Big Ten Football 2020 Bowl Projections and College Football Playoff picks, week 4

Time to take another look into where we see all the Big Ten teams will head go bowling, and some College Football Playoff predictions.

The Big Ten has a rich, rich history in historical bowl games, and the expectations are set for that to continue in 2020, or so we think.

Here at Buckeyes Wire, we’re keeping with tradition and giving you a peek at where we think all the teams in the conference will end up when all the dust settles on the season.

We reassess after each week of games and project things based on what we’ve seen. After giving this thing a run just prior to the season, we now have some separation between teams with four weeks down in conference play. We’ve seen some surprises (hello Indiana), and some non-surprises (Michigan crashes again, again).

Keep in mind some bowls aren’t planning on having a game this year, so it culls things down just a wee bit for the lower end, lesser money-making bowl games.

Also, remember these scenarios are very complicated with basically all teams eligible this year because of the coronavirus pandemic. There are also agreements with bowls to not repeat the same program over a certain time-frame if at all possible that may or may not pertain this season.

Here’s a look at the projections after week four in the Big Ten.

[lawrence-related id=40398]

NEXT … The Early Bowls

Big Ten Football 2020 Bowl Projections and College Football Playoff picks, week 3

A look at what bowl each Big Ten football team is trending towards, and College Football Playoff predictions after last week’s games.

The Big Ten has a rich, rich history in historical bowl games, and the expectations are set for that to continue in 2020, or so we think.

Here at Buckeyes Wire, we’re keeping with tradition and giving you a peek at where we think all the teams in the conference will end up when all the dust settles on the season.

We reassess after each week of games and project things based on what we’ve seen. After giving this thing a run just prior to the season, we now have some games to look at with three weeks down in conference play. We’ve seen some surprises (hello Indiana), and some non-surprises (Michigan crashes again).

Keep in mind some bowls aren’t planning on having a game this year, so it culls things down just a wee bit for the lower end, lesser money-making bowl games.

Also, remember these scenarios are very complicated with basically all teams eligible this year because of the coronavirus pandemic. There are also agreements with bowls to not repeat the same program over a certain time-frame if at all possible that may or may not pertain this season.

Here’s a look at the projections after week three in the Big Ten.

[lawrence-related id=40044]

NEXT … The Early Bowls

Big Ten Football 2020 Bowl Projections, College Football Playoff picks after conference Week 2

After two weeks of Big Ten football in the books, here’s an updated look at 2020 bowl projections and College Football Playoff predictions.

The Big Ten has a rich, rich history in historical bowl games, and the expectations are set for that to continue in 2020, or so we think.

Here at Buckeyes Wire, we’re keeping with tradition and giving you a peek at where we think all the teams in the conference will end up when all the dust settles on the season.

We reassess after each week of games and project based on what we’ve seen. After giving this thing a run just prior to the season, we now have some games to look with two weeks of conference play in the books. Two weeks in and already things have been put in turmoil so we’ll continue to adjust these as we go.

Keep in mind some bowls aren’t planning on having a game this year, so it culls things down just a wee bit for the lower end, lesser money-making bowl games.

Also, remember these scenarios are very complicated with basically all teams eligible this year because of the coronavirus pandemic, and the agreements with bowls to not repeat the same program over a certain time-frame if at all possible.

Here’s a look at the projections after Week 2 in the Big Ten.

[lawrence-related id=39642]

NEXT … The Early Bowls

Big Ten Football 2020 Bowl Projections, College Football Playoff picks after conference week 1

We’ve now had our first games in the Big Ten and there’s already a shakeup of our bowl projections and College Football Playoff picks.

The Big Ten has a rich, rich history in historical bowl games, and the expectations are set for that to continue in 2020, or so we think.

Here at Buckeyes Wire, we’re keeping with tradition and giving you a peek at where we think all the teams in the conference will end up when all the dust settles on the season.

We reassess after each week of games and project based on what we’ve seen. After giving this thing a run just prior to the season, we now have some games to look at after the Big Ten kicked off its season this weekend. And yes, there were some upsets already, so we have to adjust almost before we get this thing off the ground.

