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B1G Bowl Projections: Week Seven

Michigan and Ohio State are using poor Rutger to measure themselves as much as possible before they meet to end the regular season. What's the rest of the conference up to?

By Kyle Swick
Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

Indiana was beaten by Ohio State out in Columbus on Saturday, but you probably already knew that. Let's check on the rest of the Big Ten!

CARNAGE REPORT:

  • After losing to Ohio State 58-0, Rutger graciously invited Michigan into their home and suffered their worst beatdown since Vincent Van Gogh had two ears. In an apparent attempt to make sure they beat the hapless Scarlet Knights even worse than Urban Meyer did, Jim Harbaugh dropped 78 in Piscataway. Can these two just smooch already?
  • Michigan State was manhandled at home by 3-3 BYU. You can now legitimately believe that Indiana should have beaten MSU a lot more than they managed to.
  • DARRELL HAZELL WON A BIG TEN FOOTBALL GAME and that's hilarious. The man is widely believed to be required to validate his title on an hourly basis and then sneaks by 1-4 Illinois in overtime. Who is to say things aren't looking up in West Lafayette? It's basically the bare-minimum of what can be perceived as progress and I love it.
  • Penn State absolutely trashed Maryland and might actually be rounding into form. Third place in the East is up for grabs and the Nittany Lions have the early edge, just what Penn State fans have dreamed of.
  • Iowa and Minnesota combined for two touchdowns in a Hawkeyes victory. If you watched more than 30 seconds of this game, keep it to yourself. Once you awaken from your coma, that is.

B1G in the CFP?

THE FAVORITE: Ohio State

BEAT THE FAVORITE, BECOME THE FAVORITE: Michigan, Wisconsin

THE DARK HORSE: Nebraska

All eyes will be on Madison next week as the Buckeyes take on the Badgers in a game with gigantic CFP implications. If the Badgers pull off the upset, the Hoosiers beat Nebraska, and I don't look up what the tie-breaking procedures are? THEN THE HOOSIERS ARE BACK IN THE DRIVER'S SEAT FOR THE BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIP AND NO YOU STOP MAKING A SCENE IN THIS HOLIDAY INN EXPRESS.

Meanwhile, Michigan can just kick their feet up on the bye week and hope the Badgers make the Wolverines' quest for a CFP berth a little bit easier.

MY TOP FOUR: 1. Alabama 2. Ohio State 3. Washington 4. Clemson*

* Naturally, as soon as I had the audacity to whisper "Miami could wind up in the top-4" into the internet void they promptly lost to Florida State at home after the would-be game-tying extra point was blocked. That last spot, in my opinion, remains earmarked for the ACC Champion assuming they've got one loss or less and that could be any number of teams at this point, but Clemson is certainly the favorite.

Bowl Projections:

Ohio State: CFP Semifinal vs. Washington

Michigan: Rose Bowl vs. Stanford

Wisconsin: Orange Bowl vs. Miami

Nebraska: Outback Bowl vs. Tennessee

Penn State: Holiday Bowl vs. Arizona State

Maryland: Pinstripe Bowl vs. Pittsburgh

Indiana: Music City Bowl vs. Arkansas

Iowa: Foster Farms Bowl vs. Colorado

Minnesota: Quick Lane Bowl vs. Georgia Tech

Michigan State: Heart of Dallas Bowl vs. Western Kentucky

LOL NAH: Illinois, Purdue, Rutgers, Northwestern

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