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B1G bowl projections following Week 9: October Maryland turtles up again; Terps join league’s bulky bowl bubble
By Ethan Stone
Published:
October Maryland has struck again.
The Terps did an about-face and are stumbling in the wrong direction after a 5-0 start. And I’m not sure a terrifying possibility has quite sunk in for Maryland fans.
Take a look at the Terps’ remaining schedule. Can they win any of their 4 November games playing as they are now?
Penn State is still Penn State, Nebraska is playing its best football of the season and smells blood in the water in the race for the West. Michigan is a juggernaut. And Rutgers, like Nebraska, gets the Terps at home to finish the season.
Is Maryland going to miss out on bowl eligibility after a 5-0 start?
I’m not sure I’m ready to go that far. I still have faith 4th-year starting QB Taulia Tagovailoa and the Terps can put together 1 more winning outing between their matchups against the Huskers and Scarlet Knights. But I say so with caution. If Nebraska beats Maryland next week, the Terps are dropping from the projections.
Let’s travel to Madison, Wisconsin, where the Badgers had every single opportunity they could ask for against Ohio State early. Wisconsin forced plenty of early turnovers but failed to reach the end zone in the first half. That’s not going to beat the Buckeyes. Ohio State escaped, 24-10.
The race for the B1G West is starting to look a lot like last season. There’s a 4-way tie at the top among Wisconsin, Iowa, Nebraska and Minnesota.
The recipe to win the West is simple: The team that trips over itself on offense the least over the next month wins the right to be annihilated by Michigan or Ohio State in Indianapolis by 40.
With Maryland’s theatrics and a strong win from Nebraska, the projections look a little different this week at the bottom of the pack. Minnesota has taken the Terps’ place in the Las Vegas bowl, Nebraska hops up to the Pinstripe Bowl against Georgia Tech and the Terps draw the Guaranteed Rate bowl against Baylor.
And it’s worth noting that the team that upended Maryland, Northwestern (4-4), might just be able to find 2 more wins with Iowa, Wisconsin, Purdue and Illinois left on the schedule.
Big Ten bowl projections following Week 9
Rose Bowl (CFP semifinal): Michigan vs. Florida State
Fiesta Bowl: Penn State vs. Air Force
Peach Bowl: Ohio State vs. Alabama
Cheez-It Citrus Bowl: Iowa vs. LSU
Music City Bowl: Wisconsin vs. Florida
Las Vegas Bowl: Minnesota vs. Utah
Pinstripe Bowl: Nebraska vs. Georgia Tech
Guaranteed Rate Bowl: Maryland vs. Baylor
Cure Bowl: Rutgers vs. Ohio
Ethan Stone was an editor for his student newspaper at the University of Tennessee and is now a News Manager for Saturday Tradition.