Fiesta Bowl chatter

It's been a hot topic in Big Ten country, particularly here in Iowa City: which Big Ten team will get the nod as an at-large bid into the BCS, Iowa or Penn State?

I know why Iowa deserves the bid. So I'm going to tell you why Penn State doesn't.

The Nittany Lions are a good football team, no question. It's hard for any team to win 10 games in a season.

But...

• Iowa is ranked higher (9th) in the latest BCS standings than Penn State (11th).
• Penn State lacks a signature win. Sure, the Nits crushed Michigan State, Minnesota and Michigan down the stretch. But the Gophers and Spartans are average teams and a win over Michigan doesn't mean as much as it used to considering the Wolverines get the Big Ten cellar all to themselves this season.
• Penn State's non-conference schedule is less than impressive: Akron, Syracuse, Temple and Eastern Illinois of the FCS. Iowa has beaten two bowl-eligible teams from BCS conferences (Iowa State and Arizona).
  
• The Nits got smoked by Ohio State -- in Happy Valley, mind you. Iowa limped into The Shoe and took the Buckeyes to overtime without Ricky Stanzi, before falling 27-24 as a result of conservative decision making by the Iowa coaching staff.
• Finally, and most convincingly, the Hawkeyes not only won the head-to-head showdown but they did it AT Penn State. The Nits could have a beef if Iowa would've nipped them with a last second field goal like they did in 2008, but other than the first five minutes of the game the Hawks were in complete control. Penn State had minus-4 total yards in the second quarter and turned the ball over four times in the second half alone.

What more proof do you need, Fiesta Bowl reps? We're all waiting by the phone.