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SB Nation's Jason Kirk predicts eight Big Ten teams will qualify for bowl games this postseason with Michigan leading the way as the top finisher in the conference. Ohio St., of course, is bowl ineligible due to NCAA sanctions due to previous violations.
Michigan, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Northwestern, Iowa, Purdue, Michigan State and Minnesota are all projected by Kirk for bowl game berths. His bowl placements are as follows:
No. 1 Big Ten, Rose Bowl: Michigan Wolverines
No. 2 Big Ten, Capital One Bowl: Wisconsin Badgers
No. 3 Big Ten, Outback Bowl: Nebraska Cornhuskers
No. 4/5 Big Ten, Gator Bowl: Northwestern Wildcats
No. 4/5 Big Ten, Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl: Michigan St. Spartans
No. 6 Big Ten, Meineke Car Care Bowl: Iowa Hawkeyes
No. 7 Big Ten, Heart of Dallas Bowl: Purdue Boilermakers
No. 8 Big Ten, Little Caesars Bowl: Minnesota Golden Gophers
Projections from ESPN and Big Ten Network also have those eight Big Ten teams playing in bowl games this season, however, the placements are slightly different. ESPN's projections, written by Adam Rittenberg and Brian Bennett, are as follows:
Rose Bowl, Jan. 1: Michigan
Capital One Bowl, Jan. 1: Wisconsin
Outback Bowl, Jan. 1: Nebraska
Gator Bowl, Jan. 1: Iowa
Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl, Dec. 29: Northwestern
Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas, Dec. 28: Michigan State
Heart of Dallas Bowl, Jan. 1: Minnesota
Little Caesars Pizza Bowl, Dec. 26: Purdue
Tom Dienhart of Big Ten Network also has Michigan in the Rose Bowl, Wisconsin in the Capital One Bowl, Nebraska in the Outback Bowl, Iowa in the Gator Bowl, Michigan State in the Meineke Car Care Bowl and Northwestern in the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl, however, he differs from ESPN on the placement of the bottom two teams. Dienhart has Purdue in the Heart of Dallas Bowl and Minnesota in the Little Caesars Bowl.