Big Ten Hands Out Week 9 Honors

The Big Ten Conference announced its Week 9 Football Players of the Week on Monday morning. Four players received honors, including Northwestern tight end Drake Dunsmore, who set the school record for career receiving yards by a tight end and grabbed a school-record four touchdowns at Indiana, and Braxton Miller, who threw the game-winning touchdown pass in the final minute against Wisconsin. Watch our Northwestern-Indiana highlights now and see all the winners in this post.

Tonight on BTN: Don't miss The Pulse at 6:30 p.m. ET or Big Ten Breakdown at 7. Then, at 7:30, former Michigan star Dhani Jones hosts LiveBig. Find out what BTN.com senior writer Tom Dienhart learned in Week 9 and check out his Week 9 Hot & Not list. The latest BCS Standings are out, and there?s a new Big Ten team pacing the conference for the second straight week.

Offensive Player of the Week: Drake Dunsmore, Northwestern, Sr., TE, Lenexa, Kan./Saint Thomas Aquinas

• Caught a Northwestern single-game record four touchdown passes in the Wildcats? win over Indiana
• Scored on receptions of six, nine, 10 and 22 yards, the most touchdown receptions in a single game in the Big Ten this season
• Finished the game with seven catches for 112 yards, setting the program career record for receiving yards by a tight end
• Claims his first career Big Ten weekly honor
• Last Northwestern Offensive Player of the Week: Dan Persa (Nov. 15, 2010)

Defensive Player of the Week: Gerald Hodges, Penn State, Jr., LB, Paulsboro, N.J./Paulsboro

• Recorded a career-high 19 tackles in Penn State?s win over Illinois on Saturday, a week after posting a then personal-best 14 stops
• Also finished with one sack, two pass breakups and a forced fumble against the Illini
• Helped the Nittany Lion defense hold Illinois to seven points, the sixth time it has held an opposing offense to 10 points or less this season
• Claims his second straight and second career Defensive Player of the Week honor
• Last Penn State Defensive Player of the Week: Gerald Hodges (Oct. 24, 2011)

Special Teams Player of the Week: Jordan Wettstein, Minnesota, Jr., K, De Pere, Wis./De Pere

• Converted a successful onside kick attempt with Minnesota down 21-16 in the fourth quarter, setting up the Gophers? game-winning scoring drive
• Made his first career kicking attempts, one extra point and a field goal from 28 yards, in Minnesota?s 22-21 victory in the battle for Floyd of Rosedale
• Claims his first career Big Ten weekly honor
• Last Minnesota Special Teams Player of the Week: Duane Bennett (Sept. 19, 2011)

Freshman of the Week: Braxton Miller, Ohio State, QB, Huber Heights, Ohio/Wayne

• Rushed for two touchdowns and passed for another, the game-winning 40-yard strike to Devin Smith with just 20 seconds remaining, in Ohio State?s 33-29 win over Wisconsin.
• Finished with nearly 200 yards of total offense, a career-high 99 yards coming on the ground and 89 yards through the air on seven completions
• Scored on touchdown runs of one and 44 yards
• Claims his first career weekly honor
• Last Ohio State Freshman of the Week: N/A