Oregon clinches Big Ten title game spot; Ohio St., Indiana, Penn St. still battling

Field Level Media|published: Tue 19th November, 18:03 2024

Oct 12, 2024; Eugene, Oregon, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes mascot Brutus and the Oregon Duck interact during the first half of the NCAA football game at Autzen Stadium

No. 1 Oregon was confirmed as a Big Ten Conference championship game participant by league officials on Tuesday.

As many as 10 scenarios for the second spot opposite the Ducks could play out over the final two weeks of the regular season, according to the Big Ten.

The undefeated Ducks are on a run of five consecutive weeks as the top-ranked team in the nation and are headed to Indianapolis on Dec. 7 no matter what happens in their Nov. 30 game against Washington, a rematch of the 2023 Pac-12 championship game.

Big Ten officials reviewed all possible tiebreaker procedures before finally certifying the first-year league member will play next month in the title game.

With an 11-0 record and 8-0 standing in Big Ten games, there is no feasible tiebreaker scenario that would eliminate the Ducks from the conference championship game.

The Indiana Hoosiers (10-0, 7-0) are the only other undefeated team left in the Big Ten. But to have a chance to book its spot opposite Oregon, Indiana will have to win at Ohio State on Saturday. The Buckeyes (9-1, 6-1) have won 28 consecutive games in the series.

Oregon holds a 32-31 win over Ohio State in the Oct. 12 game at Eugene. Ohio State, in turn, holds the advantage over Penn State (9-1, 6-1) by virtue of a 20-13 win earlier this month.

But even if Ohio State beats Indiana, the Buckeyes have their annual rivalry game with Michigan (5-5, 3-4) on Nov. 30 left as the potential roadblock to a rematch with Oregon.

If the Buckeyes lose to Michigan, winning percentage among conference opponents between Indiana and Penn State would decide the second team in the title game.

That equation will likely be undecided until the final games are played.

--Field Level Media