2011 Big Ten Conference football season

2011 Big Ten Conference football season
League	NCAA Division I FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision)
Sport	Football
Duration	September 3, 2011 through January, 2012
Number of teams	12
TV partner/s	ABC, ESPN Inc., Big Ten Network, FOX (championship game)
2012 NFL Draft
Top draft pick	Riley Reiff
Picked by	Detroit Lions, 23rd overall
Season MVP	Montee Ball
Top scorer	Montee Ball
Leaders Division champions	Wisconsin Badgers and Penn State Nittany Lions
Legends Division champions	Michigan State Spartans
Championship Game
Championship Game champions	Wisconsin Badgers
Runners-up	Michigan State
Championship Game MVP	Russell Wilson
Football seasons
← 2010	2012 →

2011 Big Ten football standings
	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Legends
#11 Michigan State xy		7	–	1					11	–	3
#12 Michigan ‡		6	–	2					11	–	2
#24 Nebraska		5	–	3					9	–	4
Iowa		4	–	4					7	–	6
Northwestern		3	–	5					6	–	7
Minnesota		2	–	6					3	–	9
Leaders
#10 Wisconsin xy†		6	–	2					11	–	3
Penn State		0*	–	2					0*	–	4
Purdue		4	–	4					7	–	6
Ohio State		3	–	5					6	–	7
Illinois		2	–	6					7	–	6
Indiana		0	–	8					1	–	11
Championship: Wisconsin 42, Michigan State 39
† – BCS representative as champion ‡ – BCS at-large representative x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant *PSU was 9-4 (6-2) and division co-champs, but vacated wins due to child sex abuse scandal As of January 10, 2012 • Rankings from AP Poll

The 2011 Big Ten Conference football season is the 116th for the Big Ten. The conference started its season on Saturday, September 3, as each of the conference’s teams began their respective 2011 season of NCAA Division I FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) competition. This season is Nebraska's first season as a member of the Big Ten, and also marks the creation of conference divisions (named Leaders and Legends), and a championship game. The season was also notable for the Sandusky sex abuse scandal.

For the season, Leaders Division champion Wisconsin finished as conference champion by defeating Legends Division champion Michigan State in the 2011 Big Ten Football Championship Game. Penn State was Leaders Division co-Champion, while Legends Division runner-up Michigan finished with the conference's best record. The conference earned two BCS bowl invitations and compiled a 4–6 overall record in 2011–12 NCAA football bowl games.

The Conference had six 2011 College Football All-America Team consensus selections: Montee Ball, Kevin Zeitler, David Molk, Whitney Mercilus (unanimous), Devon Still, and Jerel Worthy, with the Rimington Trophy going to Molk and the Ted Hendricks Award going to Mercilus. Ball won the Chicago Tribune Silver Football and the conference's players won four national statistical championships: Russell Wilson (passing efficiency), Raheem Mostert (kickoff return average), Ball (scoring), and Mercilus (quarterback sacks).

Following the season the conference contributed 41 to the 2012 NFL Draft, including 4 in the first round: Riley Reiff (23rd), Mercilus (26th), Zeitler (27th), and A. J. Jenkins (30th).

