This is a big one for all you Big Ten fans out there. IMHO, this one will decide who wins the conference. I gotta root for my Badgers, but they certainly have to bring their A+ game if they want to win it.

Did Ohio State disband their program? Or did I miss something?

Penn State by 3 touchdowns.

Badgers 73 to zip

Go Nittany Lions!

Did Ohio State disband their program? Or did I miss something?

Penn State by 3 touchdowns.

Ohio State has two conference losses. They need to win out and hope Penn State and Wisconsin each lose a game ... which seems unlikely.

Badgers will win this game, beat Iowa, and give Barry one more Big Ten Championship as a sending-off present.

Did Michigan also disband their program? Or did I too miss something?

I guess, I am hoping for Penn State to win. MSU is a tougher opponent (or can be) than Iowa, which could give everyone 2 losses, assuming Michigan can beat OSU.

Ohio State has two conference losses.

*BUZZ*

Losses to Texas and Penn St. 1 Conference loss.

Comes down to OSU-Michigan, as always.

whoops, I'm an idiot

I forgot they hadn't lost to the Wolverines yet

I forgot they hadn't lost to the Wolverines yet
Now THAT's what I'm talkin' about!

whoops, I'm an idiot

I forgot they hadn't lost to the Wolverines yet

Yeah, yeah. Cooper's gone. That old crap got played out 4 years ago. Carr is the one on the hot seat now. And he's going to need that game BADLY.

Anyway, I still think Penn State will win out and win the conference anyway based on head to head vs. OSU. Maybe Paterno will go ahead and retire if they can win their BCS game.

Did Ohio State disband their program? Or did I miss something?

Penn State by 8 touchdowns.
Yep I agree. Wish I was going to teh game but i have to go home that weekend. :-\ Go Nittany Lions!

Besides, the Big Ten Game of the Year already happened, and it was Penn St. - Michigan.

This is what you get from those Cheeseheads when their Packers are sucking donkey balls. Since it is impossible to proclaim the greatness of their Packers, they have to over inflate the caliber of the Badgers . . .

Big 10 game of the year - USC UCLA...since no big 10 team is going to the NT game you might as well watch a game that matters :)

I have to be at a wedding in St. Louis on Saturday. It starts at 11:30, should end by 2:00, I should be able to catch most of the game before I'm dragged away from the TV to go to the reception. I really hope I get to watch the whole game, especially if it's close and the Badgers come out on top.

If the Badgers win out, they'll be the Big 10 Champs and likely be in the top 5 for BCS.

Penn State by 3 touchdowns.

Seems likely.

*BUZZ*

Losses to Texas and Penn St. 1 Conference loss.

Comes down to OSU-Michigan, as always.


As I understand the rules of the Big 10 tiebreaker, they are as follows:

Tiebreakers to determine which Big Ten champion earns the automatic bid to the Bowl Championship Series:

• If there is a two-way tie, the winner of the game between the two will represent the conference. If the teams did not play each other, it is then based on overall winning percentage.

• If there is still a tie, the most recent team to earn a BCS automatic selection is eliminated.

-------------------------------------------

Penn St. has the tiebreaker over Ohio State with the win. Wisconsin, were they to win out would have a better winning percentage than Ohio State.

The question is if either Penn St. or Wisconsin would win out. Wisconsin has home against Iowa and at Hawaii. I think they win out. Penn St. has a game at Michigan St. remaining. That'll be a tough one.

I think if you are Ohio State or Michigan, you are hoping it's Penn St. wins then loses to Michigan St. As far as I can see it, that'd be the only way this will not be the game that decides the Big Ten title.

This is what you get from those Cheeseheads when their Packers are sucking donkey balls. Since it is impossible to proclaim the greatness of their Packers, they have to over inflate the caliber of the Badgers . . .

Ouch...sad but true I guess :-P

If Wisconsin DOES indeed win this weekend, they BETTER pass up Ohio State in the BCS and also in every other poll.

This is what you get from those Cheeseheads when their Packers are sucking donkey balls. Since it is impossible to proclaim the greatness of their Packers, they have to over inflate the caliber of the Badgers . . .
Or be a Vikings fan. Same difference at this point in time.

Yeah, yeah. Cooper's gone.I miss good ole Coop. :(

I am miss good ole Coop. :(

You can catch him every weekend on ESPNU in between Duke home games and Black College football. Much like when he was at OSU, the ESPNU studio show demonstrates a total lack of institutional control.

PSU are 10 pts favorites. They always play better at home than on the road, I think they win fairly comfortably.

You can catch him every weekend on ESPNU in between Duke home games and Black College football. Much like when he was at OSU, the ESPNU studio show demonstrates a total lack of institutional control.
It's just not the same though... You know?

Yep I agree. Wish I was going to teh game but i have to go home that weekend. :-\ Go Nittany Lions!

Leave it to a good friend to have his wedding this saturday. I already missed the Minnesota game for his bachelor party and now I miss this one because of his wedding. Those are the first home games I have missed in 5 years. I hope Penn State wins, I bought tickets already for the game in East Lansing so I can cheer the Lions on to a BCS title game.

