The final regular-season polls are out, including the coaches' poll, which on Sunday revealed the final ballots from 59 FBS head coaches.
Six Big Ten coaches voted in this year's poll: Illinois' Tim Beckman, Wisconsin's Bret Bielema, Michigan State's Mark Dantonio, Michigan's Brady Hoke, Nebraska's Bo Pelini and Indiana's Kevin Wilson.
Politics and biases undoubtedly play out in the final balloting, so let's check out some notable votes from the Big Ten contingent.
After Wisconsin smashed his team Saturday night, Pelini ranked the Badgers at No. 16, the highest vote they received (Washington's Steve Sarkisian also had UW at 16). Bielema, meanwhile, had the Badgers at No. 18. Bielema didn't think a whole lot of the Huskers after Saturday night's stomping, putting Nebraska at No. 24, the lowest vote Big Red received among the Big Ten coaches.
Wilson, whose Indiana team Wisconsin crushed Nov. 10 in Bloomington, had the Badgers at No. 25, lowest among all the Big Ten coaches. Wilson had Nebraska at No. 22. Hmmm ...
Hoke was one of three coaches to give Michigan its highest ranking at No. 15. The others? Notre Dame's Brian Kelly and ... wait for it ... Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez, who coached the Wolverines from 2008-10. Nice to see Rich isn't bitter. Dantonio put his in-state rival at No. 20.
Hoke played and coached in the Mid-American Conference for Ball State, but he had little loyalty for the league on his ballot. That, or he just hates Northern Illinois. Hoke had the Huskies at No. 25, the lowest vote they received among any of the coaches. Beckman, who previously coached NIU's top rival Toledo, had the Huskies at No. 17.
Bielema gave his former boss Bill Snyder some love, ranking Kansas State at No. 4 on his ballot. Dantonio, who is good friends with Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops, had the Sooners at No. 8 and BCS buster Northern Illinois all the way down at No. 22. Wilson, who worked for Stoops at Oklahoma before coming to Indiana, had the Sooners at No. 11. So did Pelini.
A quick check of where the Big Ten coaches ranked their upcoming bowl opponents. Bielema had Stanford at No. 5, Hoke had South Carolina at No. 10 and Pelini had Georgia at No. 6.
All six Big Ten coaches had Notre Dame at No. 1 and Alabama at No. 2.
Other notable coach votes:
NC State coach Dave Doeren, the former Wisconsin defensive coordinator who coached Northern Illinois this season, didn't rank the Badgers on his final ballot. He had Nebraska at No. 18. Huh?
Kent State coach Darrell Hazell, a former Ohio State assistant, didn't have much love for the Big Ten, not ranking Northwestern or Nebraska. He had Michigan at No. 23.
Ohio coach Frank Solich, who played and coached at Nebraska, had the Huskers at No. 23 on his ballot.
Here's a quick look at the voting for each Big Ten team in the final poll (Ohio State and Penn State weren't eligible).
No. 17 Northwestern
High vote: 14, from Kentucky's Joker Phillips and South Carolina's Steve Spurrier (who also jabbed at the Wildcats on Sunday)
Low vote: Not ranked by multiple coaches
No. 21 Nebraska
High vote:15, by Oklahoma's Stoops, Spurrier and Arkansas State's Gus Malzahn
Low vote: Not ranked by multiple coaches
No. 22 Michigan
High vote: 15, by Hoke, Kelly and Rodriguez
Low vote: Not ranked by multiple coaches
No. 23 Wisconsin
High vote: 16, by Pelini and Sarkisian
Low vote: Not ranked by multiple coaches