Rankings

See also: 2011 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings

		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	Final
Illinois	AP				24	24	19	16	23	RV
	C				RV	22	16	15	21	RV
	Harris	Not released						14	20	RV	RV
	BCS	Not released							23
Indiana	AP
	C
	Harris	Not released
	BCS	Not released
Iowa	AP	RV	RV
	C	RV	RV				RV			RV
	Harris	Not released								RV
	BCS	Not released
Michigan	AP	RV	RV	RV	22	19	12	11	18	17	13	22	20	17	17	13	12
	C	RV	RV	RV	21	19	11	10	17	17	13	21	18	16	16	12	9
	Harris	Not released						10	17	16	13	21	18	16	16	12
	BCS	Not released							18	18	15	24	18	15	16	13
Michigan State	AP	17	17	15	RV	RV	RV	23	15	9	15	13	12	11	11	12	11
	C	17	16	15	23	25	20	19	13	10	16	13	12	10	9	13	10
	Harris	Not released						22	15	11	17	13	12	11	11	13
	BCS	Not released							16	11	17	17	15	14	11	17
Minnesota	AP
	C
	Harris	Not released
	BCS	Not released
Nebraska	AP	10	10	10	9	8	14	14	13	13	9	18	16	22	20	21	24
	C	11	10	10	9	8	15	14	11	13	9	17	16	22	19	20	24
	Harris	Not released						13	11	13	9	17	16	21	19	20
	BCS	Not released							13	14	10	19	16	21	20	20
Northwestern	AP	RV	RV	RV
	C	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV
	Harris	Not released
	BCS	Not released
Ohio State	AP	18	15	17	RV	RV					RV
	C	16	15	16	RV	RV	RV				RV
	Harris	Not released									RV
	BCS	Not released
Penn State	AP	RV	23	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	21	16	12	21	20	23	24	RV
	C	25	20	RV	RV	RV	RV	25	22	19	15	12	21	19	22	23	RV
	Harris	Not released						RV	24	19	16	12	19	18	22	23
	BCS	Not released							21	19	16	12	21	19	23	22
Purdue	AP
	C
	Harris	Not released
	BCS	Not released
Wisconsin	AP	11	8	7	6	7	4	4	4	12	19	16	15	15	15	9	10
	C	10	9	8	7	7	5	4	4	11	17	14	13	12	12	8	11
	Harris	Not released						4	4	12	18	14	13	14	13	8
	BCS	Not released							6	15	20	18	17	16	12	10

Legend

		Improvement in ranking
		Drop in ranking
		Not ranked previous week
		No change in ranking from previous week
RV		Received votes but were not ranked in Top 25 of poll

Spring games

April 9

• Purdue Boilermakers

April 16

• Indiana Hoosiers
• Iowa Hawkeyes
• Michigan Wolverines
• Nebraska Cornhuskers
• Northwestern Wildcats
• Penn State Nittany Lions

April 23

• Illinois Fighting Illini
• Minnesota Golden Gophers
• Ohio State Buckeyes
• Wisconsin Badgers

April 30

• Michigan State Spartans

Regular season

Index to colors and formatting
Big Ten member won
Big Ten member lost
Big Ten teams in bold

All times Eastern time.

Rankings reflect that of the AP poll.^{[citation needed]}

Week one

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Broadcast	Result	Attendance	Reference
September 1	8:00 p.m.	UNLV	#11 Wisconsin	Camp Randall Stadium • Madison, WI	ESPN	W 51–17
September 2	7:30 p.m.	Youngstown State	#17 Michigan State	Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, MI	BTN	W 28–6
September 3	12:00 p.m.	Tennessee Tech	Iowa	Kinnick Stadium • Iowa City, IA	BTN	W 37–7
September 3	12:00 p.m.	Northwestern	Boston College	Alumni Stadium • Chestnut Hill, MA	ESPNU	W 24–17
September 3	12:00 p.m.	Akron	#18 Ohio State	Ohio Stadium • Columbus, OH	ESPN	W 42-0
September 3	12:00 p.m.	Indiana State	Penn State	Beaver Stadium • University, PA	BTN	W 41–7
September 3	12:00 p.m.	Middle Tennessee	Purdue	Ross-Ade Stadium • West Lafayette, IN	BTN	W 27–24
September 3	3:30 p.m.	Arkansas State	Illinois	Memorial Stadium • Champaign, IL	BTN	W 33–15
September 3	3:30 p.m.	Western Michigan	Michigan	Michigan Stadium • Ann Arbor, MI	ABC	W 34–10
September 3	7:00 p.m.	Chattanooga	#10 Nebraska	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, NE	BTN	W 40–7
September 3	3:30 p.m.	Minnesota	#25 USC	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum • Los Angeles, CA	ABC	L 17–19
September 3	7:00 p.m.	Ball State	Indiana	Lucas Oil Stadium • Indianapolis, IN	ESPN3	L 20–27

Players of the Week

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams		Freshman
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
Russell Wilson	Wisconsin	Brandin Herron	Michigan	Brett Maher & Chaz Powell	Nebraska & Penn State	Houston Bates	Illinois
Reference:

