For the second time in school history, Penn State will play for the Big Ten championship in the Big Ten football championship game. Penn State clinched its spot in the Big Ten conference game with a 44-7 victory over Maryland in the final game of the regular season.
The victory alone did not send Penn State to the conference title game, however. Penn State’s path was cleared for the Big Ten championship game by Michigan upsetting Ohio State to hand the Buckeyes a second conference loss. Penn State only has one conference loss this season, which came against Ohio State, but the Nittany Lions clinched a spot ahead of Ohio State in the final Big Ten standings. Penn State also owned a tiebreaker over Indiana, who was also only defeated once this season (by Ohio State) heading into the final game of the regular season.
So who is Penn State going to play in the Big Ten championship game?
Penn State will face Oregon in the Big Ten championship game next week. Oregon clinched a spot in the Big Ten title with its 11th win of the season two weeks ago (Oregon was off last week). The Ducks came into the final week of the regular season with an 11-0 overall record and a clean 8-0 Big Ten record, including a win over Ohio State.
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Penn State and Oregon did not play this season, and neither team played Indiana during the regular season.
Penn State last played Orgeon in the 1995 Rose Bowl. Penn State polished off an undefeated season with a victory over the upstart Ducks behind the dynamic offense led by Kerry Collins, Ki-Jana Carter, and Kyle Brady.
Penn State last appeared in the Big Ten championship game in 2016, when it defeated Wisconsin to clinch a spot in the Rose Bowl after being left out of the College Football Playoff. Ironically, Penn State’s trip to the Big Ten championship game that season was aided by a Michigan upset of Ohio State on the final day of the regular season, similar to how it unfolded this season.
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Oregon will make its first appearance in the Big Ten championship game after joining the conference this season. As a program, Oregon is no stranger to conference championship games. Oregon played in the Pac-12 championship game in 2023, where it lost to Washington. The Ducks played in more Pac-12 championship games than any other school with six appearances. Oregon was 4-2 in the Pac-12 championship game.
The Big Ten football championship game is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 7 from Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana. Kickoff is set for 8:00 p.m. ET and will air on CBS.
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