BIG TEN NOTEBOOK Schedule could hurt Wisconsin

The Badgers don't play Michigan this season.
SCRIPPS HOWARD NEWS SERVICE
When it happened two years ago, it was passed off as a fluke.
Ohio State and Iowa, the two best teams in the Big Ten, did not play because of the conference's rotating schedule. Both finished the conference schedule with unblemished 8-0 records.
Now it could happen again. Wisconsin and Michigan are 5-0 in the league with their toughest opponents behind them, and they don't play each other. If both go undefeated, Wisconsin gets the league's automatic berth to the Bowl Championship Series because of its overall record. The Badgers are 8-0; the Wolverines are 7-1, with a non-conference loss at Notre Dame.
In 2002, Ohio State and Iowa both qualified for BCS bowls. Ohio State beat Miami in the Fiesta Bowl, and Iowa lost to Southern Cal in the Orange Bowl. Iowa's loss came early in the season, and the Big Ten was strong enough for the Hawkeyes to remain among the top teams in the BCS.
That doesn't appear to be the case this year. Wisconsin slipped behind Utah to seventh in this week in the Bowl Championship Series standings. Michigan is 12th. The Badgers and Wolverines are fighting mediocre non-conference schedules and the overall mediocre play of the Big Ten.
Why not a title game?
With five undefeated teams in front of them and only three games remaining in the regular season, the Badgers could be on the outside looking in for the BCS title game.
This brings up the oft-asked question: "Why doesn't the Big Ten stage a conference championship game to avoid this problem?"
A championship game would give the two best teams in the conference the chance of playing one another in a game that could decide the league's automatic BCS berth and would give the winning team a boost in the final BCS standings.
In 2002, not having a championship game probably helped the Big Ten. While other teams were knocking each other off in the SEC and Big 12, the chance for that happening in the Big Ten did not exist.
But it's also worth noting that was the only season the Big Ten placed a team in the BCS title game. It's unclear whether having a conference title game helps or hurts teams in respect to qualifying for the title game.
Of the six BCS conferences, only the Big 12 and SEC have conference title games. They have produced five of the 12 BCS title-game teams in the six-year history of the BCS. The ACC is staging a championship game for the first time next season.
In order to stage a conference title game, the Big Ten would need to add a 12th team and split into two divisions. There has been no movement on that front for the past five years. And there is a feeling among coaches and conference administrators that adding the extra game would put undue pressure on the players, who likely will be subjected to a 12th regular season game in the near future.
But if Wisconsin goes undefeated and does not play in the title game, expect there to be some discussion on it after the season.
Second guessing
ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit, a former Buckeyes quarterback and a team captain in 1992, had some harsh criticism for coach Jim Tressel and his ability to coach offense. Ohio State is 99th of 117 Division I-A teams in total offense (307 yards per game).
"I loved the national championship game and I loved the team last year," Herbstreit told the Dayton Daily News. "But with that said -- and this is not a knee-jerk reaction -- I've felt from Day One that they win despite their offense. When your punter is your best offensive player the last two years, and your kicker is your best offensive player this year, you've got some issues."
Replied Tressel, "We like to listen to any constructive criticism, and we'll take that to heart."
But he was noncommittal about any future changes and said if he does seek input from anyone, "It probably wouldn't be Kirk."