Michigan State Football: Race for the Big Ten Championship and a BCS Bowl Bid

Okay, I'm just going to come out and say it.

The Iowa Hawkeyes made me eat my words. Period.

I'm going to refrain from writing anything remotely related to a game recap.

Trying to explain in a logical format how Iowa THWOMPED (Super Mario Brothers reference for all you old-school Nintendo gamers out there) Michigan State may be deemed inappropriate from a journalistic standpoint.

But hope does remain for Spartans fans, as Michigan State still controls their own destiny in becoming the 2010 Big Ten Champions, or a share of the title at the very least.

This team has a very favorable schedule the rest of the way.

Their remaining games are against Minnesota, Purdue, and at Penn State. All of these teams are unranked, and have a combined record of 10-15 going into Week 10. Michigan State also has the tiebreaker over Wisconsin, thanks to a 34-24 win back in Week 5. Not having to play Ohio State helps, in addition to the Buckeyes' loss to the Badgers.

After seeing how the Spartans played through the first eight weeks of the season, they are very capable of finishing with an 11-1 record. However, after being thwomped by Iowa, they are also capable of being upset in each of their final three contests. 

But I prefer to see the glass half full, and Sparty should finish out 11-1 with at least a share of the Big Ten Title.

With that being said, a possible at large bid into the BCS will most definitely suffice (worst case scenario being a New Year's Day Bowl game) for the Spartans. And if Michigan State is fortunate enough to win the Big Ten outright, then a BCS Bowl bid is theirs.

Coach Mark Dantonio's squad and Spartans fans everywhere should not dwell on this loss. My reasoning: a 6-7 campaign a year ago in 2009, and ZERO bowl wins since 2001. Their last bowl win was against Fresno State of the Western Athletic Conference (rejoice in your mediocrity over the past decade, Spartans fans).

Also, Michigan State has not made an appearance in the Rose Bowl as the Big Ten representative since 1988. So by today's Bowl Championship Series standards, the Spartans have not played in a major bowl game in over two decades.

With all that being said, a possible record of 11-1 and at least a share of the Big Ten Championship for the 2010 season is a significant accomplishment. Especially if you compare it to the past twenty years of Michigan State football.