Actually, they can in certain scenarios. Here is a
breakdown of the Big Ten's selection criteria based on whether the conference has 1 or 2 teams in BCS bowls.
1 Big Ten team in the BCS:
The Capital One, Outback, Alamo and Champs Sports can select any eligible team except a team that has two fewer wins or two more losses than another eligible team. So the Capital One bowl could pick an 8-4 team over a 9-3 team but they cannot take a 7-5 team over a 9-3 team. Of course, the bowls only look at overall records (not conference records) and do not have to look at head-to-head matchups. They just pick the best team for their bowl game.
The Insight and Motor City Bowls have no restrictions, so they can take whatever teams are remaining (in other words, the Insight could take a 6-6 team over an 8-4 team).
However, no 7-5 or better Big Ten team can get pushed out of the Big Ten’s bowl lineup by a 6-6 team. In other words, if we have eight bowl-eligible teams and seven bowl spots, and one of the teams is 6-6, that 6-6 team cannot be picked by the Motor City Bowl and push a 7-5 team out of the Big Ten bowl lineup. But if the Big Ten has seven bowl-eligible teams and seven bowl spots, a 6-6 team could be picked by the Insight and push a 7-5 or better team down to the Motor City Bowl.
2 Big Ten teams in the BCS:
If the Big Ten has two teams selected to BCS bowls, both the Outback and Alamo bowls have no restrictions on which teams they select. Those bowls could take a 7-5 or 6-6 team over an 8-4 squad, as long as the 8-4 squad still falls to a Big Ten-affiliated bowl. The Capital One and Champs Sports bowls are the only bowls that have to play by the rules, which allow them to select any eligible team except one that has two fewer wins or two more losses than another eligible team. This means, if two Big Ten teams make it to the BCS, the landscape is wide open.
The only way we're assured of not being jumped by a 6-6 Michigan team is if there are 8 bowl eligible B10 teams.