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The AP Top 25 matchups in September that the B1G’s cancellation cost us
Published:
There were a handful of early-season B1G matchups we were really looking forward to watching in the first month of the 2020 season. Obviously, with the B1G’s revised scheduled followed by a cancellation, we won’t get any of those.
With the Associated Press dropping its preseason rankings for the upcoming season, six B1G teams earned a spot in the poll. We now know which Top 25 showdowns we’re missing due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
From the original schedule, there are four Top 25 matchups scheduled for September that we will be missing — two B1G clashes and two nonconference showdowns. There were four ranked games from the conference’s league-only schedule that are also off the docket now.
That doesn’t include potential Top 25 clashes between Appalachian State-No.12 Wisconsin and No. 7 Penn State-Virginia Tech — with App State and VT both in the “others receiving votes” category. And we can throw in the highly-anticipated game between No. 12 Wisconsin-No. 10 Notre Dame into the mix, originally scheduled for Oct. 3 at Lambeau Field.
Here’s a look at what could have been in the B1G, both the original and revised schedules:
Original 2020 schedule
Sept. 12
No. 23 Iowa State vs. No. 24 Iowa
No. 2 Ohio State vs. No. 9 Oregon
Sept. 18
No. 24 Iowa vs. No. 19 Minnesota
Sept. 26
No. 12 Wisconsin vs. No. 16 Michigan
Revised B1G schedule (conference only)
Sept. 12
No. 16 Michigan vs. No. 19 Minnesota
Sept. 19
No. 7 Penn State vs. No. 16 Michigan
No. 24 Iowa vs. No. 19 Minnesota
Sept. 26
No. 19 Minnesota vs. No. 12 Wisconsin
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB