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The top-two teams in the country are Oregon and Ohio State and the Buckeyes’ only loss came in October to the Ducks when quarterback Will Howard was a second too late to slide so his team could attempt a game-winning field goal.
Four of the top five teams in the AP Top 25 are from the Big Ten as Penn State sits fourth, its only loss coming after Ohio State had a goal-line stand in the closing minutes a couple weeks ago that could have sent the game to overtime.
Indiana – the darling of this college football season – remains undefeated and ranked fifth ahead of its clash with the Buckeyes next weekend.
It has been a glorious season for the Big Ten especially coming off Michigan’s national championship run last year.
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It has also been an incredible challenge considering the age of expansion for the teams – whether the old-guard Big Ten programs or the Pac-12 additions – when having to travel across the country to play games, sometimes at very odd hours.
The breakdown is pretty compelling and plays out basically like this: The teams who have to travel outside their traditional conference footprint have a very difficult time – and often lose – with only some exceptions.
USC is a disappointing 4-5 with losses at Michigan, at Minnesota and at Maryland, trips the Trojans would never have taken if the Pac-12 still existed.
The Wolverines’ 27 points against USC was tied for the third most they’ve scored this season, eclipsing that mark by…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/expanded-geographic-footprint-posed-challenges-223312360.html
Author : NBC Sports
Publish date : 2024-11-14 22:33:12
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