I am optimistic but Wisconsin is a good team and they have one hell of a back in Calhoun. He is as good as a runner as Maroney of Minnesota but he catches the ball out of the backfield a lot better. Wisconsin has been having trouble stopping mobile QBs so that is a big plus for Penn State.

Assuming the referees for the next two Penn State games are not from Ann Arbor, then Penn State will win out. End of story...

Here's the scenario:

There are seven key games over the next three weeks. I agree that this week's Wisconsin/Penn State game is crucial because those two teams hold the tiebreaker edge over Ohio State.

November 5

Wisconsin at Penn State
Iowa at Northwestern

November 12

Northwestern at Ohio State
Iowa at Wisconsin

November 19

Ohio State at Michigan
Penn State at Michigan State
Minnesota at Iowa


I'm further assuming three games will go a certain way:

November 5

Ohio State will beat Illinois

November 12

Michigan will beat Indiana

November 19

Northwestern will beat Illinois


Those seven key games create a grid of 128 possibilities. Of those 128, 80 (62.5%) result in at least one team having only one conference loss. The tie-breakers are easy in that situation.

Wisconsin holds 32 of 80 (they win out)
Penn State holds 32 of 80 (they win out)
Ohio State holds 16 of 80 (they win out, and the winner of Penn State/Wisconsin loses its next game)

It's more complex when the conference winner has 2 losses (48 of 128 grid boxes). Wisconsin and Penn State hold the second tie-breaker, which is total winning percentage. Neither has lost a non-conference game. In Wisconsin's case, its upcoming game at Hawaii is irrelevant, as it falls into a special NCAA 12th-game exemption. So, barring a head-to-head sweep of tied teams, one of those two teams will win every tie scenario.

Wisconsin holds 22 of 48
Penn State holds 16 of 48.
Michigan holds 8 of 48 (they beat Ohio State, Penn State beats Wisconsin, Iowa beats Wisconsin and Michigan State beats Penn State).
Northwestern holds 2 of 48 (they win out, Wisconsin beats Penn State, Iowa beats Wisconsin, Michigan State beats Penn State and Ohio State beats Michigan).
Iowa cannot win the conference title.


So, overall, assuming each of those 7 games goes 50/50:

Wisconsin: 42%
Penn State: 38%
Ohio State: 13%
Michigan: 6%
Northwestern: 2%

Dolaposting:

Here's the grid probabilities for each of the four quadrants after November 5. The interesting thing is that the loser of the Penn State/Wisconsin game is eliminated from the conference title.

Wisconsin beats Penn State and Iowa beats Northwestern:

Wisconsin: 88%
Ohio State: 13%

Wisconsin beats Penn State and Northwestern beats Iowa:

Wisconsin 81%
Ohio State: 13%
Northwestern: 6%

Penn State beats Wisconsin (Iowa and Northwestern game becomes irrelevant):

Penn State: 75%
Ohio State: 13%
Michigan: 13%

wow...and that is why i love jim...wow....

I think I read somewhere that the Big Ten doesn't have rules to govern a five-team tie. I keep hoping that happens.

Usually, the tiebreaker rules involve eliminating teams from the tie and then reapplying, so they're basically the same for any n greater than 2 -- is that not the case here?

I think I read somewhere that the Big Ten doesn't have rules to govern a five-team tie. I keep hoping that happens.

This is true. The three-team and four-team tie rules are very specific, and there's no five-team tie rule. My guess is that they'd just filter out the three teams with worse overall records and apply the two-team tie-breaker (which would go to Wisconsin).

Anyhow, only one grid slot in 128 leads to the five-team tie. For that to happen, Wisconsin must beat Penn State and Iowa must beat Northwestern on Saturday. The following week, Iowa must beat Wisconsin and Ohio State must beat Northwestern. And on the 29th, Penn State must beat Michigan State, Iowa must beat Minnesota and Michigan must beat Ohio State. There are 19 slots that lead to a four-way tie, however.

Wisconsin: 42%
Penn State: 38%
Ohio State: 13%
Michigan: 6%
Northwestern: 2%

Wow, we're practically Big 10 champs already. Rock on! :D

Sadly, what Solecismic fails to realize is that Penn State will beat UW, then lose to a streaky Michigan State team, while Ohio State will win out, winning the conference.

Analyze that, Mr. Wolverine. :)

Here's top hoping that, but I ain't gonna proclaim anything with this year's OSU team. I'm hoping we can at least win out and be 9-2.

GO BUCKS!!!

GO BUCKS!!!

Ya.. that was a good start to the season last night with a win over Philadelphia...

Did Ohio State disband their program? Or did I miss something?

Penn State by 3 touchdowns.

No thanks necessary, PSU fans. Just make sure your team doesn't show up against MSU... and I'll hope that John L. can actually do a bit of coaching instead of planning his next Xtreme vacation.