Penn State Football: How can the Nittany Lions clinch Big Ten East?

Penn State football is still technically alive in the race for the Big Ten East championship. How can the Nittany Lions win it?

Penn State (8-2, 5-2 Big Ten) can win the Big Ten East, as crazy as it sounds. A lot of ifs would have to take place, but it is still worth taking a look at the scenarios.

First the Nittany Lions must win their final two games against Nebraska (4-6, 3-4) and Maryland (4-6, 2-5). Penn State is favored heavily against the Huskers and will be against the Terps, too. Both should be easy wins against struggling teams.

Now here is where the crazy part starts. Ohio State (8-2, 6-1) must lose their final two games. The Buckeyes play Michigan (8-2, 5-2) in the season finale and it is certainly possible the Wolverines get the upset in Ann Arbor. Expecting Ohio State to lose at home to Illinois (2-8, 0-7), however, is not logical. This is college football and upsets happen all the time, but the Buckeyes are 41-point favorites. An Illini win would be one of the biggest college football upsets of all time.

Now even if this crazy scenario plays out, the Lions still need more help. They would need Michigan State (7-3, 5-2) to lose one of their final games against Maryland or Rutgers (4-6, 3-4). The Spartans should handle both easily, but a Spartan loss has slightly better odds of occurring than Ohio State losing to Illinois.

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Needless to say, the Lions need a ton of help. They lost games to both the Buckeyes and Spartans on the road by a total of four points. It appears Penn State will come up short in its quest to defend its Big Ten championship on the field, but maybe craziness will ensue. Penn State winning the Big Ten East would be a wild ending to the regular season.