# 2010 Big Ten Conference football season

The 2010 Big Ten Conference football season was the 115th season for the Big Ten. The conference started its season on Thursday, September 2, as conference member Minnesota traveled to Murfreesboro, Tennessee to face Middle Tennessee, and Ohio State hosted the Thundering Herd of Marshall. The conference's other 9 teams began their respective 2010 season of NCAA Division I FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) competition on Saturday, September 4. It was also the final season for the conference before the Nebraska Cornhuskers joined the conference from the Big 12 the following season.

## Preseason

After a 2010 NFL draft, which saw 34 Big Ten athletes selected, 12 2009 first-team All-Big Ten selections, 8 second-team selections and 33 honorable mention selections returned for the 2010 season. The Big Ten held the 2010 Football Media Days and 39th annual Kickoff Luncheon on Monday and Tuesday, August 2–3.

## Schedules

In a given year, each Big Ten team will play eight of the other Big Ten teams. Thus for any given team in a given year, there are two others which will not be competed against. Below is the breakdown of each team and its two "no-plays" for 2010:
* Illinois: Iowa, Wisconsin
* Indiana: Michigan State, Minnesota
* Iowa: Illinois, Purdue
* Michigan: Minnesota, Northwestern
* Michigan State: Indiana, Ohio State
* Minnesota: Indiana, Michigan
* Northwestern: Michigan, Ohio State
* Ohio State: Michigan State, Northwestern
* Penn State: Purdue, Wisconsin
* Purdue: Iowa, Penn State
* Wisconsin: Illinois, Penn State

## Rankings

In Weeks 3 and 4, the Big Ten had six teams ranked in both polls for the first time since September 13, 2004.
| | | Pre | Wk 1 | Wk 2 | Wk 3 | Wk 4 | Wk 5 | Wk 6 | Wk 7 | Wk 8 | Wk 9 | Wk 10 | Wk 11 | Wk 12 | Wk 13 | Wk 14 |
| Illinois | AP | | | | | | | | | | RV | | | | | |
| Illinois | C | | | | | | | | | RV | RV | | | | | |
| Illinois | Harris | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | RV | | | | | | | | |
| Illinois | BCS | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | | | |
| Indiana | AP | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Indiana | C | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Indiana | Harris | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | | | | |
| Indiana | BCS | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | | | |
| Iowa | AP | 9 | 9 | 9 | 18 | 17 | 15 | 15 | 13 | 18 | 15 | 13 | 21 | | | |
| Iowa | C | 10 | 9 | 10 | 18 | 18 | 15 | 14 | 12 | 19 | 16 | 13 | 20 | | | |
| Iowa | Harris | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 15 | 12 | 17 | 14 | 12 | 19 | | | |
| Iowa | BCS | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 15 | 18 | 16 | 13 | 20 | | | |
| Michigan | AP | | RV | 20 | 21 | 19 | 18 | RV | RV | RV | | | RV | | | |
| Michigan | C | | RV | 22 | 22 | 19 | 17 | 24 | RV | 25 | RV | RV | RV | | | |
| Michigan | Harris | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 24 | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | | | |
| Michigan | BCS | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | | | |
| Michigan State | AP | | RV | RV | 25 | 24 | 17 | 13 | 8 | 5 | 16 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 7 | 7 |
| Michigan State | C | RV | RV | RV | 23 | 21 | 16 | 11 | 8 | 5 | 15 | 10 | 11 | 10 | 7 | 7 |
| Michigan State | Harris | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 12 | 8 | 5 | 16 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 7 | 7 |
| Michigan State | BCS | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 7 | 5 | 14 | 11 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 9 |
| Minnesota | AP | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Minnesota | C | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Minnesota | Harris | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | | | | |
| Minnesota | BCS | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | | | |
| Northwestern | AP | | | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | | RV | | | |
| Northwestern | C | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | 25 | RV | RV | RV | RV | | 25 | | | |
| Northwestern | Harris | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | | | | |
| Northwestern | BCS | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | | | |
| Ohio State | AP | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 8 | | | |
| Ohio State | C | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 7 | 7 | | | |
| Ohio State | Harris | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 1 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 7 | 7 | | | |
| Ohio State | BCS | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 10 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 9 | | | |
| Penn State | AP | 19 | 18 | 22 | 23 | 22 | RV | | | | | RV | | | | |
| Penn State | C | 14 | 14 | 20 | 20 | 20 | RV | | | | | RV | RV | | | |
| Penn State | Harris | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | RV | RV | | | |
| Penn State | BCS | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | | | |
| Purdue | AP | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Purdue | C | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Purdue | Harris | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | | | | |
| Purdue | BCS | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | | | |
| Wisconsin | AP | 12 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 20 | 18 | 10 | 9 | 7 | 6 | 5 | | | |
| Wisconsin | C | 12 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 19 | 16 | 11 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 5 | | | |
| Wisconsin | Harris | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 16 | 11 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 5 | | | |
| Wisconsin | BCS | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 13 | 10 | 9 | 7 | 7 | | | |

