Richard Mackson-US PRESSWIRE
A big day on the ground and the scoreboard sends the Badgers to Pasadena for New Year's Day.
Most fans were expecting a close, competitive game between the Wisconsin Badgers and the No. 12 Nebraska Cornhuskers in the Big Ten Championship on Saturday. But 539 rushing yards later, the Badgers pounded the Cornhuskers, 70-31, at Lucas Oil Field in Indianapolis. Wisconsin had only made the game because the teams that finished ahead of them in the Leaders division were ineligible.
Two Wisconsin rushers went for over 200 yards on the day. Freshman Melvin Gordon finished with 216 yards on just nine carries and added a touchdown. Montee Ball racked up 202 yards on 21 carries and hit paydirt three times.
The teams combined for over 1,000 yards of offense in the final Big Ten game of the season. The victory punched Wisconsin's third straight ticket to the Rose Bowl. They'll face the Stanford Cardinal, which earned its place in the game with a win in the Pac-12 Championship on Friday over the UCLA Bruins. The last time the Badgers won the Rose Bowl was a 17-9 win over the Cardinal in 2000.
With the Big Ten season over, here's a look at the final standings:
| Big Ten - Legends | CONF | OVERALL |
| * - Nebraska | 7-1 | 10-3 |
| * - Michigan | 6-2 | 8-4 |
| * - Northwestern | 5-3 | 9-3 |
| * - Michigan State | 3-5 | 6-6 |
| x - Iowa | 2-6 | 4-8 |
| * - Minnesota | 2-6 | 6-6 |
| Big Ten - Leaders | CONF | OVERALL |
| x - Ohio State | 8-0 | 12-0 |
| x - Penn State | 6-2 | 8-4 |
| * - Wisconsin | 4-4 | 8-5 |
| * - Purdue | 3-5 | 6-6 |
| x - Indiana | 2-6 | 4-8 |
| x - Illinois | 0-8 | 2-10 |
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