TL;DR
- Ohio State Buckeyes and Indiana Hoosiers are highly probable for College Football Playoff spots.
- Oregon Ducks could reach CFP if they beat Washington Huskies and Michigan beats Ohio State.
- Michigan Wolverines would have a significant win over Ohio State, impacting playoff seeding.
- Big Ten will send multiple teams to the postseason; seeding and performance are key questions.
With The College Football Playoff bracket set to be finalized in just over a week, numerous decisions remain before the final lineup is announced.
Within the Big Ten conference, it's highly probable that two teams are virtually assured spots in the postseason. Naturally, these are the nation's top two ranked teams: the No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes and No. 2 Indiana Hoosiers. If the No. 6 Oregon Ducks loses to the take care of the Washington Huskies this Saturday, it would open a route for The Ducks to reach the CFP.
But there is one caveat: the Michigan-Ohio State game.
ESPN's Heather Dinich wrote Tuesday that the Wolverines "will have a better win" over any other Week 14 team given the stakes of the Ohio State game and their chance to extend the streak to five wins in a row.
Dinich suggests that if the Wolverines win and the Ducks defeat the Huskies, both teams would probably secure spots in the 12-team playoff instead of just one.
"The win against USC boosted the Ducks' résumé enough to jump Ole Miss, and the complete performance against another ranked contender answered some questions in the committee meeting room. Oregon now has a 16.5% chance to reach the Big Ten title game, according to ESPN Analytics," Dinich wrote.
The Ducks would need outside help to reach the title game, as noted here. They won the league title in their first year in the Big Ten this past season before being eliminated by eventual national champion Ohio State in the Rose Bowl.
No matter the outcome, it's clear the Big Ten will send several teams to the postseason. The main questions are how the seeding will shake out and which teams will perform well in the coming weeks to influence the size of the field.
We shall soon find out.