## Spring games

April 17
* Indiana
* Iowa
* Michigan
* Purdue
* Wisconsin
April 24
* Illinois
* Michigan State
* Minnesota
* Northwestern
* Ohio State
* Penn State

## Season
### Homecoming games

October 2
* Penn State @ Iowa 7:05 p.m. CT (Iowa's record in homecoming games is 52-41-5)
* Northwestern @ Minnesota 11:00 a.m. CT (Minnesota's record in homecoming games is 54-33-3)
October 9
* Illinois @ Penn State 12:00 p.m. ET (Penn State's record in homecoming games is 65-20-5)
* Minnesota @ Wisconsin 11:00 a.m. ET (Wisconsin's record in homecoming games is 52-45-5)
October 16
* Arkansas State @ Indiana 12:00 p.m. ET (Indiana's record in homecoming games is 43-48-6)
* Iowa @ Michigan 3:30 p.m. ET (Michigan's record in homecoming games is 83–26)
* Illinois @ Michigan State 12:00 p.m. ET (Michigan State's record in homecoming games is 61-30-3)
* Minnesota @ Purdue 12:00 p.m. ET (Purdue's record in homecoming games is 48-35-4)
October 23
* Indiana @ Illinois 11:00 a.m. CT (Illinois's record in homecoming games is 42-55-2)
* Michigan State @ Northwestern 11:00 a.m. CT
* Purdue @ Ohio State 12:00 p.m. ET (Ohio State's record in homecoming games is 64-19-5)
On September 25, Joe Paterno became the fifth head coach to earn 150 victories as a member of the Big Ten Conference. On October 9, Jim Tressel became the first Big Ten head coach to earn 100 victories in his first ten seasons, surpassing Bo Schembechler and Lloyd Carr who achieved the milestone in their 11th seasons and he did so in the third fewest games (121), behind Schembechler and Fielding Yost (119) and ahead of Henry Williams (123). (The wins for the 2010 season were later vacated.) On November 6, Paterno became the first FBS coach to total 400 career wins.

## Big Ten vs. BCS matchups

| Date | Visitor | Home | Significance | Winning Team |
| September 4 | Illinois | Missouri | Arch Rivalry | Missouri |
| September 4 | Connecticut | Michigan | | Michigan |
| September 4 | Northwestern | Vanderbilt | | Northwestern |
| September 4 | Purdue | Notre Dame | Shillelagh Trophy | Notre Dame |
| September 11 | Iowa State | Iowa | Cy-Hawk Trophy | Iowa |
| September 11 | Michigan | Notre Dame | Michigan – Notre Dame rivalry | Michigan |
| September 11 | Miami | Ohio State | Rematch of 2003 Fiesta Bowl (2002 National Championship) | Ohio State (Vacated) |
| September 11 | Penn State | Alabama | | Alabama |
| September 18 | USC | Minnesota | | USC |
| September 18 | Iowa | Arizona | | Arizona |
| September 18 | Notre Dame | Michigan State | Megaphone Trophy | Michigan State |
| September 18 | Arizona State | Wisconsin | | Wisconsin |

