DaytonDailyNews.com

Finally, and after way too many servings, we can see the bottom of the college bowl season. I'm looking forward to the BCS national championship for two reasons:

• It caps the 34-game bowl season that started way back on Dec. 20.

• It'll end — or at least slow down — the nation's Big Ten bashing. I hope.

Yes, the Big Ten has underwhelmed its bowl counterparts with a 1-5 record (not counting Ohio State's game with Texas on Monday, Jan. 5).

Yes, the Big Ten hasn't posted a winning bowl season since 2002 when Ohio State capped a 5-2 run with a national title. The Big Ten is 15-27 since.

But all is not lost. Just look at Oklahoma. The Big 12 team has not won a major bowl game since beating Washington State in the Rose Bowl in 2002. (I'm counting the 2005 win over Oregon in the Holiday Bowl as a mid-major victory).

Still, despite losing the last two Fiesta Bowls and losing two straight national title games in 2005 and 2004, the Sooners have finally been forgiven.

Let's hope the same can be said for Ohio State, and soon. But the Big Ten must help. Big nonconference wins in the regular season and bigger bowl wins are a necessity.

The cold-weather Big Ten, though, will always be at a disadvantage in one regard. USC gets home-field advantage for the Rose Bowl, LSU gets home-state advantage for the Sugar Bowl as do Florida teams for four bowls.

I say blow up the current system and spread them around. I'd love to see Florida come up to Soldier Field for a Jan. 1 game against Ohio State, or see USC fly across the country to the Meadowlands to play Penn State. Think those bowl records would even out?

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2400, ext. 6991, or gbilling@DaytonDailyNews.com.