Week two

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Broadcast	Result	Attendance	Reference
September 10	12:00 p.m.	South Dakota State	Illinois	Memorial Stadium • Champaign, IL	BTN	W 56–3
September 10	12:00 p.m.	Iowa	Iowa State	Jack Trice Stadium • Ames, IA	FSN	L 41–44
September 10	12:00 p.m.	Florida Atlantic	#17 Michigan State	Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, MI	ESPN2	W 44–0
September 10	12:00 p.m.	Toledo	Ohio State	Ohio Stadium • Columbus, OH	BTN	W 27–22
September 10	12:00 p.m.	Oregon State	#8 Wisconsin	Camp Randall Stadium • Madison, WI	ESPN	W 35-0
September 10	3:30 p.m.	#3 Alabama	#23 Penn State	Beaver Stadium • University, PA	ABC	L 11-27
September 10	3:30 p.m.	New Mexico State	Minnesota	TCF Bank Stadium • Minneapolis, MN	BTN	L 21–28
September 10	3:30 p.m.	Eastern Illinois	Northwestern	Ryan Field • Evanston, IL	BTN	W 42–21
September 10	3:30 p.m.	Purdue	Rice	Rice Stadium • Houston, TX	CBS Sports Network	L 22–24
September 10	7:00 p.m.	Fresno State	#10 Nebraska	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, NE	BTN	W 42–29
September 10	7:00 p.m.	Virginia	Indiana	Memorial Stadium • Bloomington, IN	BTN	L 31–34
September 10	8:00 p.m.	Notre Dame	Michigan	Michigan Stadium • Ann Arbor, MI	ESPN	W 35–31

Players of the Week

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams		Freshman
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
Denard Robinson	Michigan	Mike Taylor	Wisconsin	Ameer Abdullah	Nebraska	Ameer Abdullah	Nebraska
Reference:

Week three

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Broadcast	Result	Attendance	Reference
September 17	12:00 p.m.	South Dakota State	Iowa	Kinnick Stadium • Iowa City, IA	ESPN2	W 31–27
September 17	12:00 p.m.	Eastern Michigan	Michigan	Michigan Stadium • Ann Arbor, MI	BTN	W 31–3
September 17	12:00 p.m.	Penn State	Temple	Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA	ESPN	W 14–10
September 17	12:00 p.m.	SEMO	Purdue	Ross-Ade Stadium • West Lafayette, IN	BTN	W 59–0
September 17	3:30 p.m.	Northwestern	Army	Michie Stadium • West Point, NY	CBS Sports Network	L 14-21
September 17	3:30 p.m.	South Carolina State	Indiana	Memorial Stadium • Bloomington, IN	BTN	W 38–21
September 17	3:30 p.m.	Miami (OH)	Minnesota	TCF Bank Stadium • Minneapolis, MN	BTN	W 29–23
September 17	3:30 p.m.	Washington	#11 Nebraska	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, NE	ABC	W 51–38
September 17	3:30 p.m.	#15 Michigan State	Notre Dame	Notre Dame Stadium • Notre Dame, IN	NBC	L 13–31
September 17	3:30 p.m.	#7 Wisconsin	Northern Illinois	Soldier Field • Chicago, IL	ESPN3	W 49–7
September 17	7:00 p.m.	#22 Arizona State	Illinois	Memorial Stadium • Champaign, IL	BTN	W 17–14
September 17	7:30 p.m.	#17 Ohio State	Miami	Sun Life Stadium • Miami Garden, FL	ESPN	L 6–24

Players of the Week

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams		Freshman
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
James Vandenberg	Iowa	Jonathan Brown	Illinois	Duane Bennett	Minnesota	D'Angelo Roberts	Indiana
Reference:

