2013 Big Ten Conference football season

2013 Big Ten Conference football season
LeagueNCAA Division I FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision)
SportFootball
DurationAugust 30, 2013
through January 2014
Number of teams12
TV partner(s)ABC, ESPN2, ESPN Inc., Big Ten Network, FOX (championship game)
2014 NFL Draft
Top draft pickTaylor Lewan (Michigan)
Picked byTennessee Titans, 11th overall
Regular Season
Season MVPBraxton Miller
Top scorerBraxton Miller
Leaders Division championsOhio State
Legends Division championsMichigan State
Championship Game
ChampionsMichigan State
  Runners-upOhio State
Finals MVPConnor Cook
Football seasons
← 2012
2014 →
2013 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
Legends Division
No. 3 Michigan State x$   8 0     13 1  
Iowa   5 3     8 5  
Nebraska   5 3     9 4  
Minnesota   4 4     8 5  
Michigan   3 5     7 6  
Northwestern   1 7     5 7  
Leaders Division
No. 12 Ohio State x%   8 0     12 2  
No. 22 Wisconsin   6 2     9 4  
Penn State*   4 4     7 5  
Indiana   3 5     5 7  
Illinois   1 7     4 8  
Purdue   0 8     1 11  
Championship: Michigan State 34, Ohio State 24
  • $ – BCS representative as conference champion
  • % – BCS at-large representative
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • Penn State ineligible for conference championship game and post-season bowl games due to NCAA sanctions
Rankings from AP Poll
Michigan State defeated Stanford in the Rose Bowl Game on January 1, 2014

The 2013 Big Ten Conference football season was the 118th season for the Big Ten. The conference began its season on Thursday, August 29, as Minnesota and Indiana began their 2013 season of NCAA Division I FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) competition. Michigan State began their season the following day, and the rest of the conference began their season on September 1.

This was the league's final season as a 12-team conference before Maryland and Rutgers join the Big Ten Conference for the 2014 season. It was also the final season with the "Leaders" and "Legends" divisions; when Maryland and Rutgers join, the conference will reorganize its divisions on a pure geographic basis. The six schools in the Central Time Zone will be joined by Purdue in the new West Division, with the other schools making up the East Division. Under the new setup, the only protected cross-division rivalry game will be Indiana–Purdue.[1]

Michigan State upset undefeated Ohio State to win the Big Ten Championship Game. The B1G put seven teams into bowl games, including two into the BCS with Michigan State going to the Rose Bowl and Ohio State to the Orange Bowl. The B1G went 2-5 in bowl games with the only wins coming from Michigan State in the Rose Bowl and Nebraska in the Gator Bowl.

  1. ^ McMurphy, Brett; Rittenberg, Adam (April 19, 2013). "Sources: Big Ten to realign divisions". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 19, 2013.