ESPN College Football

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

This is a great time of year for hypotheticals, and while the Big Ten title race doesn't seem as convoluted as, say, the ACC or the Big 12, several e-mailers are wondering where Michigan State stands heading into November.

I would have included this question in the Tuesday mailbag but wanted to get confirmation from the Big Ten office regarding the league's tiebreaker rules.

Patrick from Ithaca, N.Y., writes: Ok, so I know that, being MSU, a letdown is entirely possible. And I also know the odds of them winning at PSU are 1000-1. But, supposing Michigan State runs the table and OSU and PSU avoid any other upsets, what happens in the Big-10? What's the tiebreak?

If this scenario played out, Michigan State would win the tiebreaker and head to the Rose Bowl because of its nonconference schedule. All three teams would be 7-1 in Big Ten play, with Michigan State beating Penn State, Ohio State beating Michigan State and Penn State beating Ohio State.

The tiebreaker rules state: "If there is still a tie for the championship, or if the tied teams did not play each other, the team that played more games against Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) teams shall be eliminated."

Both Penn State and Ohio State faced FCS schools, with the Nittany Lions opening against Coastal Carolina and the Buckeyes opening against Youngstown State. Michigan State's nonleague schedule (Cal, Eastern Michigan, Florida Atlantic and Notre Dame) includes only FBS teams. So the Spartans get the nod.

It's interesting that the FCS clause comes before overall record in the list of tiebreakers. If it went solely by overall record, Penn State (11-1) would win the tiebreaker ahead of both Michigan State (10-2) and Ohio State (10-2).

Though No. 3 Penn State likely will be a heavy favorite heading into the Nov. 22 matchup, the tiebreaker scenario certainly adds intrigue to the game.