The following was published as part of Bleacher Report Top 25: Week 12. It is reproduced and elaborated on here.
It’s always windy in Big Ten country—but especially so this week, as college football fans breathe a sigh of relief.
Thank you, Juice Williams.
What a crime it would have been to see the BCS’ weakest conference send a representative to the National Championship Game.
Anyone else tired of hearing about all the bowl-eligible teams in the Big Ten? For the record, there are already 10 of them. Only Minnesota will finish with a losing record this season.
How did that happen?
Check out the nonconference gems the Big Ten schedules have to offer:
Ohio State 33, Washington 14
Oregon 39, Michigan 7
Missouri 40, Illinois 34
Illinois 41, Syracuse 20
Washington St. 21, Wisconsin 42
Syracuse 0, Iowa 35
Iowa 13, Iowa St. 15
Duke 20, Northwestern 14
Michigan St. 17, Pittsburgh 13
That is the comprehensive list of non-conference games the Big Ten played against BCS conference opponents this season.
The Big Ten’s combined record in those games, 5-4. And only two of those opponents—Oregon and Missouri—have winning records in their own conference. (Disclaimer: Michigan, Penn State, Michigan State, and Purdue all played and beat independent Notre Dame... who clearly doesn't have a winning record in any conference.)
FOUR Big Ten teams failed to play a single opponent from another BCS conference!
Pathetic.
Several of our pollsters represent the Big Ten. Personally, I'm a fan of the conference and respect its athletic programs. But as a fan, this has to stop.
I understand that the Buckeyes are between series against Texas and USC. This season, Washington let them down. Just as Notre Dame let Michigan, Penn State, Michigan State, and Purdue down. But Ohio State is the exception in the Big Ten, not the rule. And if we've learned anything over the course of the last decade, it's that Notre Dame can't always be counted on for a strength of schedule infusion.
Beyond the non-conference scheduling, what I really take issue with is the fact that the Big Ten chooses not to play a full round-robin or split into divisions and play a conference championship game.
The fault is shared between the conference and the BCS. It's inexcusable to me that the committee grants the Big Ten an automatic BCS bid even though it's the only conference that doesn't adhere to either formula for determining a champion.
2006 was a glaring example of the problem that can create, as Ohio State earned a trip to the national championship game (and in my estimation, rightly so), without having to beat one of the best teams in its own conference, Wisconsin.
Instead of adding a conference game when the NCAA expanded to the 12-game format, the Big Ten let member schools fill schedules with The Citadel, and Kent State, and Buffalo, and Florida International.
No conference has abused the 12-game format more.
And as a direct result, this weekend’s Big Game has never felt so small.
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