Big Ten and other Conference Expansion

[OSU_D/]

The bowl games are a bonus. They are an afterthought. Sure, I'd like for tOSU to play in, and win, a BCS bowl game every year...but I NEED to beat TSUN. The losses to UF, LSU, and UT hurt, sure...but losing to TSUN sticks with me even if tOSU wins it's bowl games. On the flip side, even though tOSU lost those BCS games...we still beat Michigan, and that makes my off season just fine.

Attitudes such as this helps bring about results such as 41-14. It reminds me of how Cooper would say Michigan was just another game - and proceed to get his butt out-coached almost every year.

The national championship game is not going anywhere (and IMO will eventually morph into a more defined playoff) and by its very nature is more important than any conference championship game or conference game.

I can state that the people I knew on the 02 team looked at the BCSCG as the biggest game, definitely bigger than Michigan.

 

[BUCKYLE]

Attitudes such as this helps bring about results such as 41-14. It reminds me of how Cooper would say Michigan was just another game - and proceed to get his butt out-coached almost every year.

The national championship game is not going anywhere (and IMO will eventually morph into a more defined playoff) and by its very nature is more important than any conference championship game or conference game.

I can state that the people I knew on the 02 team looked at the BCSCG as the biggest game, definitely bigger than Michigan.

I don't give a flying fuck. To me, The Game is the biggest game of every motherfucking season. Period. If YOU believe different, fine. I don't. Never will. Btw, I seriously doubt me believing this had any bearing on the '06 NC game. Thing is, I don't care. #1 tOSU beat #2 TSUN in The Game that same year.

 

[OHSportsFan]

Attitudes such as this helps bring about results such as 41-14. It reminds me of how Cooper would say Michigan was just another game - and proceed to get his butt out-coached almost every year.

The national championship game is not going anywhere (and IMO will eventually morph into a more defined playoff) and by its very nature is more important than any conference championship game or conference game.

I can state that the people I knew on the 02 team looked at the BCSCG as the biggest game, definitely bigger than Michigan.

On one hand, I don't think Kyle's attitude had anything to do with our 2006 team's performance against Florida. Fans can feel however they want, it's not going to affect the team. I don't think.

On the other, I agree with not undermining the importance of NC games (though, I'm not sure if that's what Kyle was trying to do, he can speak for himself). My dad's happiness after the '02 Championship game was pretty much unmatched by anything I'd seen (maybe even better than my birth...but I'll never know ).

We have to Beat Michigan to get to the National Championship, though, and I wouldn't want it any other way, meaning, I don't want a game after The Game.

Personally, I'd be fine with moving the season up, maybe make The Game the first Saturday in December? I know they've already moved it to Thanksgiving Weekend, but I don't think I like that (Oh8ch brought it up in one of his Observations, it just won't be the same atmosphere on campus, kids will be home, etc). All of these bowl games and the new BCS system (with 4 BCS games and then an NC game) have pushed the NC game back farther than it used to be by about a week. It might be time to adjust the season to accommodate.

But The Game has to be the last Big 10 game.

 

[BUCKYLE]

You're right, TSUN, Minnesota, Northwestern, and Indiana would all protest because that's another loss each year. Although I suppose the rest would protest because even a win over NDSU wouldn't mean anything. However, the academics of NDSU would benefit The Big Ten but that's about it.

But, that's all, just thought I'd throw it out there to see what people would say.

On the other hand I think it should be a team located in the midwest not form the east. Notre Dame would be a perfect fit.

 

[Steve19]

If the problem is the layoff after completing the season two weeks before other conferences, then why not just add a bye week three weeks or so before the season ends? I know that the weather deteriorates quickly that time of years, but it also gives the teams a chance to heal players before the final games.

 

[Mike80]

If the problem is the layoff after completing the season two weeks before other conferences, then why not just add a bye week three weeks or so before the season ends? I know that the weather deteriorates quickly that time of years, but it also gives the teams a chance to heal players before the final games.

The weather in the Big Ten isn't significantly worse than that of the Big XII North or the Big East. Adding another bye week makes a bit more sense than anything else and would be a ton easier to accomplish.

And it would allow the coaches an extra week in-season to work some on recruiting and be able to somewhat concentrate on it.

 

[OSU_D/]

I don't give a flying fuck. To me, The Game is the biggest game of every motherfucking season. Period. If YOU believe different, fine. I don't. Never will. Btw, I seriously doubt me believing this had any bearing on the '06 NC game. Thing is, I don't care. #1 tOSU beat #2 TSUN in The Game that same year.

On one hand, I don't think Kyle's attitude had anything to do with our 2006 team's performance against Florida. Fans can feel however they want, it's not going to affect the team. I don't think.

On the other, I agree with not undermining the importance of NC games (though, I'm not sure if that's what Kyle was trying to do, he can speak for himself). My dad's happiness after the '02 Championship game was pretty much unmatched by anything I'd seen (maybe even better than my birth...but I'll never know ).

I wasn't trying to say that BUCKYLE had direct influence on the game due to that type of thought, I was trying to say thoughts such as that do have an influence if the people involved have them. I do think there was a big difference in the team attitude toward the BCSCG and the opponents in 2002 v 2006 and you can see how that helped manifest a massive difference in outcomes on the field. In addition, after hearing for 50 days that OSU would kill UF (or other opponents before it became clear UF was in the game) it does have a mental effect on people involved.