Week four

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	Broadcast	Result	Attendance	Reference
September 24	12:00 p.m.	Louisiana-Monroe	Iowa	Kinnick Stadium • Iowa City, IA	BTN	W 45–17
September 24	12:00 p.m.	San Diego State	#22 Michigan	Michigan Stadium • Ann Arbor, MI	BTN	W 28–7
September 24	12:00 p.m.	Central Michigan	Michigan State	Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, MI	ESPNU	W 45–7
September 24	12:00 p.m.	Eastern Michigan	Penn State	Beaver Stadium • University Park, PA	ESPN2	W 34–6
September 24	3:30 p.m.	Western Michigan	#24 Illinois	Memorial Stadium • Champaign, IL	BTN	W 23–20
September 24	3:30 p.m.	Colorado	Ohio State	Ohio Stadium • Columbus, OH	ABC	W 37-17
September 24	3:30 p.m.	South Dakota	#6 Wisconsin	Camp Randall Stadium • Madison, WI	BTN	W 59–10
September 24	7:00 p.m.	North Dakota State	Minnesota	TCF Bank Stadium • Minneapolis, MN	BTN	L 24–37
September 24	7:00 p.m.	Indiana	North Texas	Apogee Stadium • Denton, TX	ESPN3	L 21–24
September 24	7:30 p.m.	#9 Nebraska	Wyoming	War Memorial Stadium • Laramie, WY	Versus	W 38–14
September 24	3:30 p.m.	#7 Wisconsin	Northern Illinois	Soldier Field • Chicago, IL	ESPN3	W 49–7

Players of the Week

Offensive		Defensive		Special teams		Freshman
Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team	Player	Team
Denard Robinson Matt McGloin	Michigan Penn State	Tom Nardo	Iowa	Derek Dimke	Illinois	Donovonn Young	Illinois
Reference:

Attendance

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	60,670	45,154	42,212	50,669	43,684	53,243	55,229	60,670	54,633	405,494	50,687	83.5%
Indiana	Memorial Stadium	52,929	41,549	41,203	42,621	41,665	39,239	42,005	0 !—	0 !—	248,282	41,380	78.2%
Iowa	Kinnick Stadium	70,585	70,585	70,585	70,585	70,585	70,585	70,585	70,585	0 !—	494,095	70,585	100%
Michigan	Michigan Stadium	109,901	110,506	114,804	110,343	110,707	111,106	112,115	113,718	114,132	897,431	112,179	102%
Michigan State	Spartan Stadium	75,005	75,910	70,249	72,119	77,515	76,405	72,219	74,128	0 !—	518,545	74,078	98.8%
Minnesota	TCF Bank Stadium	50,805	48,807	49,950	48,802	49,187	46,543	49,158	41,549	0 !—	333,996	47,714	93.9%
Nebraska	Memorial Stadium	81,067	84,883	85,101	85,110	85,426	85,641	85,115	85,595	0 !—	596,871	85,267	105%
Northwestern	Ryan Field	47,130	28,042	47,330	40,004	26,886	26,215	27,137	0 !—	0 !—	195,614	32,602	69.1%
Ohio State	Ohio Stadium	102,329	105,001	105,016	105,096	105,306	105,511	105,159	105,493	0 !—	736,582	105 226	102.8%
Penn State	Beaver Stadium	107,282	96,461	107,846	95,636	103,497	100,820	97,828	107,193	0 !—	709,281	101,326	94.4%
Purdue	Ross-Ade Stadium	62,500	42,110	46,116	61,555	38,207	45,146	43,334	40,106	0 !—	316,574	45,225	72.3%
Wisconsin	Camp Randall Stadium	80,312	77,085	80,337	78,880	81,384	80,732	79,708	0 !—	0 !—	478,126	79,688	99.2%

Post-season awards and honors

Individual Award Winners

• Griese-Brees Quarterback of the Year: Russell Wilson, Wisconsin
• Richter-Howard Receiver of the Year: Marvin McNutt, Iowa
• Ameche-Dayne Running Back of the Year: Montee Ball, Wisconsin
• Kwalick-Clark Tight End of the Year: Drake Dunsmore, Northwestern
• Rimington-Pace Offensive Lineman of the Year: David Molk, Michigan
• Smith-Brown Defensive Lineman of the Year: Devon Still, Penn State
• Butkus-Fitzgerald Linebacker of the Year: Lavonte David, Nebraska
• Tatum-Woodson Defensive Back of the Year: Alfonzo Dennard, Nebraska
• Bakken-Andersen Kicker of the Year: Brett Maher, Nebraska
• Eddleman-Fields Punter of the Year: Brett Maher, Nebraska

Academic All-American

The Big Ten led all conferences with 7 Academic All-America selections: 1st team - Rex Burkhead (Nebraska), Austin Cassidy (Nebraska), Patrick Ward (Northwestern) and Joe Holland (Purdue); 2nd team - Mike Sadler (Michigan State), Sean Fisher (Nebraska) and Jacob Schmidt (Northwestern). Cassidy was one of four repeat first-team winners, while Holland was a 2010 second-team selection.

