Illini history. He also rushed for a career-high 118 yards on 21 carries (5.6 yards per carry), the sixth-best QB rushing total in school history. The 313 yards of total offense and 80 percent completion percentage also marked career highs for the Kansas City, Mo., native.