The regular season ended with 10 teams from the Big Ten making a bowl game, and Ohio State making the College Football Playoff.
After Penn State came back down 28-7 in the Big Ten Championship Game to win 38-31 over the Wisconsin Badgers, the uproar of support to put Penn State in the Playoff was massive. Whether it was kicking Ohio State, Washington or even Clemson out, many people wanted to see the Nittany Lions in the Playoff.
Of course, the committee didn’t recognize Penn State’s Big Ten championship as substantial enough for them to leapfrog any of the top-four teams, especially since they started the evening seventh in the nation.