All-Big Ten

The following players were named by the coaches.:

Position Player Class Team First Team Offense QB Russell Wilson Sr. Wisconsin RB Montee Ball Jr. Wisconsin RB Rex Burkhead Jr. Nebraska WR A.J. Jenkins Sr. Illinois WR Marvin McNutt Sr. Iowa TE Drake Dunsmore Sr. Northwestern OT Riley Reiff Jr. Iowa OG Joel Foreman Sr. Michigan State C David Molk Sr. Michigan OG Kevin Zeitler Sr. Wisconsin OT Josh Oglesby Sr. Wisconsin First Team Defense DL Whitney Mercilus Jr. Illinois DL Jerel Worthy Jr. Michigan State DL John Simon Jr. Ohio State DL Devon Still Sr. Penn State LB Lavonte David Jr. Nebraska LB Gerald Hodges Sr. Penn State LB Chris Borland So. Wisconsin DB Shaun Prater Sr. Iowa DB Johnny Adams Jr. Michigan State DB Alfonzo Dennard Sr. Nebraska DB Aaron Henry Sr. Wisconsin First Team Special Teams K Brett Maher Jr. Nebraska P Brett Maher Jr. Nebraska

Position Player Class Team Second Team Offense QB Kirk Cousins Sr. Michigan State RB Marcus Coker So. Iowa RB Silas Redd So. Penn State WR B.J. Cunningham Sr. Michigan State WR Nick Toon Sr. Wisconsin TE Brian Linthicum Sr. Michigan State OT Taylor Lewan So. Michigan OG Adam Gettis Sr. Iowa C Mike Caputo Sr. Nebraska C Mike Brewster Sr. Ohio State OG Travis Frederick So. Wisconsin OT Mike Adams Sr. Ohio State Second Team Defense DL Michael Buchanan Jr. Illinois DL Mike Daniels Sr. Iowa DL Mike Martin Sr. Michigan DL William Gholston So. Michigan State DL Jack Crawford Sr. Penn State DL Kawann Short Jr. Purdue LB Max Bullough So. Michigan State LB Andrew Sweat Sr. Ohio State LB Mike Taylor Jr. Wisconsin DB Isaiah Lewis So. Michigan State DB C.J. Barnett So. Ohio State DB Nick Sukay Sr. Penn State DB Ricardo Allen So. Purdue Second Team Special Teams K Carson Wiggs Sr. Purdue P Cody Webster So. Purdue

HONORABLE MENTION: Illinois: Jeff Allen, Jonathan Brown, Derek Dimke, Terry Hawthorne, Ian Thomas; Indiana: Mitch Ewald, Jeff Thomas; Iowa: Broderick Binns, James Ferentz, Eric Guthrie, Micah Hyde, James Morris, Markus Zusevics; Michigan: Kenny Demens, J.T. Floyd, Kevin Koger, Junior Hemingway, Denard Robinson, Fitzgerald Toussaint, Ryan Van Bergen; Michigan State: Denicos Allen, LeVeon Bell, Kenshawn Martin, Trenton Robinson, Marcus Rush; Minnesota: Kim Royston; Nebraska: Will Compton, Ben Cotton, Spencer Long, Marcel Jones, Baker Steinkuhler; Northwestern: Jeremy Ebert, Jordan Mabin, Brian Mulroe, Al Netter, Dan Persa, Brian Peters; Ohio State: Johnathan Hankins, Dan Herron, Jack Mewhort, Jake Stoneburner; Penn State: Drew Astorino, Anthony Fera, Jordan Hill, D'Anton Lynn, Derek Moye, Chima Okoli, Chaz Powell, Johnnie Troutman; Purdue: Joe Holland, Dennis Kelly; Wisconsin: Jared Abbrederis, Patrick Butrym, Antonio Fenelus, Peter Konz, Brad Nortman, Jacob Pedersen, Ricky Wagner.

The following players were named by the media panel.

