Big Ten and other Conference Expansion

[jwinslow]

If they're going to blow up the old model and send us flying towards a CCG, it better include a powerhouse program to lift the b10 reputation & even out the divisions.

Mizzou, Rutgers, Pitt, Cincy do not do that. ND & Texas do. Nebraska might (if Pelini keeps trending upwards).

Not bad, especially if Texas is the 12th team (not likely, but clearly the best option if it can be made to happen). It still works pretty well if Missouri is the 12th team.

You have to sacrifice balance or rivalries. ORD's version is well balanced but risks a rematch (UM could lose at home but make the BCS by winning in Chicago). It also risks stripping The Game of its importance, as OSU could lose to UM and still make the CCG. FSU lost 3 games in a row before their 05 CCG.

 

[DaddyBigBucks]

Big Ten to explore possibility of expansion in next 12 to 18 months - ESPN

Looks like this is going to the next step.

Expansion Issue

3 PM press conference today by the Big 10 to discuss expansion. Seems inevitable, and I find it unlikely they'd schedule a PC just to say it's still a "back burner" issue....the $ is out there, and that's all they really are interested in.

Actually, Adam Rittenburg's blog, quoted above by mross', states that it is now explicitly a "front burner" issue.

I agree with you that it now appears to be just a matter of time. Although the Rittenburg blog says that the 12-18 month period may or may not result in a recommendation; that is only because they are typical egg-head non-committal(sp?) types. They have every intention of making expansion happen, probably soon.

FWIW: Now that expansion seems to be inevitable, mark me as one who is in favor of putting The Ohio State University and TSUN in the same division. Keeping the stakes of The Game as high as possible, given the new rules of the new world order, is paramount to me. This suggests an east-west split.

Given these pre-conditions, my preference would be:


East
The Ohio State University
TSUN
Sparty
Indi
Purdue
Illinois

West
Nebraska
Missouri
Wiscy
Minne
Iowa
Northwestern

Bye-Bye, Have Fun in the New Big East
State Penn

 

[jwinslow]

Besides the tradition & prestige of ND, the real value of their addition (ignoring the improbability) is that they don't make life harder on much of the b10.

If Texas, Mizzou or Nebraska joins and becomes a perennial top-15 teams, that makes it harder for UM, MSU, Purdue to maintain the same record, and makes recruiting tougher for all of us.

If ND joins, they were already trying to take wins away from UM, MSU, Purdue (and occasionally OSU/PSU) as well as recruits from the whole conference. It's not that much harder to recruit against B10-member ND than it was BCS-bowling ND.




They can add value without adding as much competition as Texas/Nebraska might, since that competition was already there.

Bye-Bye, Have Fun in the New Big East
State Penn

 

[Buckeye86]

I just hope that if they expand they don't do some knee jerk bullshit and bring in a team just to bring a team in, please please please do it right (if you must do it at all)

 

[matcar]

How about this:
Big Ten North
Michigan
Michigan State
Penn State
Wiscy
Minny
NW

Big Ten South
Ohio State
Texas: ooc schedule of a&m (would need to be moved to beginning of year), Oklahoma and 2 mid majors at home
IU
Illinois
Pudue
Iowa

Locked in Rivalry Week Games before the B10 Championship Game
Ohio State-Michigan (if there's a rematch next week so be it.)
Penn State-Michigan State
Wiscy-Minny
Illinois-Northwestern
IU-Purdue
Texas-Iowa

Attempt to have one weekend in late September/early October when the four traditional B10 powers all play a major OOC game with national implications and that focuses the nation's attention on The Big Ten.
Michigan-Notre Dame
Texas-Oklahoma
Ohio State and Penn State have rotating home-and-aways with USC, Miami, Alabama etc.

Yeah, this looks good. I don't think I'd be positive about expansion under any model, but if I did see expansion, Texas would be my strong preference although Missouri would be interesting.

 

[MililaniBuckeye]

Dump Penn State and play a 9-game conference schedule with 3 OOC games. Keep current tie-breakers in case of co-champions. Expansion is bullshit and totally unneeded...it serves no purpose other than to appease the media dipshits.

 

[mross34]

If Texas, Mizzou or Nebraska joins and becomes a perennial top-15 teams, that makes it harder for UM, MSU, Purdue to maintain the same record, and makes recruiting tougher for all of us.

I disagree with this statement. Texas already has its own recruiting base, they get their pick of Texans. Wouldn't it be easier for us to walk into Texas house of a player who has offers from Oklahoma, Tech, and LSU, but maybe not Texas and say, "Hey, the Longhorns don't know what they're missing by not offering you. How would you like the chance to come and beat them every year in the Big 10 CCG?"

 

[matcar]

Texas is a pipe dream.

The faculty at Texas desires the move....strongly.

 

[CHU]

Don't know why, but I keep thinking Vanderbilt behind closed doors.

E.Gordon Gee holds some pull in the eventual decision (former Vanderbilt president), the school matches the academics the conference would like to promote and Nashville would be a new market for the Big Ten.

Vanderbilt may lose money if they move to the Big Ten however, but would be more competitive in athletics (and the Big Ten would have a baseball contender).

If Mizzou, TCU going to the Big 12 would be seamless.

 

[powerlifter]

I disagree with this statement. Texas already has its own recruiting base, they get their pick of Texans. Wouldn't it be easier for us to walk into Texas house of a player who has offers from Oklahoma, Tech, and LSU, but maybe not Texas and say, "Hey, the Longhorns don't know what they're missing by not offering you. How would you like the chance to come and beat them every year in the Big 10 CCG?"

I don't see how anyone thinks that Texas would just up and join the Big Ten. They have rivalries as well,and in national title contention year in and out. If there is expansion I seriously doubt it will be with a team of this caliber. Nebraska or Mizzou maybe..

 

[jwinslow]

I disagree with this statement. Texas already has its own recruiting base, they get their pick of Texans. Wouldn't it be easier for us to walk into Texas house of a player who has offers from Oklahoma, Tech, and LSU, but maybe not Texas and say, "Hey, the Longhorns don't know what they're missing by not offering you. How would you like the chance to come and beat them every year in the Big 10 CCG?"

That's probably true. They would make the W-L record harder on some schools, however.

The faculty at Texas desires the move....strongly.

Huge upgrade indeed.

 

[mross34]

I don't see how anyone thinks that Texas would just up and join the Big Ten. They have rivalries as well,and in national title contention year in and out. If there is expansion I seriously doubt it will be with a team of this caliber. Nebraska or Mizzou maybe..

Academics man. These are colleges we're talking about. Texas sticks out in the Big 12. They'd fit in academically in the Big 10. Texas can keep their rivalries. Play Oklahoma and A&M every year OOC.

 

[bigdog3300]

Ware mentioned this on ESPN, what do you guys think about TCU being a possible option? Although we'd all prefer Texas, TCU seems like a more realistic option and IIRC they have a good grad program.

 

[SCBuck13]

Ware mentioned this on ESPN, what do you guys think about TCU being a possible option? Although we'd all prefer Texas, TCU seems like a more realistic option and IIRC they have a good grad program.

I've always liked TCU, so I would like the addition.

They would probably be a 10 win team in the current Big 10.

 

[jwinslow]

TCU is not a destination coaching gig. What happens once their head coach gets hired by a top-5/10 all-time program? That's the hangup there.