Big Ten completes back-to-back national titles for first time since World War II
Big Ten football is on top of the college football world right now, and for good reason. After sending 4 teams to the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff, Ohio State emerged victorious Monday night with the national title win over Notre Dame.
The victory gives Ryan Day his first title as a head coach and the first for the Buckeyes since 2014. It’s also a 2nd straight national championship for Big Ten football after Michigan won it all a season ago.
The significance of back-to-back titles for the league cannot be overstated. Not only is the SEC currently overshadowed by the B1G, but it is the first time since World War II that the league has won it all in back-to-back seasons.
The last time B1G teams won consecutive national championships came in a 3-year stretch from 1940-42. That’s over 80 years ago.
BACK-TO-BACK FOR THE BIG TEN 🔥
This is the first time the conference has won consecutive national titles since 1940-42 😲 pic.twitter.com/3S9gxlI7vV
— ESPN (@espn) January 21, 2025
Minnesota claimed the first 2 titles from that aforementioned stretch with Bernie Bierman’s Golden Gophers going back-to-back in 1940-41. That capped a stretch of 5 titles in 8 seasons for Minnesota under Bierman.
The other title in that stretch belongs to Ohio State in 1942. Paul Brown led the Buckeyes to their first-ever title, and Ryan Day has now produced the 9th national championship in Ohio State history.
We’ll see what the future holds for college football, but the B1G is the current top dog and has a bright future ahead in the modern landscape.