Good news Ohio State football fans — It appears the Big Ten is set to announce a change in the policy requiring a minimum requirement of six games to be played in order to be eligible for the Big Ten Championship Game.
Several reports have surfaced, and Sports Illustrated’s Pete Thamel is all over the news. The move has yet to be announced as official, but that is expected to be communicated sometime today as a mere formality. This comes as a result of the league’s Big Ten athletic directors were scheduled to meet this morning as a part of a regularly scheduled conference. There’s no doubt Ohio State’s plight was the main topic that became a priority in a hurry.
With the rise in coronavirus cases, several games have been shelved late in the season within the Big Ten. In the Buckeyes’ case, three games have now been canceled. The game against Maryland in Week 3 because of rising cases in the Terrapins program, then a road trip to Illinois two weeks ago, and now the big one this Saturday against Michigan.
The vote is considered a formality, which will lead to Ohio State playing Northwestern in the Big Ten title game. https://t.co/ElXXlQWwqP
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) December 9, 2020
Had pending change to the policy not occurred, that would have left Ohio State with just five games and on the sidelines while Indiana got the nod to go because the Hoosiers have met the requirement.
The move makes sense in many ways too. It wouldn’t be fair to penalize a team that had two games canceled by other institutions, and because of an outbreak of its own during a global pandemic. Additionally, even if Ohio State would have gotten beaten by Michigan by 30 points, it still would have won the tiebreaker over an Indiana team that looks like it’s not going to be able to play this week either.
So, while not official, it looks like Ohio State will be headed to Indianapolis to play in the Big Ten Championship Game against Northwestern.
As official news hits, we’ll have it for you.
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