Big Ten Championship: No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 2 Indiana

The last time a No. 1 vs No. 2 matchup occurred in a Big Ten game was 2006. Ohio State beat arch-rival Michigan to advance to the national championship. This time, they’re No. 1 again, taking on Indiana for the Big Ten Championship and the top seed in the College Football Playoff.

Ohio State has been the country’s top-ranked team since it beat then top-ranked Texas in Week 1. They were the best in the country during the regular season in scoring defense and 13th in scoring offense, allowing them to cruise through the rest of their schedule.

Indiana also breezed through most of its schedule, and despite some scares, it navigated a tougher conference slate, including a 30-20 road win at current No. 5 Oregon. They finished the year second in the country in both scoring offense and defense.

Questions surround both programs coming into this game. For Ohio State, how good are they? To many, they look like the best team in the country, and they may be, but is that a product of their schedule?

For Indiana, are they ready to take the next step? They made the playoffs largely due to an easy schedule last year and were easily bounced early.

This year, they’re a better team with a stronger resume. Can they put this stamp on their program, winning their first Big Ten title since 1967, and clinch the top seed in the playoff?

When looking at these two teams, it’s hard to find a margin anywhere. This matchup will feature two Heisman contenders at quarterback in Julian Sayin and Fernando Mendoza, with an elite receiving corps around them. These two teams also rank No. 1 and 2 in pass efficiency, with Indiana taking the top spot.

The running game might be the edge that Indiana needs. They rank in the top 10 in the country in rushing yards, whereas Ohio State is outside the top 50. On the other hand, both teams’ top backs average over five yards a carry, so the gap may be thinner than it seems.

For Ohio State, they may bend, but they rarely break defensively. They are the best in the country in red zone defense and in the top 10 in fourth-down defense. They will have to keep those stellar standards because Indiana isn’t great in those two categories.

The big advantage for Indiana is that it is the top-ranked team in the country in turnover margin. That comes against an Ohio State team though, that doesn’t turn the ball over often. This will be the biggest test, though, for first-year starter Sayin, and Indiana could put him under pressure he hasn’t faced, forcing mistakes.

Regardless, this looks like we’re headed towards a classic for the Big Ten Championship between what looks like the two best teams in the country, and a signal of what’s to come in the college football playoff as the national championship picture takes shape.

Jacob Rudy is a third-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email jar7371@psu.edu.