And so it comes down to one final game.
By 3:15 p.m. Saturday — give or take a couple of Marathon Gas ads — one Big Ten football team will walk off the field joyously dreaming of another month of practice, potentially warmer December days and a recruiting showcase on ESPN, while the other faces 365 days of doubt and recrimination, even before their in-laws show up on Turkey Day.
Yes, when the final whistle blows at SHI Stadium in Piscataway, N.J., either Rutgers or Maryland will have picked up its sixth win, bringing bowl eligibility and a trip to … well, probably Detroit.