No. 2 Michigan and No. 13 Iowa meet in the Big Ten Championship Game on Saturday in Indianapolis to decide the conference champion and a possible College Football Playoff berth. The Wolverines come into the game off what’s easily the biggest win for the program in more than a decade, and certainly the Jim Harbaugh era, as it beat rival Ohio State 42-27 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It was Michigan’s first win over the hated Buckeyes since 2011 and only the fourth time since 2000.
Still, the Wolverines could only celebrate the win for so long because if they want to finish the job and earn their first berth in the College Football Playoff, they need to get by a tough Iowa team.
The Hawkeyes started the season strong, opening 6-0 and reaching the No. 2 spot in the AP Poll before losing consecutive games against Purdue and Wisconsin. Those two losses not only knocked the Hawkeyes out of playoff consideration themselves but nearly cost them a chance to win the Big Ten too. The Hawkeyes have won four straight since, including a dramatic and unlikely comeback against Nebraska last week. That win, followed by Wisconsin’s loss to Minnesota the next day, clinched Iowa’s trip to Indianapolis. While it’s improbable the Hawkeyes can reach the playoff, a win in this game would send them to the Rose Bowl.
Michigan vs. Iowa: Need to know
This is Michigan’s first Big Ten Championship appearance: This might come as something of a surprise, considering Michigan’s history within both the Big Ten and the history of college football, but the school with the second-most wins in college football history (949 to Alabama’s 954) has never played for a Big Ten title in the championship game era. The first Big Ten Championship was in 2011 and was played between Wisconsin and…
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