## Attendance

Week 3 attendance (September 18) set an all-time Big Ten single-day attendance record with an average of 78,844. All eight games had crowds of over 50,000; Michigan State (78,411), Wisconsin (81,332), Ohio State (105,075) and Michigan (110,187) had sellouts; and 100,610 patrons were in attendance for Penn State. It surpassed the September 3, 2005 eight-game single-day average of 76,475. On October 9, the Big Ten set a five-game attendance record of 88,034, surpassing the 87,620, set on October 28, 1995. Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State and Wisconsin all hosted sellouts.
| Team | Stadium | Capacity | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | Game 4 | Game 5 | Game 6 | Game 7 | Game 8 | Total | Average | % of Capacity |
| Illinois | Memorial Stadium | 62,872 | 52,217 | 50,569 | 62,870 | 53,550 | 50,371 | 55,549 | — | — | 325,126 | 54,188 | 86.2 |
| Indiana | Memorial Stadium | 52,929 | 35,242 | 42,258 | 52,929 | 40,480 | 37,818 | 42,991 | — | — | 251,718 | 41,953 | 79.3 |
| Iowa | Kinnick Stadium | 70,585 | 70,585 | 70,585 | 70,585 | 70,585 | 70,585 | 70,585 | 70,585 | — | 494,095 | 70,585 | 100 |
| Michigan | Michigan Stadium | 109,901 | 113,090 | 110,187 | 109,933 | 113,065 | 112,784 | 111,441 | 112,276 | — | 782,782 | 111,826 | 101.8 |
| Michigan State | Spartan Stadium | 75,005 | 75,769 | 78,411 | 70,926 | 73,108 | 74,441 | 71,128 | 71,111 | — | 514,984 | 73,556 | 98.1 |
| Minnesota | TCF Bank Stadium | 50,805 | 49,554 | 50,422 | 49,368 | 49,228 | 48,479 | 48,717 | 50,805 | — | 346,573 | 49,510 | 97.5 |
| Northwestern | Ryan Field | 47,130 | 25,471 | 30,075 | 33,847 | 41,115 | 47,130 | — | — | — | 177,638 | 35,527 | 75.4 |
| Ohio State | Ohio Stadium | 102,329 | 105,040 | 105,454 | 105,075 | 105,017 | 105,291 | 105,387 | 105,466 | 105,491 | 842,231 | 105,278 | 102.9 |
| Penn State | Beaver Stadium | 107,282 | 101,213 | 100,610 | 104,840 | 107,638 | 108,539 | 104,147 | 102,649 | — | 729,636 | 104,233 | 97.2 |
| Purdue | Ross–Ade Stadium | 62,500 | 47,301 | 54,124 | 42,068 | 47,319 | 45,227 | 50,268 | 50,136 | — | 190,812 | 48,063 | 76.9 |
| Wisconsin | Camp Randall Stadium | 80,321 | 78,469 | 81,332 | 77,224 | 80,328 | 81,194 | 80,477 | 80,011 | — | 559,035 | 79,862 | 99.4 |

## Bowl games

The following is the Big Ten Bowl game schedule.
| Bowl | Date | Opponents | Winner* | Score | Loser* | Score | Location | Time$^+$ | Network | Big Ten's Records |
| Insight Bowl | December 28, 2010 | Iowa vs. Missouri | Iowa | 27 | Missouri | 24 | Tempe, Arizona | 6 p.m. | ESPN | 1-0 |
| Texas Bowl | December 29, 2010 | Illinois vs. Baylor | Illinois | 38 | Baylor | 14 | Houston, Texas | 5 p.m. | ESPN | 2-0 |
| Capital One Bowl | January 1, 2011 | Michigan State vs. Alabama | Alabama | 49 | Michigan State | 7 | Orlando, Florida | 1 p.m. | ESPN | 2-1 |
| Outback Bowl | January 1, 2011 | Penn State vs. Florida | Florida | 37 | Penn State | 24 | Tampa, Florida | 1 p.m. | ABC | 2-2 |
| TicketCity Bowl | January 1, 2011 | Northwestern vs. Texas Tech | Texas Tech | 45 | Northwestern | 38 | Dallas, Texas | | ESPNU | 2-3 |
| Gator Bowl | January 1, 2011 | Michigan vs. Mississippi State | Mississippi State | 52 | Michigan | 14 | Jacksonville, Florida | 1:30 p.m. | ESPN2 | 2-4 |
| Rose Bowl presented by Vizio | January 1, 2011 | Wisconsin vs. TCU | TCU | 21 | Wisconsin | 19 | Pasadena, California | 2:10 p.m. | ESPN | 2-5 |
| Sugar Bowl | January 4, 2011 | Ohio State vs. Arkansas | Ohio State (Vacated) | 31 | Arkansas | 26 | New Orleans, Louisiana | 8:30 p.m. | ESPN | 2-5 |
| *Big Ten team is bolded. $^+$Time given is Central Time ||||||||||||