I don't have a problem with people wanting The Game to be the last big ten game though in in 10 years or so I think it will be in the last conference game week before the championship game. But I do think that calling bowl games (which includes the national championship game) an afterthought is setting yourself up mentally for failure in that game - should you been involved in the game. In that respect it is like Cooper saying The Game is just like any other conference game. It meant he mentally wasn't into it.... and the results showed. I also think this type of thinking is a major factor in OSU's less that stellar overall bowl record.


To try to keep myself more on topic... I would only add that 12th member if it was a team that could truly make a difference to the conference.
Texas - speaks for itself
(yes, I know, but a unanimous vote would kill that contiguous state rule; and yes, I know, the Texas politics would kill it)
Toronto - great academics, huge Canadian footprint and would give markets to us that no one else could access.
(give them XX years to figure out the scholarship/funding issues; they would be able to compete in a lot of sports very soon and bring football along)
Notre Dame - undergrad academics are great and the money is huge
(I am aware things have tried to happen before and that some graduate schools/research would have to be improved).

Mizzou's, Nebraska's and Rutgers (only b/c of the NYC proximity) are okay... but there is no reason to add a good but not great 12th conference school. I particularly abhor JoePa's thinking of adding extremely marginal eastern candidates. Pitt, Syracuse, WV etc do nothing except make PSU feel a little better about its location. They add NOTHING to what the Big 10 can offer.

 

[jwinslow]

Attitudes such as this helps bring about results such as 41-14. It reminds me of how Cooper would say Michigan was just another game - and proceed to get his butt out-coached almost every year.

The national championship game is not going anywhere (and IMO will eventually morph into a more defined playoff) and by its very nature is more important than any conference championship game or conference game.

I can state that the people I knew on the 02 team looked at the BCSCG as the biggest game, definitely bigger than Michigan.

And you can just as easily argue that looking towards the NC game as the prize can lead to stumbling before you get there, like USC does every year.

You need some of both.

 

[BB73]

If the problem is the layoff after completing the season two weeks before other conferences, then why not just add a bye week three weeks or so before the season ends? I know that the weather deteriorates quickly that time of years, but it also gives the teams a chance to heal players before the final games.

This is already being done. The Big Ten schedules for 2010 (firm) and 2011 (tentative) have already added a bye week, and The Game will be played after Thanksgiving in those years. I believe the conference will decide later whether these changes will continue.

The other conferences' CCG's will only be 1 week later, so the amount of time off will be less in the minds of the pollsters (I never thought that was much of a factor), and there will be 7 less days for tOSU between The Game and the bowl game.

 

[BUCKYLE]

I wasn't trying to say that BUCKYLE had direct influence on the game due to that type of thought, I was trying to say thoughts such as that do have an influence if the people involved have them. I do think there was a big difference in the team attitude toward the BCSCG and the opponents in 2002 v 2006 and you can see how that helped manifest a massive difference in outcomes on the field. In addition, after hearing for 50 days that OSU would kill UF (or other opponents before it became clear UF was in the game) it does have a mental effect on people involved.

The difference between 2002 and 2006, imo, had absolutely nothing to do with The Game or how it was perceived in relation to the NC Game. I do think that the 50 days of dick sucking by the media didn't help, though I'm thouroughly unconvinced that 43 days of dick sucking instead of 50 would've made a damn bit of difference.

I don't have a problem with people wanting The Game to be the last big ten game though in in 10 years or so I think it will be in the last conference game week before the championship game. But I do think that calling bowl games (which includes the national championship game) an afterthought is setting yourself up mentally for failure in that game - should you been involved in the game. In that respect it is like Cooper saying The Game is just like any other conference game. It meant he mentally wasn't into it.... and the results showed. I also think this type of thinking is a major factor in OSU's less that stellar overall bowl record.

No, it's not. JT saying The Game is the biggest game of the year, no matter what bowl game, is the truth.

Tell me that you would like to win the bowl game more than beat TSUN.

 

[Nutriaitch]

Tell me that you would like to win the bowl game more than beat TSUN.

I would like to win a Bowl game more than I'd like to beat Michigan

 

[MililaniBuckeye]

To the people who are worried about our long layoff vice a shorter layoff by potential BCS opponents, there is a point where the layoff length becomes moot. The Game is Nov 21st this year, which means we'd have anywhere from a 41-day layoff if we played in either the Rose or Sugar Bowl (Jan 1st) to a 48-day layoff if we played in the BCSNC Game (Jan 8th). Playing in the Rose Bowl would mean we're the Big Ten rep likely playing the Pac 10 rep...since the PAC 10 has no conference title game, their rep would likely have a 34-day layoff (I think the Pac 10's schedule runs a week later than ours). There's little difference between essentially a 6-week and a 5-week layoff. If we were to make it to the BCSNC Game, we'd likely face an SEC team, whose season runs a week later than ours plus their conference title game, and as such would have a 34-day layoff compared to our 48-day layoff. On paper, that looks like a big difference, but in reality it's not. Once you get past a certain point, the advantanges of having played in a more recent game diminishes greatly if not totally disappear. A team coming off a 2-week or 3-week layoff would be at a big disadvantage against a team having played the week before, but a team coming off a 7-week layoff would be little, if any, different sharpness-wise than a team coming off a 5-week or 6-week layoff.

 

[BUCKYLE]

I would like to win a Bowl game more than I'd like to beat Michigan

I'd rather a daughter in a whore house than a son at TSUN.

 

[TheIronColonel]

Which whore house? I'm asking for a friend.

 

[Gatorubet]

I'd rather a daughter in a whore house than a son at TSUN.

Scooter was wondering what age exactly...and do you have any Hermione costumes left over from Halloween?

Thanks much.