BIG TEN ROUNDUP : Law Gets 240 Yards Rushing in First Indiana Start

Brett Law, a sophomore who redshirted two years ago because of a mysterious stomach ailment, ran 42 times for 240 yards and two touchdowns in his first college start as the Indiana beat Missouri, 20-10, Saturday at Bloomington, Ind.

Law, who had 169 yards as a backup last year, rushed for 141 in the first half, scoring on short runs in the closing minutes of each of the first two quarters.

Indiana (2-1) held a 14-0 lead until Jeff Jacke kicked a 38-yard field goal for Missouri (0-3) as the first half ended. The Tigers rallied with a 63-yard touchdown pass play from Jeff Handy to Victor Bailey in the third quarter, but the Hoosiers put the game away with field goals of 24 and 27 yards by Scott Bonnell in the final quarter.

The Tigers haven’t won a nonconference game on the road since 1981 and have lost eight straight games overall since last season.

Wisconsin 18, Northern Illinois 17--Plagued by five turnovers, the Badgers had to score two fourth-quarter touchdowns to escape with a victory at Madison, Wis.

Wisconsin (2-1) trailed, 17-3, after Northern Illinois (2-2) scored two touchdowns to start the fourth quarter, including a 19-yard pass from quarterback Ron Rugai.

But Brent Moss scored on runs of two and 11 yards, the latter with two minutes left, and freshman Darrell Bevell then scrambled around right end for the deciding two-point conversion.

Rugai twice overthrew flanker Larry Wynn from the Wisconsin 39 as time ran out.

Moss, who rushed for 88 yards in 13 carries, shouldered the lion’s share of the Badgers’ running attack after Terrell Fletcher left with an ankle sprain late in the third quarter. Fletcher had 124 yards in 22 carries.

Wisconsin, which lost only two fumbles in its first two games, lost three Saturday.

Pittsburgh 41, Minnesota 33--By losing at Pittsburgh, the Gophers fell to 0-3 under former Texas Christian Coach Jim Wacker and their nine-game losing streak matches Maryland’s as the longest in Division I-A.

Van Pelt directed Pitt (2-2) to scores on five of the Panthers’ seven first-half possessions and a 31-6 halftime lead, throwing touchdown passes of 12 yards to Chris Bouyer and 58 to Dietrich Jells while completing 15 of his first 17 passes.

Jells also scored on a 49-yard pass play in the fourth quarter to make the score 41-19.

Van Pelt became the first quarterback in Pitt history to throw for more than 9,000 career yards, finishing 22 of 33 for 364 yards to push his career total to 9,326.

Pitt’s Tim Colicchio, in his first start of the season, rushed for 125 yards in 23 carries and scored on a 27-yard run.

The Panthers ended a two-game losing streak while winning for the fifth time in their last six games against Big Ten opponents.

Last week in a 21-16 loss to Rutgers, Van Pelt broke Dan Marino’s school passing record but was criticized by Coach Paul Hackett for failing to convert long drives into touchdowns.