## 2011 NFL Draft

| Rnd. | Pick No. | NFL team | Player | Pos. | College | Conf. | Notes |
| 1 | 11 | Houston Texans | J. J. Watt | DE | Wisconsin | Big Ten | |
| 1 | 16 | Washington Redskins | Ryan Kerrigan | DE | Purdue | Big Ten | from Jacksonville |
| 1 | 18 | San Diego Chargers | Corey Liuget | DT | Illinois | Big Ten | |
| 1 | 20 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | Adrian Clayborn | DE | Iowa | Big Ten | |
| 1 | 29 | Chicago Bears | Gabe Carimi | OT | Wisconsin | Big Ten | |
| 1 | 31 | Pittsburgh Steelers | Cameron Heyward | DE | Ohio State | Big Ten | |
| 2 | 47 | St. Louis Rams | Lance Kendricks | TE | Wisconsin | Big Ten | |
| 2 | 48 | Oakland Raiders | Stefen Wisniewski | C | Penn State | Big Ten | |
| 2 | 57 | Detroit Lions | Mikel Leshoure | RB | Illinois | Big Ten | from Seattle |
| 2 | 61 | San Diego Chargers | Jonas Mouton | LB | Michigan | Big Ten | from New York Jets |
| 3 | 72 | New Orleans Saints | Martez Wilson | LB | Illinois | Big Ten | from Washington |
| 3 | 75 | Seattle Seahawks | John Moffitt | OG | Wisconsin | Big Ten | from Detroit |
| 4 | 106 | Minnesota Vikings | Christian Ballard | DE | Iowa | Big Ten | from |
| 4 | 113 | Oakland Raiders | Chimdi Chekwa | CB | Ohio State | Big Ten | |
| 4 | 117 | New York Giants | James Brewer | OT | Indiana | Big Ten | |
| 4 | 123 | Baltimore Ravens | Tandon Doss | WR | Indiana | Big Ten | |
| 5 | 135 | Kansas City Chiefs | Ricky Stanzi | QB | Iowa | Big Ten | from Denver via Tampa Bay |
| 5 | 142 | Tennessee Titans | Karl Klug | DE | Iowa | Big Ten | |
| 5 | 158 | St. Louis Rams | Jermale Hines | S | Ohio State | Big Ten | from Atlanta |
| 5 | 161 | Philadelphia Eagles | Julian Vandervelde | OG | Iowa | Big Ten | from New York Jets |
| 6 | 177 | Washington Redskins | Evan Royster | RB | Penn State | Big Ten | |
| 6 | 185 | New York Giants | Greg Jones | LB | Michigan State | Big Ten | |
| 6 | 188 | Indianapolis Colts | Chris L. Rucker | CB | Michigan State | Big Ten | |
| 6 | 193 | Philadelphia Eagles | Brian Rolle | LB | Ohio State | Big Ten | from New England |
| 6* | 198 | New York Giants | Tyler Sash | S | Iowa | Big Ten | |
| 6* | 200 | Minnesota Vikings | Ross Homan | LB | Ohio State | Big Ten | |
| 6* | 201 | San Diego Chargers | Stephen Schilling | OG | Michigan | Big Ten | |
| 7* | 243 | New Orleans Saints | Nathan Bussey | LB | Illinois | Big Ten | |
| 7^ | 252 | Dallas Cowboys | Bill Nagy | C | Wisconsin | Big Ten | |

