Big Ten football alignment

Announcement to come tonight at 6 p.m., but ESPN has leaked it.

1. Michigan, Nebraska, Iowa, MSU, Northwestern, Minnesota
2. Ohio State, PSU, Wisconsin, Purdue, Illinois, Indiana.


Son of a bitch, Drew Sharp was right all along. A few weeks ago he said talk of UM/OSU in the same division was a ploy to get people mad so when the alignment comes out better, nobody will be angry.

Sounds like a genius plan.

 

Just posted this on the college thread. Looks like a pretty good split.

 

Why would Michigan and Ohio State in the same division make people angry? Hasn't hurt rivalries like Texas-Oklahoma, or Florida-Georgia.

 

Minnesota and Wisconsin apparently take the fall so the Buckeyes and Wolverines can be set up for a championship game that no longer is the certainty it once was.

 

Supposedly each team will get to protect one rivalry. I would expect that the Gophers & Badgers will still play every year.

 

Fairly balanced, at least for football. Wouldn't want to be Penn State in that basketball division.

 

So if Ohio St. and Michigan are in different divisions but still play each other annually, what's the point of setting up rematches in the conference title game. We all know from long experiences such rematches usually suck. They also create the possibility of the two schools (this is increasingly fantasy in Michigan's case, but bear with me) knocking each other out of the BCS title game. I can't image the Big Base-12 Ten wants that.

 

Iowa, Nebraska, Northwestern & Michigan State are all locked in a fight to see who gets to play Illinois every year.

 

It has to be Northwestern, doesn't it? Nebraska likely ends up with Penn State and Iowa keeps its rivalry game with Wisconsin.

 

Because a rematch between Michigan and Ohio State once every 10-15 years is better than Michigan and Ohio State in the same division, without ever playing each other in the conference championship game.

Yeah a rematch would blow, but it would still be a huge dogfight. And it would be the first time to see them at a nuetral site. Really cool on that front.

The main point is, now nobody will complain about a potential rematch because they know a rematch is better than bastardizing the game and playing it in October.

 

Ill/NU seems logical annual crossover game, for those two.

I'd expect Minnesota/Wisconsin to receive the same handling.

 

Yep, yep, yep. If MSU has a second rival it is going to be Penn State so they can keep that ugly ass land grant trophy.