No. 24 Northwestern Beats Rutgers 42-14 as Chiles Accounts for Five Touchdowns

No. 24 Northwestern beat Rutgers 42-14 at Ryan Field in Evanston on Saturday, October 24, 2026, behind a five touchdown game from quarterback Aidan Chiles. The Wildcats improved to 6-1 overall and 3-1 in the Big Ten with their fourth straight win. Rutgers fell to 2-5 overall and 1-3 in the conference.

Chiles does it both ways

Chiles completed 19 of 25 passes for 219 yards and three touchdowns, and he added 83 rushing yards and two touchdowns on the ground. His touchdown passes went to Griffin Wilde, Alex Honig and Drew Wagner. He opened his scoring with a 1 yard touchdown run in the first quarter, and he closed it with a 37 yard touchdown run with 4:33 left in the fourth quarter. Northwestern led 28-6 at halftime after scoring 21 points in the first quarter and seven in the second, and the result was settled long before Chiles finished it.

Komolafe and Wilde pile up yards

Caleb Komolafe rushed 13 times for 150 yards and one touchdown, including a 56 yard run, giving Northwestern a second runner over 100 yards on the day alongside Chiles' 83. Wilde finished with nine catches for 133 yards and one touchdown, the biggest receiving line on either side. The Wildcats scored in three of the four quarters, going quiet only in the third, and their defense forced three turnovers to keep Rutgers from building any run of possessions.

The scoring by quarters

The quarter scores show the shape of the afternoon. Northwestern scored 21 points in the first quarter, seven in the second, none in the third and 14 in the fourth. Rutgers scored three in the first, three in the second, eight in the third and none in the fourth. The third quarter was the only one Rutgers won, and it was also their best attacking period, built around Raymond's touchdown run. By then the Wildcats already held a 22 point lead, and the fourth quarter removed what doubt was left.

Rutgers loses its quarterback early

Rutgers starting quarterback Dylan Lonergan left the game after a blow to the head 6 minutes and 25 seconds into the first quarter and did not return. He was replaced first by AJ Surace and later by Sean Ashenfelder. The Scarlet Knights managed two field goals from Dane Pizzaro in the first half, three points in each of the first two quarters, and scored their only touchdown late in the third quarter, a 46 yard run by Antwan Raymond. Raymond rushed 18 times for 150 yards, matching Komolafe's total in a losing effort. The loss was Rutgers' 46th straight defeat against a ranked opponent.