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Big Ten football alignment

Discussion in 'Sports and News' started by mustangj17, Sep 1, 2010.

  1. Bubbler

    Bubbler Well-Known Member

    Michigan at home in 2011 -- 1-2 or 0-3.
     
  2. SockPuppet

    SockPuppet Active Member

    Yeah, but they don't have to whine and bitch about Texas anymore. In a year or two, they'll be whining and bitching about Ohio State and Michigan ... unless $20 million a year shuts 'em up.

    Of course, they joined the Big Ten for the academic prestige.
     
  3. Della9250

    Della9250 Well-Known Member

    But the difference in 2006 is that if they had met again, it would have been for the national title. And the first meeting was huge, because they were both undefeated and the winner was guaranteed a spot in the national title game with the loser forced to sweat out the other conference games.

    If 2006 was under the current format, both would have already qualified for the Big 10 title game, ensuring a rematch the next week or two. It wouldn't matter who lost the first time, the winner of the second match-up gets the big prize.

    And I get the whole tradition thing of making it the last game. I just think that if we are at this point in the Big 10 where the Rose Bowl tradition has changed and there will now be divisions and a title game, why not make it the fourth or fifth game of the conference schedule so that way it is guaranteed to affect the race for both divisions over the final month?
     
  4. Layman

    Layman Well-Known Member

    As a self-confessed Big Te-leven fanboi / apologist / whatever, I'm very content with this. It's one of those situations where it's simply impossible to make it "perfect" to the 13 sets of eyes (12 schools + college football fans who really don't care about the Big 10...but still have an opinion) "involved."

    The historic big 4 (OSU, Mich, PSU, Neb) HAD to be split evenly. They're the 900 pound monsters in the room. Money, fan bases that travel, stadium capacity....those "pairs" will be the identities of their divisions. Iowa & Wisconsin are the next tier. Rock solid, well supported teams....with just a touch less history & consistency. They'll win their share of divisions titles. Had to split them, doesn't REALLY make a difference how they did it. Frankly, no one really gives two sh*ts how the rest were split.

    As for Michigan-Ohio State being on the last weekend. This simply has to be. There's plenty of good if, and, buts that can be tossed around. Bottom line: The Michigan-Ohio State match-up is the history of the conference. It's the public face of what the league is, has been and will be. If you can't understand that.....no matter how valid or intellectual your argument may be....you simply don't understand the Big 10, Big 10 "country" & no one will ever be able to explain it to you. It just HAS....TO....BE.
     
  5. TrooperBari

    TrooperBari Well-Known Member

    Winner's state gets the tax revenue from the casinos for a year.
     
  6. Ben_Hecht

    Ben_Hecht Active Member


    Barring Ohio State (and in their vintage years, Penn State), there's no reason
    for Northwestern to cower before any other football entity in this conference,
    and that includes Nebraska, in their present state.
     
  7. I Should Coco

    I Should Coco Well-Known Member

    Saw an AP story last night that showed Nebraska's 2011 conference schedule.

    The three Big 10 teams they miss: Illinois, Purdue, Indiana.

    Welcome to the conference, Cornhuskers.
     
  8. Armchair_QB

    Armchair_QB Well-Known Member

    Yep. Why should they get a cake schedule?
     
  9. Ben_Hecht

    Ben_Hecht Active Member


    Paterno? The Joey-come-lately of the Western Conference, until Nebbish
    arrived? No.

    And no Nixon-pardoners. Please.

    I'd like Amos Alonzo Stagg and Otto Graham, myself, but that's just me.
     
  10. DanOregon

    DanOregon Well-Known Member

    I figure they will do something quasi-geographical - like the Lake Division and the River Division.
    Too many possibilities just don't work: Lincoln (for the highway that runs through the conference not the location of Nebraska, or Ford (too Michigan, whether President or car company).
     
  11. Ben_Hecht

    Ben_Hecht Active Member

    In football, and RR's done a splendid job tearing that down. I don't doubt they'll
    be meaningfully-improved this year, but that doesn't translate into old-time
    3-yards-and-a-cloud-of-armpit domination.
     
  12. Starman

    Starman Well-Known Member

    Well, Michigan is still politically one of the kingpins of the conference, along with OSU. The football team is going to suck for a few more years but U-M still has plenty of weight to throw around.
     
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