Wow. That’s nuts. Ultra-rich alumni could start making things move if they wanted to.
“Here. Here’s 100 million Spacebucks per year over 5 years. Make Harvard a member of the Big Ten.”
“Um. Yes sir, Mr. Gates.”
Hell, I can see Phil Knight forcing the PAC Ten’s hand in this matter. This is about to be a really ugly can of worms if it goes like that.
It’s not just the athletics that makes me so sad. It’s the fact that KSU as a university is going to suffer. I know most people don’t care about a small ag school in Kansas, but dammit I do.
This is a giant win-win for both parties. The Big-10 now can split into two conferences and set up a championship game. Plus, as you note, they added a Nebraska squad which is on its way back to national prominence with a very good young coach in Bo Pelini. Nebraska also wins big here. They get more money in TV share, and will move into a more competitive division. The only problem is how to split the Big 10 into two
division (That and they need a new name). I guess something like:
Michigan
Ohio State
Indiana
Northwestern
Michigan State
Purdue
Wisconsin
Iowa
Nebraska
Minnesota
Illinois
Penn State
Those division makes sense geographically, except for the oddity of Penn State, but that’s needed for balance. I’d say play your 5 division teams, three interdivision games, and three non-conference with the expectation that one non-conference game be against another BCS team. I have to say that the more I think about it, the more I like 12 as a conference size. You play your division every year, and teams from the other division every other year. Once you get above that scheduling gets a bit wonky. IMHO college football needs consolidation more than expansion. For example, there’s no reason the state of Indiana should have 4 major programs in it. Nor can you justify Kansas, Colorado, or Iowa, to name a few, having two major programs.
I wonder if this portends a move towards separate basketball and football conferences. Indiana, for example, has no business in a major football conference, but their basketball program is very strong. I could see a basketball conference rising out of the ashes of the Big East/ACC, with the football schools going to the Big 10/SEC.
This may make sense to the average fan, but I can’t see Indiana giving up their Big 10 affiliation to move to a Big East type basketball conference, even if it would make perfect sense from a competitive standpoint. The money tie-in to the BTN will keep all schools locked into the conference.
I’m also hearing that Missouri might be out now, since Nebraska accepted. This is a surprise to me, but would be great news to this Pitt fan, who is still holding out a small amount of hope that Pitt will move to the Big 10 and have their Thanksgiving weekend game with PSU renewed. However, I agree with you that a 12 team conference seems like a nice size.
I’m not certain they would need to have PSU in a “West” division. I think Nebraska, Iowa, and Wisconsin could anchor it pretty well.
As for 12 team conferences, there’s been a lot of hype and speculation surrounding “super conferences,” but I don’t think it’s inevitable. 12 is the minimum for a conference championship game, so once you reach that point the incentive for expanding further diminishes unless you can grab a marquee program like Texas or Notre Dame. I think some of the enthusiasm for super conferences is a reflection of disgust with the NCAA and the BCS.
If I had to rank the Big 10 I’d go:
Perennial Powers: Michigan, Ohio State, and Penn State
Top Ten caliber every so often, but usually top 25: Wisconsin and Iowa
Have top 25 teams regularly: Purdue, Minnesota, and Michigan State
Good Once in a Blue Moon: Northwestern, Illinois
Always Suck: Indiana
Nebraska is a wild card at this point, but they definitely could reach the Perennial Powers rating, but over the last 7-8 years they haven’t been any better than Michigan State, for example.
Wisconsin and Iowa are good programs, but have only been in the national title picture once or twice in the last 10 years. OSU, Michigan, and PSU on the other hand over that span were in it most of the time. Its just a different caliber of program. I don’t think that the west without PSU would be a pushover, but it definitely would be noticeably weaker than the east.
I think it will be a tough sell to move Penn State to the “west” division. Mainly becaue I don’t think that Paterno will buy off. He’s been a big advocate of moving the Big Ten eastward. Now once that happens, he is potentially stuck with missing out on potential rivalries with Pitt and Rutgers. Not to mention, his fans get screwed with the longest commute in the conference. It’s hard enough to get anywhere from State College. At least Ohio State and Michigan are doable drives.
