2012 Big Ten Football Championship Game
Conference Championship
Championship Game Logo
Nebraska Cornhuskers Wisconsin Badgers
(10–2) (7–5)
31 70
Head coach: 
Bo Pelini		 Head coach: 
Bret Bielema
APCoachesBCS
141312
1234 Total
Nebraska 100714 31
Wisconsin 2121217 70
DateDecember 1, 2012
Season2012
StadiumLucas Oil Stadium
LocationIndianapolis, Indiana
MVPMontee Ball, Wisconsin
FavoriteNebraska by 12
RefereeJohn O'Neill
Halftime showUniversity of Nebraska Cornhusker Marching Band, University of Wisconsin Marching Band
Attendance41,260
United States TV coverage
NetworkFox
AnnouncersGus Johnson, (Play-by-play) Charles Davis (Color Analyst) and Julie Alexandria (Sideline Reporter)
Nielsen ratings3.0 (4.9 million viewers)
2012 Big Ten Conference football standings
ConfOverall
Team W L  W L 
Legends Division
No. 25 Nebraska xy  7 –1   10 –4  
No. 24 Michigan  6 –2   8 –5  
No. 17 Northwestern  5 –3   10 –3  
Michigan State  3 –5   7 –6  
Iowa  2 –6   4 –8  
Minnesota  2 –6   6 –7  
Leaders Division
No. 3 Ohio State* x  8 –0   12 –0  
Penn State*  6 –2   8 –4  
Wisconsin y$  4 –4   8 –6  
Purdue  3 –5   6 –7  
Indiana  2 –6   4 –8  
Illinois  0 –8   2 –10  
Championship: Wisconsin 70, Nebraska 31
  • $ – BCS representative as conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • * Ohio State and Penn State ineligible for conference championship game and post-season bowl games due to NCAA sanctions.
Rankings from AP Poll
LB Chris Borland tackles QB Taylor Martinez

The 2012 Big Ten Football Championship Game was a college football game. It was played on December 1, 2012, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana, to determine the 2012 champion of the Big Ten Conference. It was played between the Wisconsin Badgers of the Leaders Division and the Nebraska Cornhuskers of the Legends Division.[1] Wisconsin defeated Nebraska, 70–31.[2]

The game was the second football championship game ever played in the Big Ten's 116-year history; the Big Ten expanded to twelve teams the year before thus becoming eligible under NCAA rules which, at that time, required conferences to have a membership of at least 12 to have a conference championship game. The game was played in prime time and televised by Fox,[3] with kickoff scheduled for 8:17 PM Eastern Time. In only the second year of the Big Ten Championship game, one team entered the game unranked in the BCS standings, AP poll, and Coaches' poll.

In 2014, both Nebraska and Wisconsin were placed in the new Big Ten West division for football, and thus it will no longer be possible for them to meet in the conference championship game without conference re-alignment.

Teams

Wisconsin

Wisconsin finished third place in the Leaders division, but division champion Ohio State and second-place Penn State were ineligible to play in the championship game because of postseason bans. Teams that play in the conference championship game must be eligible for the postseason.[4][5]

The 2012 Big Ten football championship game would be the last time Bret Bielema coached the Badgers. He departed Wisconsin three days after the Big Ten championship game to accept the head coaching position at Arkansas.[6][7] Wisconsin's Athletic Director, and former football head coach, Barry Alvarez went on to coach the Badgers at the 2013 Rose Bowl against Stanford.

