And here we go. It’s time to crown a champion of the B1G Championship game. The stakes are quite high between Wisconsin and Penn State and could be even higher depending on what happens in Orlando around the same time. We’ll all be watching. Here are five things to watch.
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5. Is Penn State for real?
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I’ll be honest, I don’t know how good this Penn State team really is. Yeah, there was the win over Ohio State when the Buckeyes won almost every statistical category yet found a way to give some charity miles away via the “special” variety. But what has Penn State really done outside of that?
There are no other Top 25 wins, and it got the doors blown off its no-name unis by Michigan — losing by 39 points.
Certainly the team looks to be getting better, but it’s been against very mediocre competition. The Wisconsin defense is closer to the Michigan defense than anyone else the Nittany Lions have played, so we’re about to find out if James Franklin is toting around some fool’s gold, or if there’s a diamond in the rough in Happy Valley.
4. Can Corey Clement have a B1G day against a healthy Penn State defense?
One of the major reasons why Penn State has been on a roll is because of a healthy defense. All the way up to the Ohio State game, it was a revolving door on that side of the ball because players had to take a number to stand in line for the trainer.
It got linebackers Brandon Bell and Jason Cabinda back for the high-stakes game against the Buckeyes and things have been on the upswing since then. Also, the inexperienced defensive line has begun to get push into opposing backfields with speed rush around the ends to flush quarterbacks out of the pocket.
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Corey Clement has begun to find more room in recent weeks, but it has been against a less-talented back end of the schedule. Now the real fun begins with strength on strength. Can Buckey open up some running lanes against a now very good defensive front seven?
We could say much of the same for the other sideline with …
3. Can Saquon Barkley break off some B1G runs against a stout Wisconsin D?
Barkley may be the most talented running back in the league. He’s big and powerful, but hits the hole fast and is very underrated with his break-away speed.
But this Wisconsin defense will make the sophomore running back work for every inch. The Badgers will bring guys forward and mix in linebacker pressure and drops depending on the down and distance. They leave their corners on an island more than not and bring more guys than you can block.
So what kind of plays will Franklin dial up to try and shake Barkley loose? Can he bust into the second-level and get some chunk yards? Not many teams have had a field-day running the ball against the Badgers D, and you get the feeling that whichever team wins the rushing battle will walk away with the B1G crown.
2. Which star player will be the healthiest?
Both Wisconsin quarterback Alex Hornibrook and Penn State running back Saquon Barkley are coming into the game a bit banged up. Wisconsin has Bart Houston who has splitting time anyway set to go with a similar skill set, so that’ll be a little easier to absorb, but it’ll still change what Paul Chryst would like to do with the rotation and play-calling.
On the other sideline, all indications point to Barkley being ready to go in this one, but it is unclear just how banged up that ankle is. His coach has said that he “looks great,” but who knows how much gamesmanship is going on.
James Franklin said Saquon Barkley has practiced all week long, looks great. He'll be playing tomorrow.
— Jason Galloway (@Jason_Galloway) December 2, 2016
And of course, once a body part is tweaked, it doesn’t take much to aggravate it to less than 100%. Needless to say, Penn State needs No. 26 to be lights out to make a statement and win in Indy.
2. Will the winner of the B1G Championship get a spot in the College Football Playoff?
With Washington’s win in the Pac-12 Championship game, the window is now closing ever so more for the Big Ten to get two teams in. If you believe that Ohio State is a lock (and most in the know do), then that means Clemson may need to lose in the ACC Championship game to get the winner in Indy into the playoff.
But hey, who knows. There’s going to be some messy stuff here because how do you leave the B1G champ out when it has been the best conference all year long? If Penn State wins it will have a league title and head-to-head win over Ohio State — two of the criteria the CFP Committee says it puts emphasis on.
On the other hand, if Wisconsin wins, it will have the league title, a top ten win to go with another top 25 win over LSU, and two very, very close losses to both Ohio State and Michigan to go along with the eye test and that defense.
The Playoff Committee does like to reward teams that play a tough schedule, and it doesn’t get more difficult than what Wisconsin had to tip-toe through this year.
And that’s just scratching the surface on all the variables here. It should be very interesting around Noon on Sunday once the Committee figures it all out.
Let’s get this thing going already …
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Phil Harrison is a frequent contributor to The Student Section. He is also a featured contributor to collegefootballews.com, and talking10.com. You can follow him on twitter @PhilHarrisonCFB or email him at pharrison28@gmail.com. If that doesn’t work, you can find him in the doghouse at home.
