Credit the Big Ten for thinking outside the box. The Big Ten is not only ready to listen to proposals regarding a national four-team football playoff, league and school officials are kicking around an intriguing idea. Sources told the Tribune that a Big Ten plan would remove the top four teams from the BCS bowl pool and have semifinal games played on the college campus of the higher seed. That would do away with the facade of "neutral" sites such as New Orleans, Miami and Pasadena, Calif., and ease travel concern for fans. The championship game then could be bid out, like the Super Bowl. The concept of the Big Ten even entertaining playoff proposals seemed laughable as recently as two months ago.