The Big Ten completed their bowl lineup last night when Ohio State fell to Texas 24-21 on a last minute touchdown. This capped off what was perhaps the worst bowl season in the conference's storied history. A 1-6 record did nothing to quiet the critics. To make matters worse, four of the six losses were blowouts. Now the Big Ten has a long road back to respectability in a sport it used to dominate in.
Just a short three years ago there were talks of an Ohio State-Michigan rematch in the National Championship Game. Now, many wonder which is stronger: the Big Ten or the Mountain West Conference.
The best thing the conference can do is get Ohio State out of the spotlight. The past three seasons, the Buckeyes have faced a top out of conference opponent four times, and last all four of them. Three times they have been blown out. When Ohio State suffers, many outsiders assume that is best the Big Ten has to offer.
The time has come for a new identity to emerge as the team to beat in the Big Ten. Penn State didn't quite accomplish it this season because Ohio State still found a way into a BCS bowl, and the Nittany Lions were blown away by the same USC team that dismantled the Buckeyes in September. Ohio State out of the BCS would give the Big Ten new life. Columns would discuss the surprise of the new champion instead of waiting for the same old story to unfold.
Unfortunately, the next big test for the conference is next September, when USC travels to Columbus. Every Big Ten fan should pray for a miracle. The early showdown will set the tone for the conference for the rest of the season.
In a perfect world, Ohio State finds a way to defeat the Trojans, and then loses at least 2 Big Ten games. The victory would give the conference credibility and the losses would give it depth. Right now, the conference desperately needs both.
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