Experience from the Inaugural Big Ten Football Championship

View from the Lucas Oil pressbox for the opening kickoff of the Big Ten title

It was a historic night at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana Saturday night. The Michigan State Spartans, champions of the Legends Division, battled the Wisconsin Badgers, champions of the Leaders Division, for the inaugural Big Ten Football Championship. It was the first championship game played in the 106-year-old football conference and featured two teams that had already played an instant classic earlier in the year. The event didn't fail on any level, unless you count the ending of the game as a failure. Indianapolis was a superb host, as they always are for big sporting events, and the game itself was incredible from the opening kickoff.

I've been to four Final Fours in Indy and a couple of Big Ten basketball tournaments. The city has perfected those two events but taking on the football championship was a completely new task to everyone involved. I had the opportunity to volunteer in the media department and there were a few minor things that could have gone smoother but overall I thought the Big Ten was very well prepared in all facets. Lucas Oil was the ideal venue for the game because of the closed roof and it's proximity to other attractions in Indianapolis that fans would want to visit. 64,000+ people showed up to see the game and the stadium looked full, which is always a good sight to see. Think about it: 64,000 people attended a game between Michigan State and Wisconsin down in Indianapolis. How many will there be if it's Michigan and Ohio State? Or what about the first time Indiana or Purdue qualifies? Not that I see that second scenario happening anytime soon, but the point is that this was highly successful and the two schools in the game weren't close to Indy at all.

I can't see the game being anywhere but Lucas Oil. It was a one-year contract but the game will most likely stay in Indianapolis. The only other venues that have a closed roof are the Metrodome in Minneapolis, which has no chance, and Ford Field in Detroit. Don't be surprised if the game is played in Detroit sometime in the near future but I wouldn't bank on the Big Ten officials voting to play the game in an outdoor stadium such as Soldier Field.

If you watched the game then you know it was a great game from the start. The first five drives resulted in touchdowns and for awhile it seemed that the punters wouldn't be needed. Wisconsin running back, Montee Ball, scored four touchdown with three coming on the ground. He is now within two rushing touchdowns of tying Barry Sanders' single-season mark of 39. Russell Wilson, quarterback of Wisconsin, also wrote his name into the record books by throwing for three touchdowns. It was his 37th game in a row with a TD pass which broke Graham Harrell's mark from 06-09 with Texas Tech.

With the score 42-39 Wisconsin, it apeared that Michigan State would have a chance to at least tie the game with a field goal but twice they couldn't get the job done, the second because of a running into the punter penalty. It may not have ended the way fans wanted but overall the game and the atmosphere were exactly what I expected from the first Big Ten Championship. Fans from all teams in the conference showed up to witness the historic game and it did not disappoint. Indianapolis was a great host and we couldn't ask for a better game. It's hard to argue against the Big Ten being the best conference in America today.