Grading the Big Ten bowl teams and how the results impact Rutgers

A postseason that began with the disappointment over not having a participant in the four-team playoff for the national championship at least ended on a high note for the Big Ten. The conference narrowly missed on a perfect eight-for-eight -- more on the loss that ended that quest in a minute -- and finished a respectable 7-1 for the 2018 bowl season.

Considering that last winter was a disaster for the league, with its teams going 3-7 in bowls, the strong performance gives commissioner Jim Delany a reason to smile ... at least, that is, until he watches other conferences play for the big prize next week.

Ohio State, Penn State and Wisconsin all claimed what -- in the good old days -- used to be considered "major" bowl championships at the Cotton, Fiesta and Orange bowls. Iowa ended a five-bowl losing streak with a win at Yankee Stadium in the Pinstripe. Purdue finished over .500 for the first time since 2011 with its bowl victory, and Northwestern cracked 10 victories for the second time in three seasons. 

The league looked like it was headed for a perfect 8-0 record until Michigan blew a fourth-quarter lead to South Carolina in the Outback Bowl. But, given that Jim Harbaugh is hardly a cuddly figure in most Big Ten towns, it's hard to imagine too many tears were shed when that score flashed across TV screens.

Rutgers was a spectator for the third straight year, a streak head coach Chris Ash will attempt to end in 2018. That doesn't mean the results won't have an impact in Piscataway given that six of the Big Ten teams in bowl games are on the Scarlet Knights schedule next season. Here is a breakdown of all the conference bowl games, with a grade for each team and an explanation of how the result impacts Rutgers: