Bowl games in play today for Nittany Lions
Bowl games in play today for Nittany Lions
EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Rose Bowl is out of reach for Penn State and Michigan State.
But today's regular-season finale will have a lot to do with determining where both Big Ten teams spend their holidays.
No. 13 Penn State (9-2, 5-2 Big Ten) still has a shot at earning an at-large Bowl Championship Series bid, one of several possible postseason scenarios for Joe Paterno's program. Michigan State (6-5, 4-3) also is bowl eligible and would guarantee a bid with a victory at Spartan Stadium.
The Big Ten has seven bowl-eligible teams. Michigan would become the eighth if the host Wolverines upset Ohio State today.
A Michigan victory also would give Penn State - along with Iowa and Wisconsin - a chance to grab a share of the Big Ten title with Ohio State. The Buckeyes already have sewn up the Big Ten's automatic BCS bid.
"A lot has been said if this certain team wins or this certain team loses . . . all that's thrown out the door if you don't handle your business in the last football game," Penn State quarterback Daryll Clark said. "We need to get this win, and then we can talk about Big Ten things."
As for the BCS, the same theory stands. Penn State has tried to silence the speculation at least until after today's game.
"We still have to go out to East Lansing and perform and win before we talk anymore," Clark said.
Penn State is ranked 14th in the latest BCS standings, the cutoff for eligibility to receive an at-large bid. The Nittany Lion fan base travels well and Paterno is bound to attract some TV interest. But each conference is limited to two BCS bids and Iowa, which defeated Penn State earlier this season, also could be an attractive at-large option for the lucrative bowls.
Penn State could be a prime candidate for the Capital One Bowl or the Outback Bowl if it gets left out of the BCS.
Michigan State's travel plans will be less enticing, particularly for a team picked in the preseason to finish third in the Big Ten. Alamo Bowl representatives were in attendance for last week's victory over Purdue. The Champs Sports Bowl, Insight Bowl and Little Caesar's Pizza Bowl also are among the possible destinations. *
