Big Ten football could be coming to the frozen tundra.
Lambeau Field is the latest venue to express interest in hosting a potential Big Ten football championship game. Green Bay Packers president Mark Murphy told ESPN.com on Thursday that the team already has contacted the Big Ten office to express its interest.
After adding Nebraska as its 12th team in June, the Big Ten is now eligible to hold a football championship game. A decision on scheduling a title game could be finalized Aug. 2-3 when Big Ten officials and athletic directors meet in Chicago.
"We'd be very interested," Murphy said. "The Big Ten has got such history and tradition, and to have a championship in Lambeau Field would be tremendous. It'd be good for our community and good for college football to have it in such a historic venue."
Several other Midwest facilities have expressed interest in hosting a potential Big Ten championship, including Detroit's Ford Field, Chicago's Soldier Field and Cleveland Browns Stadium. Indianapolis' Lucas Oil Stadium is also considered a strong candidate.
Murphy, who served as athletic director at Northwestern before joining the Packers, anticipates a formal bidding process to begin if the league decides it will have a championship game beginning in 2011.
Weather could factor into the Big Ten's decision for a championship game site, as leagues like the SEC and Big 12 usually hold their football championship games at indoor facilities.
"Early December, that's balmy in Green Bay," Murphy joked. "To me, that's part of the attraction of college football, to play in the elements. We're going to have a Super Bowl in New York in February, so it's not that much different."
Lambeau Field last hosted college football in 1982-83, when St. Norbert College hosted Fordham, the alma mater of legendary Packers coach Vince Lombardi.
Adam Rittenberg covers Big Ten football for ESPN.com. He can be reached at espnritt@gmail.com.