B1G Bowl Projections, Week 5: Major change at the top

Ohio State pulled off a comeback for the ages on Saturday and proved that it is one of the four best teams in the country.

Our previous projections had Penn State winning the Big Ten and punching its ticket into the College Football Playoff. And the Nittany Lions made that pick look good for the bulk of Saturday’s game at Happy Valley.

But the Buckeyes scored 14 points in the final eight minutes to not only beat Penn State, on the road no less, but to take the driver’s seat in the B1G race. OSU is the only unbeaten team left in the conference and we are now projecting the Scarlet and Gray to make the CFP and face defending national champion Alabama in the semifinals.

Penn State remains in the New Year’s Day 6 picture in the Rose Bowl, but if the Nittany Lions lose at Michigan they will slide down further.

Meanwhile, at the moment, it would appear that the West Division beyond Wisconsin and probably Iowa is quite balanced in its mediocrity. This division is just not good. For instance, Northwestern was so close to justifying its spot in these projections but Michigan rallied to beat the Wildcats. Perhaps the Purple Gang will rally but for now they are out of the projections.

It seems unlikely that only three West teams will be bowl eligible but that’s what we have right now. Keep an eye on Purdue if the Boilermakers offense can keep rolling.

So, on to this week’s projections: