Ohio State has officially received the nod to play in the Big Ten Championship game against Northwestern.

On Wednesday, the Big Ten voted to remove the six-game minimum requirement for the Buckeyes after their game against longtime rival Michigan was canceled due to COVID-19.

That would’ve been Ohio State’s sixth game of the season, but at 5-0, Ohio State has punched a ticket to the championship game.

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After the announcement, ESPN’s Heather Dinich spoke about a variety of topics the B1G discussed, including that even if the Buckeyes played and lost to Michigan, Ohio State would still be going to the title game:

“The 14 AD’s met this morning, and one of the things they talked about and recognized was that even if Ohio State played Michigan – win or lose – they would still be leading the B1G East and earn a spot in that championship game,” said Dinich during Wednesday’s SportCenter on ESPN.

Dinich also reported that CFP Committee Chair Gary Barta removed himself from voting as he is also Iowa’s Athletic Director:

“I spoke with CFP Chair Gary Barta today who is also the Iowa AD, and he told me he recused himself from the discussion and the vote, but he did participate in the video conference,” Dinich explained. “He called Kevin Warren and said ‘Look, I am going to be on this call but I am recusing myself and Iowa from it because of this role.'”

After that, Dinich was asked about how important this conference championship is for the Buckeyes now that they’re in it:

“The eye test is going to play a bigger role this year than ever before. The added bonus of putting a conference championship on your resume can come in very handy for the Buckeyes if the SEC and the ACC both have two teams in contention,” said Dinich. “I can tell you right now if Clemson beats Notre Dame and Florida beats Alabama, and the Irish get into a debate with Ohio State having played a significant number more of games, that B1G title could be a big factor in the final decision.”

Whatever happens moving forward, this surely will be a decision that’s talked about for years to come.