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2012 Big Ten Football Championship Game

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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]

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)
Big Ten Football Championship Game
 < 2011  2013 > 
2012 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf Overall
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 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 p.m. 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.

Teams

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See also: Nebraska–Wisconsin football rivalry

The two teams faced each other in the regular season, with Nebraska winning 30–27.

Nebraska

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Main article: 2012 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team

The Cornhuskers, led by fifth-year head coach Bo Pelini, finished the regular season as the champion of the Legends Division. Nebraska finished the regular season with an overall record of 10–2 and a Big Ten record of 7–1; the team's lone conference loss was against Ohio State, 38–63.

To date, this is Nebraska's lone appearance in the Big Ten Championship Game.

Wisconsin

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Main article: 2012 Wisconsin Badgers football team

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 Badgers lost to both Ohio State and Penn State in the regular season, with both losses coming in overtime.

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.

Scoring summary

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2012 Big 10 Championship Game
No. 14 Nebraska Cornhuskers vs. Wisconsin Badgers
Quarter 1 2 34Total
No. 14 Cornhuskers 10 0 71431
Badgers 21 21 21770

at Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, Indiana

  • Date: December 1, 2012
  • Game time: 8:00 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: None (played indoors)
  • Game attendance: 41,260
  • Referee: John O'Neill
  • TV announcers (Fox): Gus Johnson, Charles Davis, and Julie Alexandria
Game information
First quarter
  • WIS – Melvin Gordon 56-yard run (Kyle French kick), 13:01. Badgers 7–0. Drive: 4 plays, 75 yards, 1:59.
  • WIS – Marcus Cromartie 29-yard interception return (Kyle French kick), 12:53. Badgers 14–0.
  • NEB – Taylor Martinez 76-yard run (Brett Maher kick), 10:58. Badgers 14–7. Drive: 3 plays, 75 yards, 1:55.
  • NEB – Brett Maher 32-yard field goal, 4:46. Badgers 14–10. Drive: 10 plays, 76 yards, 4:30.
  • WIS – James White 9-yard run (Kyle French kick), 1:01. Badgers 21–10. Drive: 8 plays, 75 yards, 3:45.

Second quarter

  • WIS – James White 1-yard run (Kyle French kick), 11:11. Badgers 28–10. Drive: 6 plays, 67 yards, 3:07.
  • WIS – Montee Ball 16-yard run (Kyle French kick), 7:15. Badgers 35–10. Drive: 6 plays, 69 yards, 2:32.
  • WIS – Sam Arneson 3-yard pass from James White (Kyle French kick), 0:02. Badgers 42–10. Drive: 4 plays, 79 yards, 0:59.

Third quarter

  • WIS – Montee Ball 9-yard run (Jack Russell kick), 14:13. Badgers 49–10. Drive: 1 play, 9 yards, 0:05.
  • NEB – Taylor Martinez 11-yard run (Brett Maher kick), 10:47. Badgers 49–17. Drive: 9 plays, 75 yards, 3:26.
  • WIS – Montee Ball 57-yard run (Jack Russell kick), 9:27. Badgers 56–17. Drive: 3 plays, 75 yards, 1:20.
  • WIS – James White 68-yard run (Jack Russell kick), 6:42. Badgers 63–17. Drive: 4 plays, 80 yards, 1:55.

Fourth quarter

  • NEB – Braylon Heard 9-yard run (Brett Maher kick), 12:14. Badgers 63–24. Drive: 11 plays, 74 yards, 4:12.
  • WIS – James White 10-yard (Jack Russell kick), 8:57. Badgers 70–24. Drive: 6 plays, 75 yards, 3:17.
  • NEB – Imani Cross 26-yard run (Brett Maher kick), 0:51. Badgers 70–31. Drive: 9 plays, 82 yards, 3:58.

Statistics

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Team statistics

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Statistics NEB WIS
First downs 23 24
Third down efficiency 6 of 16 5 of 9
Fourth down efficiency 1 of 2 0 of 0
Total yards 477 640
Rushes–yards 44–282 50–539
Yards per rush 6.4 10.8
Yards passing 195 101
Pass completions–attempts 18–34 8–10
Interceptions thrown 2 0
Fumbles–lost 2–1 0–0
Penalties–yards 4–40 4–51
Time of possession 30:06 29:45

Individual statistics

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Sources:[8][9]

Records

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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

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References

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  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. Archived from the original on January 19, 2013. 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". ESPN. December 1, 2012. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  9. ^ a b c CBSSports.com wire reports. "NCAA College Football Recap – Nebraska Cornhuskers at Wisconsin Badgers – Dec 01, 2012". CBSSports.com. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  10. ^ a b 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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