Nebraska

Scoring summary

1st quarter
2nd quarter
  • WIS – James White 1 Yd Run for Td (Kyle French Kick) (11:11) (28–10 WIS)
  • WIS – Montee Ball 16 Yd Run for Td (Kyle French Kick) (07:15) (35–10 WIS)
  • WIS – Sam Arneson 3 Yd Pass From James White for Td (Kyle French Kick) (00:02) (42–10 WIS)
3rd quarter
  • WIS – Montee Ball 9 Yd Run for Td (Jack Russell Kick) (14:13) (49–10 WIS)
  • NEB – Taylor Martinez 11 Yd Run for Td (Brett Maher Kick) (10:47) (49–17 WIS)
  • WIS – Montee Ball 57 Yd Run for Td (Jack Russell Kick) (09:27) (56–17 WIS)
  • WIS – James White 68 Yd Run for Td (Jack Russell Kick) (06:42) (63–17 WIS)
4th quarter
  • NEB – Braylon Heard 9 Yd Run for Td (Brett Maher Kick) (12:14) (63–24 WIS)
  • WIS – James White 10 Yd Run for Td (Jack Russell Kick) (08:57) (70–24 WIS)
  • NEB – Imani Cross 26 Yd Run for Td (Brett Maher Kick) (00:51) (70–31 WIS)

Statistics

StatisticsWISNEB
First Downs2423
Total offense640477
Rushes-yards (net)539282
Rushing, Attempts–Yards per rush50–10.844–6.4
Passing yards (net)101195
Passes, Completions–Attempts8–1018–34
Turnovers, Fumbles–Interceptions0–01–2
Penalties–Yards4–514–40
Time of Possession29:4530:15

Sources:[8][9]

Records

Montee Ball took over as the record holder for Football Bowl Subdivision "career rushing touchdowns record" from Travis Prentice with 76 touchdowns (Ball scored one touchdown in the 2013 Rose Bowl thus extending the record).[9] Wisconsin set multiple school records in the game; first by scoring eight rushing touchdowns during the game.[10] The second school record for Wisconsin was having two 200-yard rushers in one game.[9] Nebraska set a record for the most rushing touchdowns allowed in a game.[10] Wisconsin's redshirt freshman running back Melvin Gordon ran for a career-high of 216 yards on just nine possessions, averaging 24 yards per carry.[11]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "No. 17 Nebraska beats Iowa 13-7, advances to Big Ten championship game vs. Wisconsin as Rex Burkhead scores TD in return from injury - College Football News | FOX Sports on MSN". Archived from the original on November 28, 2012. Retrieved November 23, 2012.
  2. ↑ "Ball helps Badgers rush past No. 14 Nebraska 70–31". Sports Illustrated. December 1, 2012. Retrieved December 1, 2012.
  3. ↑ "Big Ten Announces Media Agreement with FOX Sports to Televise 2011–16 Big Ten Football Championship Games". BigTen.org: The Big Ten Conference Official Site. November 17, 2010. Archived from the original on December 23, 2010. Retrieved August 2, 2012.
  4. ↑ Lesmerises, Doug (September 5, 2012). "Ohio State can win Leaders Division title and earn trophy, despite postseason ban". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
  5. ↑ "Ohio State stays perfect after beating Wisconsin in OT". ESPN.com. Associated Press. November 17, 2012. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
  6. ↑ "Bret Bielema, head coach of Wisconsin Badgers, accepts position to coach Arkansas Razorbacks – ESPN". Espn.go.com. December 15, 2012. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  7. ↑ "University To Introduce New Coach Bielema Wednesday". 5NEWSOnline.com. December 4, 2012. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  8. ↑ "Nebraska Cornhuskers vs. Wisconsin Badgers – Box Score – December 01, 2012 – ESPN". Scores.espn.go.com. December 1, 2012. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  9. 1 2 3 CBSSports.com wire reports. "NCAA College Football Recap – Nebraska Cornhuskers at Wisconsin Badgers – Dec 01, 2012". CBSSports.com. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  10. 1 2 Regimbal, David. "Big Ten Championship: Nebraska vs. Wisconsin Live Scores, Analysis and Results". Bleacher Report.
  11. ↑ "Postgame Notes: Big Ten Championship Game – UWBadgers.com – The Official Athletic Site of the Wisconsin Badgers". UWBadgers.com. Archived from the original on May 22, 2014. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
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