The teams that battled for the Big Ten Conference title on Dec. 5 in Indianapolis went on to lose their bowl games in similarly embarrassing fashion. Similar, but not equal.
As bad as Michigan State's 38-0 Dec. 31 loss to Alabama in the Sugar Bowl was, it doesn't hold a candle to what Iowa Football did in the Rose Bowl. And it's not even close.
Get blown out by Alabama? The Crimson Tide were supposed to roll, anyways. But to fall behind 35-0 in the first half and lose by 29 points in what the Big Ten (and the college football powers that be) clearly feels is the most important game on the season, that's hard to sweep under the rug.