Position Player Class Team First Team Offense QB Russell Wilson Sr. Wisconsin RB Montee Ball Jr. Wisconsin RB Rex Burkhead Jr. Nebraska WR A.J. Jenkins Sr. Illinois WR Marvin McNutt Sr. Iowa TE Drake Dunsmore Sr. Northwestern OT Riley Reiff Jr. Iowa OG Joel Foreman Sr. Michigan State C Peter Konz Jr. Wisconsin OG Kevin Zeitler Sr. Wisconsin OT Josh Oglesby Sr. Wisconsin First Team Defense DL Whitney Mercilus Jr. Illinois DL Jerel Worthy Jr. Michigan State DL Devon Still Sr. Penn State DL Kawann Short Jr. Purdue LB Lavonte David Jr. Nebraska LB Chris Borland So. Wisconsin LB Mike Taylor Jr. Wisconsin DB Trenton Robinson Sr. Michigan State DB Alfonzo Dennard Sr. Nebraska DB Brian Peters Sr. Northwestern DB Antonio Fenelus Sr. Wisconsin First Team Special Teams K Brett Maher Jr. Nebraska P Brett Maher Jr. Nebraska

Position Player Class Team Second Team Offense QB Denard Robinson Jr. Michigan RB Marcus Coker So. Iowa RB Silas Redd So. Penn State WR B.J. Cunningham Sr. Michigan State WR Jeremy Ebert Sr. Northwestern TE Jacob Pedersen So. Wisconsin OT Jeff Allen Sr. Illinois OG Spencer Long So. Nebraska C David Molk Sr. Michigan OG Travis Frederick So. Wisconsin OT Mike Adams Sr. Ohio State Second Team Defense DL Michael Buchanan Jr. Illinois DL Broderick Binns Sr. Iowa DL Mike Martin Sr. Michigan DL William Gholston So. Michigan State DL John Simon Sr. Ohio State LB Jonathan Brown Jr. Illinois LB Denicos Allen So. Ohio State LB Gerald Hodges Jr. Penn State DB Micah Hyde Sr. Iowa DB Johnny Adams Jr. Michigan State DB Isaiah Lewis So. Michigan State DB Nick Sukay Sr. Penn State Second Team Special Teams K Anthony Fera Sr. Penn State P Cody Webster So. Purdue

HONORABLE MENTION: Illinois: Derek Dimke, Terry Hawthorne, Travon Wilson; Indiana: Mitch Ewald; Iowa: Mike Daniels, James Ferentz, Adam Gettis, Eric Guthrie, James Morris, Tyler Nielsen, Shaun Prater, Markus Zusevics; Michigan: Kenny Demens, J.T. Floyd, Kevin Koger, Jordan Kovacs, Taylor Lewan, Craig Roh, Fitzgerald Toussaint, Ryan Van Bergen; Michigan State: Le'Veon Bell, Max Bullough, Dan Conroy, Kirk Cousins, Darqueze Dennard, Brian Linthicum, Chris McDonald, Chris Norman, Kevin Pickelman, Marcus Rush; Minnesota: Chris Bunders, Kim Royston; Nebraska: Mike Caputo, Austin Cassidy, Will Compton, Ben Cotton, Marcel Jones, Cameron Meredith, Daimion Stafford, Baker Steinkuhler; Northwestern: Kain Colter, Jordan Mabin, Brian Mulroe, Al Netter, Dan Persa; Ohio State: C.J. Barnett, Mike Brewster, Johnathan Hankins, Jack Mewhort, Tyler Moeller, Andrew Norwell, Jake Stoneburner, Andrew Sweat; Penn State: Drew Astorino, Quinn Barham, Jack Crawford, Jordan Hill, D'Anton Lynn, Chima Okoli, Chaz Powell, Nate Stupar, Johnnie Troutman; Purdue: Ricardo Allen, Dwayne Beckford, Joe Holland, Dennis Kelly, Carson Wiggs; Wisconsin: Jared Abbrederis, Patrick Butrym, Aaron Henry, Brad Nortman, Nick Toon, Ricky Wagner, Philip Welch.

Bowl games

See also: 2011–12 NCAA football bowl games

Big Ten Bowl Games
No.	Game	Date	Location/Time*	Television	Big Ten Team+	Score	Opponent+	Score	Payout (US$) per team
1.	Little Caesars Bowl	Dec. 27, 2011	Ford Field Detroit, Michigan 4:30 pm	ESPN	Purdue (6–6)	37	Western Michigan (7–5)	32	$750,000
2.	Insight Bowl	Dec. 30, 2011	Sun Devil Stadium Tempe, Arizona 10:00 pm	ESPN	Iowa (7–5)	14	#19 Oklahoma (9–3)	31	$1,200,000
3.	Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas	Dec. 31, 2011	Reliant Stadium Houston Texas 12:00 pm	ESPN	Northwestern (6–6)	22	Texas A&M (6–6)	33	$1,700,000
4.	Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl	Dec. 31, 2011	AT&T Park San Francisco, California 3:30 pm	ESPN	Illinois (6–6)	20	UCLA (6–7)	14	$750,000-$825,000
5.	TicketCity Bowl	Jan. 2, 2012	Cotton Bowl Dallas, Texas 12:00 pm	ESPNU	#24 Penn State (9–3)	14	#20 Houston (12–1)	30	$1,200,000
6.	Outback Bowl	Jan. 2, 2012	Raymond James Stadium Tampa, Florida 1:00 pm	ABC	#12 Michigan State (10–3)	33	#18 Georgia (10–3)	30	$3,400,000
7.	Capital One Bowl	Jan. 2, 2012	Citrus Bowl Orlando, Florida 1:00 pm	ESPN	#21 Nebraska (9–3)	13	#10 South Carolina (10–2)	30	$4,250,000
8.	TaxSlayer.com Gator Bowl	Jan. 2, 2012	EverBank Field Jacksonville, Florida 1:00 pm	ESPN2	Ohio State (6–6)	17	Florida (6–6)	24	$2,500,000
9.	Rose Bowl	Jan. 2, 2012	Rose Bowl Pasadena, California 5:10 pm	ESPN	#9 Wisconsin (11–2)	38	#6 Oregon (11–2)	45	$18,000,000
10.	Allstate Sugar Bowl	Jan. 3, 2012	Mercedes-Benz Superdome New Orleans, Louisiana 8:30 pm	ESPN	#13 Michigan (10–2)	23	#17 Virginia Tech (11–2)	20	$17,000,000
*Time given is Eastern Time (UTC-5). +Winning team is bolded. Rankings are AP.

2012 NFL Draft

Main article: 2012 NFL Draft

The conference lost 4 players in the first round of the NFL Draft: A total of 41 Big Ten players were drafted.

Team	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Round 4	Round 5	Round 6	Round 7	Total
Illinois	2	2						4
Indiana								0
Iowa	1	1		1	2	1	1	7
Michigan			1				2	3
Michigan State				2		2	1	5
Minnesota								0
Nebraska		1		1			2	4
Northwestern							2	2
Ohio State		1	1			2		4
Penn State		1			2		1	4
Purdue					1	1		2
Wisconsin	1	1	1	1	1	1		6

