COLUMBUS — Top-ranked Ohio State expects to see a tougher Wisconsin team in the Big Ten championship game.
Big Ten Championship Game
(1) Ohio State (12-0, 9-0) vs. (12) Wisconsin (10-2, 7-2)
Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, Ind.
Sat., Dec. 7 (8:00 p.m./Fox)
The Buckeyes beat the Badgers, 38-7, five weeks ago in the regular season but, since then, Wisconsin won its last four games, capping it with a 38-7 rout of Minnesota.
That put the Badgers in the conference title game on Saturday against the undefeated Buckeyes, who seem to be marching with a purpose toward the College Football Playoff.
This will be the third time the Buckeyes and Badgers have met in the conference title game, with Ohio State winning the previous two games, in 2014 and 2017.
The Buckeyes will be seeking their third straight Big Ten championship.
The top four teams in the AP Top 25 were unchanged, with LSU at No. 1, followed by Ohio State, which is first in the College Football Playoff rankings. Clemson and Georgia are No 3 and No. 4. Wisconsin moved up three spots to No. 10. Wisconsin is 12th in the playoff rankings.
Utah moved up to No. 5, followed by Oklahoma, Florida and Baylor. Alabama dropped to No. 9, snapping the Crimson Tide’s record streak of 68 appearances in the top five.
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Ohio State running back J.K. Dobbins was named the Big Ten’s Offensive Player of the Week after rushing for a career-high 211 yards on 31 carries and a career-best four touchdowns in the Buckeyes’ win in Ann Arbor. The junior from La Grange, Texas, became just the third Buckeye to score four rushing touchdowns against the Wolverines, while his 260 total yards were the most ever for an OSU player against Michigan.
Dobbins moved into second place on the Ohio State career rushing list with 4,113 yards, passing Ezekiel Elliott and trailing only two-time Heisman Trophy recipient Archie Griffin, who amassed 5,589 yards during his career.