College Football 2016: When is the Big Ten Championship Game?
By Brad Weiss
When is the Big Ten Championship Game in college football?
The 2016 college football season will mark the 121st season of Big Ten football, and the conference is loaded with talent. The Michigan State Spartans won the conference last season, earning a spot in the College Football Playoff, but lost to Alabama, who advanced to the National Championship Game.
This season, the East Division is once again loaded, but the West also has some talented teams who could make some noise. Former NFL head coach Lovie Smith returns to the sidelines as the coach of the Illinois Fighting Illini in his first season at the helm, and Iowa will return 2015 Second-Team All-Conference quarterback C.J. Beathard.
However, all eyes will be on the East Division, which boasts both Ohio State and Michigan, two teams that could challenge for a national championship in 2016. Michigan is coming off an impressive 10-win season, and plenty of publications have Ohio State as the best team in the country coming into the season.
The Buckeyes’ have a potential Heisman candidate in J.T. Barrett, who led Ohio State to an 11-1 record in 2014, before having his season end due to an injury. That season, Barrett finished fifth in the Heisman voting, and with the position all his heading into the 2016 campaign, he could have his best year yet.
Both divisions will battle it out during the regular season to see which two teams will face each other in the Big Ten Championship Game. Last season, Michigan State beat Iowa for the championship, and this year, it is anybody’s guess about who will battle it out for a potential spot in the College Football Playoff.
The 2016 Big Ten Championship Game will be held on December 3, 2016, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana.
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