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The 2024 Big Ten Championship Game Is Now Set

Originally posted on The Spun | By Tzvi Machlin | Last updated Nov 30, 2024 6:57 PM ET

Ohio State's losses to Oregon and Michigan took their Big Ten Championship hopes out of their hands as rivals Penn State and Indiana merely needed to win today to snatch their conference title bid out from under them. And now, they have.

Penn State has just beaten Maryland, 44-7 to end the season with an 11-1 record and a 8-1 record in the conference. Penn State have now secured their first Big Ten Championship Game berth since 2016. Even though Indiana have not played their final game of the season against arch-rival Purdue, Penn State will get through on strength of schedule tiebreakers.

The win over Maryland will give head coach James Franklin the first 11-win regular season of his career. It is the first that Penn State has enjoyed since 2008.

And with their win combined with Ohio State's loss, Penn State have likely punched their ticket to the College Football Playoff regardless of whether they win the Big Ten Championship Game next week.

The only blemish on the Nittany Lions' record this year is a loss to the Buckeyes at Beaver Stadium earlier this month. They lost 20-13, blowing a 10-point first quarter lead and a fourth quarter lead to suffer their eighth straight loss to Ohio State.

But the Nittany Lions stayed the course, blowing out Washington and Purdue before narrowly beating Minnesota to stay with just one loss in the Big Ten.

STATE COLLEGE, PA - NOVEMBER 30: Head coach James Franklin of the Penn State Nittany Lions leads his team onto the field before the game against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Beaver Stadium on November 30, 2019 in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)Getty Images.

That said, they haven't exactly been world-beaters this season. They have only one win over a Big Ten team that's currently ranked, which doesn't bode too well for their chances in the Big Ten Championship Game.

Facing them in the Big Ten title game will be Oregon, the only undefeated team in FBS and a team that boasts wins over both Ohio State and the Michigan team that just beat Ohio State.

This will be the biggest game that Penn State have played since the 2016 Big Ten Championship Game against Wisconsin. Win or lose, they'll have an even bigger game a few weeks later in the College Football Playoff.

Who will win the Big Ten Championship Game?

This article first appeared on The Spun and was syndicated with permission.

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