Iowa to play Michigan State in Big Ten Championship Game

As with most NCAA things, expect money and power (TV sets, tickets sold, etc.) to decide the issue. While Alabama’s overall resume features more wins against good teams, Clemson gets the edge in big victories with wins against Notre Dame and Florida State. But the Buckeyes were the best in the end, and that’s what mattered.

“The history of the two football teams is that we’ve played some great games the past few years”, Dantonio said.

They got a taste of what Spartans quarterback Connor Cook is all about on that early October day two seasons ago, watching the junior complete 25 of 44 passes for 277 yards and two touchdowns as Michigan State scored the final 16 points in its 26-14 win at Kinnick Stadium.

Ohio State, which easily beat MI earlier Saturday, was holding out hope that Penn State would spoil the regular season finale in East Lansing, but the Nittany Lions didn’t come close.

Michigan State will play in the Big Ten title game for the third time in five seasons. That’s heaven for Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany but a cruel ending for the Buckeyes, who figured out their offensive formula one week too late. Not well enough, anyway, to keep up with a Michigan State offense that was dominating those battles consistently.

This year, the Big Ten champion will make the four-team playoff. And best of all: Nobody can sensibly argue that point.

“You can’t do that against a good team”, Hackenberg said.

People will argue about this, because it’s college football and America and that’s what we do. But this is pretty simple. Something about those Gamecocks (3-9) against ACC teams.

Michigan State wasn’t far behind. And that should be that. “No matter what seemed to happen, our team seemed to persevere”.

In all, the Lions are 0-6 against the Big Ten East’s Big Three, having been outscored 204-89.

But Michigan State players and coaches said Saturday that they may not have gotten to where they are now without that loss. They would rant and rave about Iowa’s weak schedule and say that Michigan State is not in Alabama’s league. The Buckeyes could end up in the Rose Bowl. The narrative would ignore those. The fact Penn State is a young team that still lacks depth shined through today.

After reviewing tape of Friday’s game at Nebraska on Saturday morning, Iowa resumes its normal game-week preparations with a practice Sunday as it turns its attention to Michigan State.

Michigan State had everything to lose and played like it while the Lions at times looked lost, failing to recognize a double fake from Cook, who sold it beautifully for a touchdown pass, and struggling to make tackles in the open field. Thanks to a Baylor loss and a commanding road win over a ranked opponent, Ohio State should improve on its No. 8 ranking and secure a New Years Bowl slot for themselves. Maybe the Spartans have won so much in recent years that they assumed they would win. They trailed the entire game until the last play.

Michigan’s Defense allowed Ohio State to rack up 376 yards rushing, spread among 4 players, led by Ezekiel Elliott with 216 yards on 30 carries. “We all felt like we needed that loss”. We’d been playing with fire all season. “We came into this saying the offensive line and Zeke are going to win it”. In 2014, the Buckeyes won 42-28 in Columbus and won 42-41-a game decided by a incomplete 2-point conversion try by Michigan-in 2013 in Ann Arbor. And that only helps Michigan State. MI hasn’t defeated Ohio State since 2011 and has only defeated the Buckeyes once in the last 12 years….