Minnesota? They won 8 games in 1967, the last year that they won the Big Ten, then didn’t win 8 games In a season again until 1999. When they won 10 games on 2003, it was the first time they’d won 10 games since 1905.
If I were splitting up the Big 10 (12) into East/West conferences, there’s no way I’m putting PSU in the west. I would do:
West: Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Northwestern
East: Michigan, Michigan State, Indiana, Purdue, Ohio State, Penn State
It does set up Nebraska to dominate the West while Mich/OSU/PSU fight over the east, but it preserves all the rivalries and really any of the other West teams are capable of putting up good seasons to steal the division from Nebraska.
Here’s the only problem I have with Nebraska joining the Big 10 – too many NUs. Northwestern’s fight song is “Go U NU” and its identification as “NU” runs deep. “NWU” just grates. Is Nebraska willing to give up the NU designation? 
This morning’s update:
Texas is ready to commit to staying in the Big 12.
:smack::dubious::rolleyes:
Elsewhere on this board I’ve argued that Kansas would make a good fit for the Big East. It’s not that geographically weird, seeing as the Big East has been expanding that way anyway. And I think (sadly, as I have colleagues at some of the potentially affected schools) the Big East would be willing to drop a team or two to accommodate Kansas, and maybe Missouri or Kansas State if they get real hungry. But Kansas is the jewel for the Big East. Imagine throwing the Jayhawks into the mix with their basketball powers.
It sets up Nebraska to dominate in the west? I don’t think dominate means what you think it means.
Saw something this morning, maybe on CNN, but I don’t remember, about some Texas legislator convening or attempting to convene some sort of hearing. Also making vaguely ominous noises about how the state universities get their funding from the legislature, and therefore will obviously wish to stay in good graces therewith. Kunilou’s ESPN link says it’s a non-factor.
Just curious: which of the new mega-conferences, with aspirations to have schools from farflung regions of the country as its footprint, will be the first to glom on to “Gerrymandered” as part of its name.
Legislators love to talk, but they’re notoriously slow to act, especially if they have financial incentive not to do so. If Texas gets an extra $20 million to go to the SEC, I think that legislator will suddenly remember he has more important stuff to bloviate about.
My guess is that they separate Michigan and Ohio St into different divisions. The SEC maintains annual inter-division rivalries after they divided into divisions
Annual SEC rivalries (played every year even though they play in different divisions):
Tenn-Bama
Florida-LSU
UGA-Auburn
USC-Ark
Vandy-Miss
Ken-MSU
it is conceivable that they could separate into more geographical divisions for the other sports to minimize travel costs. Travel costs/time are not as big of deal for football (5 away games) as it would be for sports that play many more away games and during the middle of the week.
It could be separated like this (with a locked in rival from the other Division)
North:
Michigan (OSU)
Mich St (PSU)
Minnesota (Purdue)
Wisconsin (Ill)
Iowa (Ind)
Nebraska (NU)
South:
OhSU (Mich)
PSU (MSU)
Ind (Iowa)
Pur (Minn)
Ill (Wisc)
NW (Neb)
I saw a story about it on SI.com. The guy’s remarks were rather threatening, but I think he mostly wants to look like he is doing something in case some of his constitutuents don’t like the move. The schools are going to follow the money.
I wonder if the big 10 could separate into three division of four:
East: OhSU, Mich, MSU, PSU
Central: Ind, Ill, NW, Pur
West: Iowa, Wisc, Neb, Minn
In football, each team plays their division rival, plus two teams out of the other divisions for a total of 7 games.
The two teams with the best record (could be the same division?) play the Conference championship game. Ties to broken objectively, if possible.
I am not sure that the Big Ten would have any interest in that Central Division. Illinois and Northwestern can play decent football from time to time, but most of the time it would look like a group of Pop Warner teams.
And that Eastern Division looks just a tad overloaded. OSU, Michigan, AND Penn State? There’d be a flood of Spartan tears every year.
My suggestion:
North: Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Michigan State, Northwestern, Iowa.
South: Nebraska, Illinois, Indiana, Purdue, Ohio State, Penn State.
Edit: And each team gets one cross-division rival game.