Rnd.	Pick #	NFL Team	Player	Pos.	College	Conf.	Notes
1	23	Detroit Lions	Reiff, RileyRiley Reiff	OT	Iowa	Big Ten
1	26	Houston Texans	Mercilus, WhitneyWhitney Mercilus	DE	Illinois	N/A
1	27	Cincinnati Bengals	Zeitler, KevinKevin Zeitler	G	Wisconsin	Big Ten	from New Orleans via New England
1	30	San Francisco 49ers	Jenkins, A. J.A. J. Jenkins	WR	Illinois	Big Ten
2	44	Kansas City Chiefs	Allen, JeffJeff Allen	G	Illinois	N/A
2	48	New England Patriots	Wilson, TavonTavon Wilson	S	Illinois	N/A	from Oakland
2	51	Green Bay Packers	Worthy, JerelJerel Worthy	DT	Michigan State	Big Ten	from Arizona via Philadelphia
2	53	Cincinnati Bengals	Still, DevonDevon Still	DT	Penn State	Big Ten
2	55	Atlanta Falcons	Konz, PeterPeter Konz	C	Wisconsin	Big Ten
2	56	Pittsburgh Steelers	Adams, MikeMike Adams	OT	Ohio State	Big Ten
2	58	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	David, LavonteLavonte David	LB	Nebraska	Big 12	from Houston
3	68	Houston Texans	Posey, DeVierDeVier Posey	WR	Ohio State	Big Ten	from Tampa Bay
3	75	Seattle Seahawks	Wilson, RussellRussell Wilson	QB	Wisconsin	Big Ten
3	82	Tennessee Titans	Martin, MikeMike Martin	DT	Michigan	Big Ten
4	102	Washington Redskins	Cousins, KirkKirk Cousins	QB	Michigan State	Big Ten
4	121	Houston Texans	Martin, KeshawnKeshawn Martin	WR	Michigan State	Big Ten
4	122	New Orleans Saints	Toon, NickNick Toon	WR	Wisconsin	Big Ten
4	126	Houston Texans	Crick, JaredJared Crick	DE	Nebraska	Big 12	from New England via Denver and Tampa Bay
4 *	132	Green Bay Packers	Daniels, MikeMike Daniels	DT	Iowa	Big Ten
5	141	Washington Redskins	Gettis, AdamAdam Gettis	G	Iowa	Big Ten
5	149	San Diego Chargers	Troutman, JohnnieJohnnie Troutman	G	Penn State	Big Ten
5	153	Philadelphia Eagles	Kelly, DennisDennis Kelly	OT	Purdue	Big Ten
5	156	Cincinnati Bengals	Prater, ShaunShaun Prater	CB	Iowa	Big Ten
5	157	Atlanta Falcons	Ewing, BradieBradie Ewing	FB	Wisconsin	Big Ten
5	158	Oakland Raiders	Crawford, JackJack Crawford	DE	Penn State	Big Ten
6	180	San Francisco 49ers	Robinson, TrentonTrenton Robinson	S	Michigan State	Big Ten	from Carolina
6	183	Miami Dolphins	Cunningham, B.J.B.J. Cunningham	WR	Michigan State	Big Ten	from San Diego
6	191	Cincinnati Bengals	Herron, DanDan Herron	RB	Ohio State	Big Ten
6	194	Philadelphia Eagles	McNutt, MarvinMarvin McNutt	WR	Iowa	Big Ten	from Denver
6	195	Houston Texans	Mondek, NickNick Mondek	OT	Purdue	Big Ten
6 *	207	Carolina Panthers	Nortman, BradBrad Nortman	P	Wisconsin	Big Ten
7	217	Washington Redskins	Bernstine, JordanJordan Bernstine	CB	Iowa	Big Ten	from Buffalo
7	224	New England Patriots	Dennard, AlfonzoAlfonzo Dennard	CB	Nebraska	Big 12	from New York Jets
7	226	San Diego Chargers	Molk, DavidDavid Molk	C	Michigan	Big Ten
7	230	Detroit Lions	Stupar, NathanNathan Stupar	OLB	Penn State	Big Ten
7	233	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Dunsmore, DrakeDrake Dunsmore	TE	Northwestern University	Big Ten	from Houston
7	234	New Orleans Saints	Jones, MarcelMarcel Jones	OT	Nebraska	Big 12
7	235	New England Patriots	Ebert, JeremyJeremy Ebert	WR	Northwestern University	Big Ten
7	238	Kansas City Chiefs	Hemingway, JuniorJunior Hemingway	WR	Michigan	Big Ten	from New England
7 *	250	San Diego Chargers	Baker, EdwinEdwin Baker	RB	Michigan State	Big Ten

Head coaches

Ron Zook and Vic Koenning (for bowl game), Illinois Kevin R. Wilson, Indiana Kirk Ferentz, Iowa Brady Hoke, Michigan Mark Dantonio, Michigan State Jerry Kill, Minnesota

Bo Pelini, Nebraska Pat Fitzgerald, Northwestern Luke Fickell, Ohio State Joe Paterno (first nine games) and Tom Bradley (last three games), Penn State Danny Hope, Purdue Bret Bielema, Wisconsin

Joe Paterno was fired as head coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions on November 9 in the wake of the Penn State sex abuse scandal. Defensive coordinator Tom Bradley was named interim head coach for the remainder of the season.

Notes

• July 28–29, 2011 – Media Days in Chicago.