The Big Ten Conference is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representatives in 1896, it predates the founding of its regulating organization, the NCAA. It is based in the Chicago area in Rosemont, Illinois. For many decades the conference consisted of 10 prominent universities, which accounts for its name. As of 2014, it consists of 14 member institutions and 2 affiliate institutions, with 4 new member institutions scheduled to join in 2024. The conference competes in the NCAA Division I and its football teams compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), formerly known as Division I-A, the highest level of NCAA competition in that sport.
Bret Arnold Bielema is an American football coach. He is the head football coach at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, a position he has held since the 2021 season. Bielema served as the head football coach at the University of Wisconsin–Madison from 2006 to 2012, achieving a 68–24 record and taking them to three straight Rose Bowl Games, although they lost each time. He was the head football coach at University of Arkansas from 2013 to 2017, tallying a mark of 29–34. Bielema was an assistant coach in the National Football League (NFL) for three seasons, in 2018 and 2019 with the New England Patriots and in 2020 with the New York Giants.
The Illinois Fighting Illini football program represents the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. The Fighting Illini are a founding member of the Big Ten Conference and compete in its West Division. Illinois claims five national championships and 15 Big Ten championships.
ESPN College Football is the branding used for broadcasts of NCAA Division I FBS college football across ESPN properties, including ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPN+, ABC, ESPN Classic, ESPNU, ESPN Deportes, ESPNews and ESPN Radio. ESPN College Football debuted in 1982.
The 2009 Big Ten Conference football season was the 114th for the conference, and saw Ohio State conclude the regular season as Big Ten Conference champion for the 5th consecutive time, their 34th Big Ten title. This earned them the conference's automatic selection to a Bowl Championship Series game in which it emerged victorious in the January 1, 2010 Rose Bowl against Oregon Ducks. Co-runner-up, Iowa, earned the conference's at-large BCS invitation to the January 5, 2010 Orange Bowl. The season started on Thursday, September 3, as conference member Indiana hosted Eastern Kentucky. The conference’s other 10 teams began their respective 2009 season of NCAA Division I FBS competition two days later. All teams started their season at home except Illinois who started their season on neutral turf for the third consecutive season against Missouri and Minnesota who traveled to Syracuse.
The 2009 Penn State Nittany Lions football team represented the Pennsylvania State University in the 2009 college football season. The team was coached by Joe Paterno and played its home games in Beaver Stadium in University Park, Pennsylvania. Penn State had the highest graduation rate among all of the teams on the Associated Press Top 25 poll with 89% of its 2002 enrollees graduating. Miami and Alabama tied for second place with a graduation rate of 75%. The Nittany Lions finished the season with an 11–2 record and won the Lambert-Meadowlands Trophy award to the best team in the ECAC for the 28th time and the second consecutive year.
Alacce O'Brien Schofield is a former American football linebacker. He was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the fourth round of the 2010 NFL Draft and played for them for three seasons. He was also a member of the Seattle Seahawks during their Super Bowl XLVIII championship season and the Atlanta Falcons. He played college football at Wisconsin.
The 2010 Penn State Nittany Lions football team represented the Pennsylvania State University in the 2010 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Joe Paterno and played its home games in Beaver Stadium in University Park, Pennsylvania. They were members of the Big Ten Conference. Team captains for the season were wide receiver Brett Brackett and defensive tackle Ollie Ogbu.
Joe Moorhead is an American college football coach. He is the head football coach at the University of Akron, a position he has held since the 2022 season. Moorhead served as the head football coach at Fordham University from 2012 to 2015 and Mississippi State University from 2018 to 2019. Prior to entering coaching, Moorhead played as a quarterback at Fordham from 1992 to 1995 and professionally for the Munich Cowboys of the German Football League from 1996 to 1997.
Thomas Hammock is an American football coach. He is the head football coach at Northern Illinois University (NIU), a position he has held since January 2019. Prior to being named the head coach of his alma mater, he served as the running backs coach for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League (NFL) from 2014 to 2018.
The 2019 NCAA Division I FBS football season was the 150th season of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at its highest level of competition, the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). The regular season began on August 24, 2019, and ended on December 14, 2019. The postseason concluded on January 13, 2020, with the 2020 College Football Playoff National Championship at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans. The LSU Tigers defeated the defending champion Clemson Tigers by a score of 42–25 to claim their first national championship in the College Football Playoff (CFP) era, and fourth overall. It was the sixth season of the College Football Playoff (CFP) system.
Graham Mertz is an American football quarterback for the Florida Gators. He previously played for the Wisconsin Badgers before transferring to Florida in 2023.
The 2020 Maryland Terrapins football team represented the University of Maryland, College Park in the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Terrapins played their home games at Maryland Stadium in College Park, Maryland and competed in the East Division of the Big Ten Conference.
The 2020 Boston College Eagles football team represented Boston College during the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Eagles played their home games at Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, and competed in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Led by first-year head coach Jeff Hafley, the team compiled an overall record of 6–5, and a 5–5 record in ACC games.
The 2020 Big Ten Football Championship Game was a college football game played on December 19, 2020 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana. The tenth annual Big Ten Football Championship Game, it determined the 2020 champion of the Big Ten Conference. The game was played between the No. 4 Ohio State Buckeyes out of the East division, and the No. 14 Northwestern Wildcats out of the West division. Sponsored by credit card company Discover, the game was officially known as the Big Ten Championship Game presented by Discover.
The 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football season was the 152nd season of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at its highest level of competition, the Football Bowl Subdivision. The regular season began on August 28, 2021, and ended on December 11, 2021. The postseason began on December 17, with the main games ending on January 10, 2022, with the College Football Playoff National Championship at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, and the all-star portion of the post-season concluding with the inaugural HBCU Legacy Bowl on February 19, 2022. It was the eighth season of the College Football Playoff (CFP) system. It was the first time since 2016 that no major team finished the season undefeated as the Cincinnati Bearcats, the season's last undefeated team, were defeated in the 2021 Cotton Bowl Classic.
The 2021 Purdue Boilermakers football team represented Purdue University during the 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Boilermakers played their home games at Ross–Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, Indiana, and competed as members of the West Division in the Big Ten Conference. This was head coach Jeff Brohm's fifth season with Purdue.
The 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football season was the 153rd season of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at its highest level of competition, the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). The regular season began on August 27 and ended on December 10. The postseason began on December 16, and, aside from any all-star games that are scheduled, ended on January 9, 2023, with the College Football Playoff National Championship at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. The Georgia Bulldogs successfully defended their national championship when they defeated the TCU Horned Frogs, 65–7. It was the first time in the College Football Playoff era that a team won back-to-back championships. This was the ninth season of the College Football Playoff (CFP) system.
The M Club banner is a tradition at University of Michigan's football games. The tradition, started in 1962, is for the Michigan Wolverines football players to leap and touch a maize-and-blue banner as they run onto the field before home games.
Chase Brown is a Canadian football running back for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). He played one season at Western Michigan before transferring to Illinois in 2019. In his final season in 2022, he rushed for 1,643 yards and 10 TDs that culminated with him winning the Jon Cornish Trophy. He was selected by the Bengals in the 5th round of the 2023 NFL Draft.
