Braydon Brus Earns Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week Honors

ROSEMONT, Ill. — Braydon Brus has been named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week, the conference announced Monday.

The fifth-year linebacker stuffed the stat sheet, recording nine tackles, one sack, one interception and one pass breakup in Northwestern’s 34-13 victory over Penn State. Brus is just the third Big Ten player in the past 10 seasons to post these numbers in a conference game and is the first to do so since 2020.

Brus is the first Northwestern player to earn Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors since Aidan Hubbard on October 10, 2023. The Glendora, Calif., native is the second Wildcat to earn Big Ten weekly honors this season, after fourth-year quarterback Aidan Chiles was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week on September 21.

The last Northwestern player to have 9+ tackles, 1+ sack, 1+ interception and 1+ pass breakup in a game was safety Ibraheim Campbell, who did so against Wisconsin on October 12, 2013.

The last Wildcat linebacker to record one interception and one sack in a conference game was Nate Hall on November 18, 2017, against Minnesota.

Brus’ nine tackles marked a season-high and the third-most in a game in his career. He recorded his first career interception, while tying career highs in sacks and pass breakups. He has posted at least one tackle for loss in each game this season.

Brus is the first Northwestern player to have 1+ tackle for loss in four consecutive games since defensive lineman Jeremy Meiser did so from September 3-25, 2021.

The Nittany Lions scored just 13 points, their fewest in a game since 2024. They managed just 48 rushing yards, the fewest rushing yards the Wildcats have allowed against a Big Ten team since November 2, 2024 against Purdue (47).

Through four games, Brus has tallied 29 tackles, five tackles for loss (leads team), three sacks (leads team), two pass breakups, one interception and one forced fumble. His five tackles for loss rank tied for sixth in the Big Ten, and his three sacks are tied for the most among Big Ten linebackers.

Northwestern hosts its 115th Homecoming game on October 10, facing Ball State at Ryan Field. Kickoff is set for 11:30 a.m. CT on Big Ten Network.