With so much parity this year... we have 5 teams that already hit the six win mark. And we have 4 more with five wins. Read this story from the Daily Herald... it suggests each team will need at least 7 wins to make a bowl. I know this isn't a surprise, but it does explain how we can steal another tie-in bowl from another conference.

http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=61954

I saw this article, too. A couple weeks ago when I started looking at
NU's bowl chances, I assumed 7 wins would be needed. All they've got
to do is go 2-2. I think they'll probably lose to PU and the Illini on the
road, but I hope (not predict, just hope) they can win the two home
games.

_________________
Everyday when the sun goes down, I get with my friends, I begin to clown.
Now I don't care what the people are thinkin'. I ain't drunk, I'm jus' drinkin'!
-Albert King

Being realistic, the only team that can make a bowl with 6 wins is Iowa becuase of the way they travel. IU, NU at 7 wins versus Iowa at 6 wins would be an interesting push for who would get picked.

That only assumes that the other teams also have 6 wins. I kinda doubt that would happen.

Purdue would go somewhere with 6 wins too but luckily that won't be a problem.

I don't know what I would enjoy more, IU losing the last game of the season to us to finish 5-7 again and not go to a bowl or IU losing the last game of the season to finish 6-6 and STILL not going to a bowl.

I would be surprised if one of the lower end bowls didn't take a Big Ten team like the Bell Helicopter Bowl. Have you seen the stands at some of the pre-Christmas bowls? They look like a high school game.

_________________
You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

I've pondered this question in relation to the Cubs for many years. I am of the opinion that it is more fun to have them brought to the brink, only to be destroyed. A lesser season allows them to completely put the season behind them. A good season that is still a failure makes them relive every failed play of every failed game the entire off season.

That is the best part of the Big Ten season. The last game for every team is their rivalry game so not only do you get to enjoy a win against your rival, but you get to hurt/end their bowl chances.

_________________
You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

That's the hard part for NU/Illini rivalry this year. I really wanted nothing more than to Ron Zook take the Illini to a decent bowl game this season. Unfortunately, the sweet sioux tomahawk is staying in Evanston and depending how the Illini do in games leading up to NU, may leave them heading to Detroit for an early December game.

I have similar feelings. I went to NU but my sisters and parents went to
U of I. So I love nothing more than a good beatdown of the Illini by the Cats.
But I also have a son in the Marching Illini, and I'd like him to go to a warm
weather bowl game. And on a selfish note, I prefer he went to a bowl game
that didn't have him out of town on Christmas. Especially if that town
is Detroit.

_________________
Everyday when the sun goes down, I get with my friends, I begin to clown.
Now I don't care what the people are thinkin'. I ain't drunk, I'm jus' drinkin'!
-Albert King

Done! But I'd really like 10-2.

Agreed!

_________________
You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

CFN Bowl Predictions this week for the Big Ten:

OSU: National Title Game
Michigan: Cap One Bowl
Wisconsin: Outback Bowl
Purdue: Insight Bowl (Big ten 6)
Penn State: Alamo Bowl (Big ten 4/5)
Illinois: Champs Sports Bowl (Big Ten 4/5)
Iowa: Motor City Bowl (Big Ten 7)

Outside looking in this week: Indiana, Michigan State, Northwestern

Sportsline:
OSU: Title Game
Michigan: Cap One
Penn State: Outback
Wisconsin: Champs Sports Bowl
Illinois: Alamo
Purdue: Insight
Indiana: Motor City

Outside looking in: Iowa, MSU, Northwestern

Unless Purdue is upset by either MSU or Indiana I don't see any way they end up in the Insight bowl.

I think the Alamo Bowl is the most likely but I hold out hope for the Outback bowl, especially if Michigan wins out and OSU wins all games except the one against Michigan(2 Big Ten BCS teams).

I guess we will see but I don't see any team with more losses in conference than Purdue jumping over them. Illinois may get chosen over us if we both have three conference losses as it has been a while since Illinois went to a bowl.

_________________
You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Purdue will go to the insight bowl if Michigan is not in the BCS. I don't envision them getting picked over Wisconsin or Penn State for the Outback/Alamo bowl and bowls hate taking a team two years in a row (Champs).

All this Illini bowl talk is making me feel frisky. Hell, at this point I don't care if they're in the Summer's Eve feminine care products bowl.

_________________
Fire Phil Emery

If Wisconsin has 4 Big Ten losses and Purdue has 3 then Purdue will go to the higher bowl. Every year we hear how all these teams will jump over Purdue with more losses and every year it doesn't happen. Purdue fans show up at bowl games pretty well too. They went to three Sun Bowls and the last one in 2004 still is the record for attendance for the Sun Bowl game.

If you look at the attendance figures for the Capital One Bowl, Purdue vs. Georgia is right in the middle in terms of attendance. Michigan and Wisconsin both have under 60,000 for attendance.

I'd like to see an example where a team with more losses in conference jumped over Purdue. Don't forget to look at Purdue and Iowa in 2003 where Iowa was 5-3 in conference and 9-3 overall and Purdue was 6-2 in conference and 9-3 overall which would have been the perfect opportunity for Purdue to get passed over.

_________________
You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

This week we have the following prediction from sportsline.com

OSU - title game
scUM - Cap One
PSU - Outback
Wisky - Alamo
Purdue - Insight
Illini - Champs
Iowa - Motor City
Indiana - Vegas (at large for Pac 10)

I hope it's better than Insight, but Purdue probably deserves an invite to the Insight Bowl. They should have won that game on Saturday. I'd like to see a little better job against the Big 3. Luckily, they have found the secret to beat just about everyone else.

It's time for Joe Tiller to announce a succession plan at the end of the season or retire. The program needs a shot in the arm.

If Purdue gets passed over for a better bowl, it will be because of how bad they lost to Michigan/OSU.

_________________
You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

The problem this year is that really Purdue should be pointing towards the Champs Bowl as the number 5, but since they went there last year, they will go down a rung.

As for Tiller, I'm not sure what you can do. He is what he is. He's going to take you to very good, but I still feel that the spread offense cannot be consistent enough in the big ten and when you recruit for that offense, you look for agile lineman that can pass block first and run block second. Although Taylor deserves to be hung for the fumble at the goaline.

For the first time since I became a Purdue fan(I missed the 25 years of suck), I don't know if Joe Tiller is the right coach any more. A ten win season, which would now include a win in a bowl game, would make me feel just fine.

I think our program is in solid shape, but it feels like we aren't improving and we aren't getting worse. That's the hard part.

_________________
You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

That's not a good place to be coming from an Iowa fan. The last three seasons since the 2004 championship have been hell especially since they felt like they were on the verge coming into 2005. I actually have enjoyed this year for what it is - a year to get the kids involved and build for hopefully another Big ten title.