## Awards

| FIRST TEAM | OFFENSE | SECOND TEAM |
| Dan Persa, Northwestern | Quarterback | Scott Tolzien, Wisconsin |
| Mikel Leshoure, Illinois | Running Back | Evan Royster, Penn State |
| Dan Herron, Ohio State | Running Back | John Clay, Wisconsin |
| Tandon Doss, Indiana* | Receiver | Marvin McNutt, Iowa# |
| Derrell Johnson-Koulianos, Iowa* | Receiver |
| Dane Sanzenbacher, Ohio State* | Receiver |
| David Molk, Michigan | Center | Mike Brewster, Ohio State |
| Stefen Wisniewski, Penn State | Guard | Julian Vandervelde, Iowa |
| John Moffitt, Wisconsin | Guard | Justin Boren, Ohio State |
| Mike Adams, Ohio State | Tackle | Riley Reiff, Iowa |
| Gabe Carimi, Wisconsin | Tackle | D.J. Young, Michigan State |
| Lance Kendricks, Wisconsin | Tight End | Allen Reisner, Iowa |
| Dan Conroy, Michigan State | Kicker | Derek Dimke, Illinois |
| FIRST TEAM | DEFENSE | SECOND TEAM |
| Adrian Clayborn, Iowa | Line | Corey Liuget, Illinois |
| Cameron Heyward, Ohio State | Line | Karl Klug, Iowa |
| Ryan Kerrigan, Purdue | Line | Mike Martin, Michigan |
| J.J. Watt, Wisconsin | Line | Ollie Ogbu, Penn State |
| Greg Jones, Michigan State | Linebacker | Martez Wilson, Illinois |
| Ross Homan, Ohio State | Linebacker | Jeremiha Hunter, Iowa |
| Brian Rolle, Ohio State | Linebacker | Eric Gordon, Michigan State |
| Shaun Prater, Iowa | Defensive Back | Brett Greenwood, Iowa* |
| Tyler Sash, Iowa | Defensive Back | Johnny Adams, Michigan State* |
| Chimdi Chekwa, Ohio State | Defensive Back | Trenton Robinson, Michigan State* |
| Jermale Hines, Ohio State | Defensive Back | Chris L. Rucker, Michigan State* |
| | Defensive Back | Aaron Henry, Wisconsin* |
| Anthony Santella, Illinois | Punter | Aaron Bates, Michigan State |
| OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: | Denard Robinson, Michigan |
| OFFENSIVE LINEMAN OF THE YEAR: | Gabe Carimi, Wisconsin |
| DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: | Ryan Kerrigan, Purdue |
| DEFENSIVE LINEMAN OF THE YEAR: | Ryan Kerrigan, Purdue |
| FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: | James White, Wisconsin |
| FIRST TEAM | OFFENSE | SECOND TEAM |
| Denard Robinson, Michigan | Quarterback | Dan Persa, Northwestern |
| Mikel Leshoure, Illinois | Running Back | John Clay, Wisconsin |
| Edwin Baker, Michigan State | Running Back | James White, Wisconsin |
| Jeremy Ebert, Northwestern | Receiver | Tandon Doss, Indiana |
| Dane Sanzenbacher, Ohio State | Receiver | Roy Roundtree, Michigan |
| Mike Brewster, Ohio State | Center | David Molk, Michigan |
| Justin Boren, Ohio State | Guard | Julian Vandervelde, Iowa |
| John Moffitt, Wisconsin | Guard | Stefen Wisniewski, Penn State |
| Mike Adams, Ohio State | Tackle | Jeff Allen, Illinois |
| Gabe Carimi, Wisconsin | Tackle | Riley Reiff, Iowa |
| Lance Kendricks, Wisconsin | Tight End | Charlie Gantt, Michigan State |
| Dan Conroy, Michigan State | Kicker | Devin Barclay, Ohio State |
| FIRST TEAM | DEFENSE | SECOND TEAM |
| Adrian Clayborn, Iowa | Line | Corey Liuget, Illinois |
| Cameron Heyward, Ohio State | Line | Karl Klug, Iowa |
| Ryan Kerrigan, Purdue | Line | Vince Browne, Northwestern |
| J.J. Watt, Wisconsin | Line | Kawann Short, Purdue |
| Martez Wilson, Illinois | Linebacker | Jonas Mouton, Michigan |
| Greg Jones, Michigan State | Linebacker | Eric Gordon, Michigan State |
| Brian Rolle, Ohio State | Linebacker | Ross Homan, Ohio State |
| Shaun Prater, Iowa | Defensive Back | Marcus Hyde, Michigan State |
| Tyler Sash, Iowa | Defensive Back | Brian Peters, Northwestern |
| Chimdi Chekwa, Ohio State | Defensive Back | Jermale Hines, Ohio State |
| Antonio Fenelus, Wisconsin | Defensive Back | Ricardo Allen, Purdue |
| Aaron Bates, Michigan State | Punter | Anthony Santella, Illinois |
| OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: | Denard Robinson, Michigan |
| DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: | Ryan Kerrigan, Purdue |
| FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: | James White, Wisconsin |
| DAVE McCLAIN COACH OF THE YEAR: | Mark Dantonio, Michigan State |