Keep in mind some bowls aren’t planning on having a game this year, so it culls things down just a wee-bit for the lower end, lesser money-making bowl games.

Also, remember that these scenarios are very complicated with projecting things with basically all teams being eligible this year because of the coronavirus pandemic, and the agreements with bowls to not repeat the same program over a certain time-frame if at all possible.

Here’s a look at the projections before all week one in the Big Ten.

NEXT … The Early Bowls

Big Ten Football 2020 Bowl Projections, College Football Playoff picks

We’re on the doorstep of the Big Ten football season. Before all the fun starts, we project where Big Ten teams might go bowling in 2020.

The Big Ten has a rich, rich history in historical bowl games, and the expectations are set for that to continue in 2020, or so we think. Here at Buckeyes Wire, we’re keeping with tradition and giving you a peek at where we think all the teams in the conference will end up when all the dust settles on the season.

We reassess after each week of games and project based on what we’ve seen. Our first edition takes a look at where things project in this pandemic shortened 2020 season, but it’s sure to change drastically as the calendar flips through the eight-week regular season.

Keep in mind some bowls aren’t planning on having a game this year, so it culls things down just a wee-bit for the lower end, lesser money-making bowl games.

Also, keep in mind that these scenarios are very complicated with projecting when there aren’t enough teams from certain conferences with tie-ins, and the agreements with bowls to not repeat the same program over a certain time-frame if at all possible.

Here’s a look at the projections before all the fun starts this weekend.

NEXT … The Early Bowls

USC to not play Notre Dame for the first time since 1945

No Irish

The Pac-12 was the next major conference to announce a massive shakeup in their scheduling for this fall’s football season. The Pac-12 joined the Big Ten in playing a conference-only schedule should the football season take place this fall. The news was first reported by Nicole Auerbach of The Athletic and then confirmed by the official announcement from the Pac-12 just moments ago.

With the Trojans playing a conference-only schedule, this means they will not play their biggest non-UCLA rival within one of college football’s longest-running inter-sectional rivalries. Yes, USC will not play the Notre Dame Fighting Irish for the first time since 1945. The last time the Trojans didn’t play the Irish was the 1943-’45 window during World War II. Coronavirus (and, one could argue, bad American governance) will now be the reason they don’t play for the first time in 75 years.

The Trojans will also avoid playing the Alabama Crimson Tide to open the season. In this specific sense, the Trojans likely dodged a bullet. The Crimson Tide were favorites to win the SEC and compete for a national championship come the winter. With everything up in the air and little time to prepare for these games, it’s probably a good idea that this game isn’t being played. It’s the highest level of football you can get; a lack of prep time is the easiest way to ensure injuries on both teams.

You simply need more time to play a game like this and the powers that be couldn’t do that safely. To that end, it’s a good thing that USC and Alabama will not play this year, but let’s hope the two schools find a way to reschedule a game that would be highly entertaining. It deserves to be played when the country isn’t being swarmed by a pandemic.

Another team that will lose out on playing USC is New Mexico. Similar to the Alabama game but inverted, it’s probably a good thing for New Mexico that the Lobos won’t have to play USC for all the reasons listed above; injuries and lack of prep time just don’t bode well for a team with an already glaring physical deficiency in this game. The Lobos will lose a good paycheck, though, and that’s the type of stuff that helps fund other programs.

Big Ten Football way-too-early 2020 bowl projections, College Football Playoff picks

It’s never too early to look ahead. We’re doing it with our way-too-early 2020 Big Ten bowl projections and College Football Playoff picks.

The Big Ten has a rich, rich history in historical bowl games, and the expectations are set for that to continue in 2020 — at least as long as we have a season. Here at Buckeyes Wire, we’re keeping with tradition and giving you a peek at where we think all the teams in the conference will end up when all the dust settles on the season, but way, way ahead of time.

With the entire sports world shut down right now, the hope is that there is still a college football season — health and safety willing — and that we can look ahead to what we think every Big Ten team is going to do.

So who will contend for the College Football Playoff and New Year’s Six Bowls? What teams might surprise and sneak into a bowl, and what other teams are going to have a decent end to the season.

