The State CollegeThe Big Ten championship game will feature Penn State.
After defeating Maryland 44-7 and receiving some assistance from Michigan’s upset of Ohio State on a wild Saturday, the Nittany Lions guaranteed their place in the league championship game.
Next Saturday, Penn State, which is ranked fourth in the College Football Playoff rankings, will play No. 1 Oregon for the Big Ten title at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
CBS will broadcast the game nationwide, with kickoff at 8 p.m.
If either Oregon or Penn State wins, they will likely get the No. 1 overall seed and a first-round bye into the CFP quarterfinals in the new 12-team format.
Penn State would still be projected to qualify for the CFP even if they lost. Additionally, the Nittany Lions would probably host a first-round game at Beaver Stadium unless they are completely destroyed by the Ducks.
Penn State had little chance of qualifying for the Big Ten title going into Saturday. As a three-touchdown favorite, Ohio State only needed to defeat Michigan to guarantee their place in Indianapolis.
However, the Buckeyes suffered a humiliating 13-10 loss to the Wolverines at home. Kicker Jayden Fielding missed two field goals, Michigan’s Dominic Zvada made a game-winning field goal with 45 seconds remaining, and Ohio State quarterback Will Howard threw two interceptions. Ryan Day lost against Michigan for the fourth consecutive game as the Buckeyes were unable to equal the score.
That outcome provided Penn State with certainty before their kickoff matchup with Maryland at 3:30 p.m. Because of the Big Ten’s tiebreakers, a victory would move the Nittany Lions into Ohio State’s open spot.
The Nittany Lions will go to the Big Ten title game on the conference’s fourth head-to-head tiebreaker: cumulative opponent conference record, even if Purdue is defeated on Saturday night by Indiana, the other Big Ten club with a single loss.
The Nittany Lions’ hardest test of the season will be against Oregon. With victories over Boise State and Ohio State, the Ducks are the final team in college football to remain unbeaten.
James Franklin, Drew Allar, and the Nittany Lions will have a huge chance to prove themselves against the top team in the country. Next Saturday, we’ll see how they perform.
Stories by
Johnny McGonigal
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