Big Ten Conference, Oregon Ducks New Tiebreaker Rules For Conference Title Game

The Oregon Ducks new Big Ten conference makes it tiebreaker rules official for the Big Ten Championship Game.

Oregon head coach Dan Lanning runs during practice with the Ducks Thursday, April 11, 2024, at the Hatfield-Dowlin Complex in Eugene, Ore. / Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Oregon Ducks are joining the Big Ten Conference in 2024. The Big Ten has expanded to 18 teams with additional newcomers in Oregon, Washington Huskies, USC Trojans and UCLA Bruins.

The Big Ten finalized its tiebreaking procedures to determine which teams get to compete in the 2024 championship game. According to the league, here are the steps for if two teams are tied in the Big Ten standings (conference games only.)

Jul 25, 2024; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Oregon Ducks head coach ??Dan Lanning speaks to the media during the Big 10 football media day at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Goddin-USA TODAY Sports / Robert Goddin-USA TODAY Sports

• Head-to-head result
• Record against all common conference opponents
• Record against common opponents with the best conference record and proceeding through the common conference opponents based on their order of finish
• Best cumulative conference winning percentage of all conference opponents
• Highest ranking by SportSource Analytics (team Rating Score metric) following the regular season
• Random draw conducted by Commissioner Tony Petitti or designee

There are additional rules for if three teams or tied or if for some reason, the Big Ten Championship game is not able to be played.

The Ducks are competing against elite college football competition in the Big Ten. Oregon is a first-year Big Ten team in a position to win right away. Oregon coach Dan Lanning has compiled an enviable roster with dangerous perimeter speed at wide receiver and in the secondary, including receivers Tez Johnson and Evan Stewart, transfer cornerback Jabbar Muhammad and safetyKobe Savage.

Oregon wide receiver Evan Stewart makes a catch during practice with the Ducks Tuesday, April 23, 2024 at the Hatfield-Dowlin Complex in Eugene, Ore. / Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Ducks' speed is balanced with its aggressive offensive line, full of returners, and physical brand of a menacing defensive line that includes a literal huge addition in transfer defensive tackle Jamaree Caldwell.

If Oregon can defeat both Ohio State at home and Michigan on the road, the Ducks have a real shot at finishing their first season in their new conference undefeated.

Oregon senior linebacker Jeffrey Bassa doesn’t react to doubters that raise concerns that Oregon could fall flat against Big Ten opponents

“It comes down to not letting outside noise affect us,” Bassa told Oregon Ducks on SI reporter Bri Amaranthus. “I think that's something that we do great as a program… If we win a game or we lose a game, we're going to go back on Sunday and look at the film and see what we did wrong first before we look at the things that we did good.” 

The leader of Oregon's defense, Bassa preaches patience to his team.

“My defensive guys know that we have to come in ready to work every day because we're going to have a target on our back from last season - whether that's playing the team that we've seen last season or playing a new team this season,” Bassa told Amaranthus. 

The Big Ten title game takes place at 8 p.m. ET Dec. 7 in Indianapolis. CBS will broadcast the game.

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