Here’s an early, early look at some bowl projections for Big Ten teams, and what the College Football Playoff might look like.

Also, keep in mind that these scenarios are very complicated with projecting when there are not enough teams from certain conferences with tie-ins, and the agreements with bowls to not repeat the same program over a certain time-frame if at all possible.

Next … The bowl lineup

Where is Ohio State on the list of greatest college football teams of all-time?

A look at the greatest college football teams of all time according to expert Jeff Sagarin’s formula including a breakdown of Big Ten teams.

When was the last time you had the great debate over which college team in which era fielded the best team ever?  Earlier today?  Thought so.  Well, now we can finally settle this debate once and for all (or at least try).  With it being the 150th season of college football, longtime USA TODAY computer rankings expert Jeff Sagarin compiled a list of the top 150 teams in college football history.

This task was not an easy one considering how much college football has changed and evolved over the year. Sagarin explained that the ranking method combined a won-loss-tie method with a pure score method to attempt to eliminate one method from dominating during the process. He stated: “To achieve a high rating, a team must have a great won-loss record, have won its games by decisive scores, and also have played a decent schedule.”

Where do Big Ten teams rank? Let’s take a look…

Hungry Yet Humble – Ohio State Football Players Making a Difference

Ohio State did an outreach event leading up to the Fiesta Bowl. Get a look at the impact it had.

While the major focus this week has been preparing for the opening match of the NCAA College Football Playoff, Ohio State football players made time to give back. On Monday, approximately 40 Buckeyes teamed up with children in need to take them on a shopping spree.

The event was a partnership between Dick’s Sporting Goods and Child Crisis Arizona, an organization that supports at-risk youth and families in Arizona. The players helped the children pick out clothes, toys, and equipment to ensure this holiday season will be one to remember.  Dicks Sporting Goods and the Fiesta Bowl Charities each equally contributed to allow each child to have $200 to spend on any item in the store.

Ohio State DE Zach Harrison had this to say about the event: “It’s rewarding to take part in events like this because it’s a reminder that not everyone is as fortunate as we are. I love doing this. I love being able to put a smile on a kid’s face. It’s very rewarding.

The No 2. seed Ohio State Buckeyes are back in action when they take on the No. 3 seed Clemson Tigers Saturday in the Fiesta Bowl in Phoenix, Arizona. The game is schedule for 8 PM EST.

[twitter-follow screen_name=’BuckeyesWire’]

[twitter-follow screen_name=’ChrisWestrickRx’]

Ohio State 2019 Rose Bowl Defensive MVP Brendon White to enter NCAA Transfer Portal?

Ohio State 2019 Rose Bowl Defensive MVP to enter NCAA Transfer Portal?

What a difference one year can make. Ohio State Football safety Brendon White was helping to improve the OSU defense just one year ago, but he has entered his name in the NCAA transfer pool per multiple sources.

He finished the 2018 football season as a break-out defensive player with 45 tackles including four tackles for loss, and one interception. His performance against Washington in the Rose Bowl resulted in Defensive MVP honors with his seven tackles, including two for loss and one pass breakup.

White was a junior coming into the current football season for Ohio State and was expected to continue to have a major impact at the new “Bullet” position — a hybrid safety/linebacker position. His time on the field was limited to start the season and non-existent the final few games with the Buckeyes employing mostly just one high safety in a new scheme.

He recorded 19 tackles this season including two tackles for loss, one sack, and one pass breakup through the first 10 games, but did not play against Penn State, The Team Up North, or against Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship. When asked about his absence for the B1G Ten Championship, head coach Ryan Day stated: “He wasn’t available for personal reasons” and it is to be determined if he will travel with the team to the Fiesta Bowl.

The Ohio State Buckeyes are set to compete against the Clemson Tigers in the Fiesta Bowl on Saturday, December 28th at 8:00 PM EST. The winner will earn a spot in the National Championship game.

But first, we’re getting some of the end of the regular season drama and nuggets that seem to work their way out into the light this time of year. There’s no word on where White is looking to transfer to, but as that materializes, we’ll let you know.

[twitter-follow screen_name=’BuckeyesWire’]

[twitter-follow screen_name=’ChrisWestrickRx’]