JonDMiller
Publisher/Founder
A nine game Big Ten conference schedule has been bandied about since last August's Big Ten media days event.
A story in the Indianapolis Star from this week suggests that 2017 might be the year the league moves to a nine-game conference slate.
In that story, Purdue Athletic Director Morgan Burke says “We were told to clear the calendar from 2017 and we’ve done that.†Told by the Big Ten.
Later in the article, Burke suggested that the league would not add another protected crossover rival (Iowa and Purdue are one another's current crossovers), but rather the rate that teams will play the schools from the other division would increase.
So instead of playing against three teams from the opposite division, you would play four in addition to the five games you would play against your own division teams each year.
So this year, Iowa plays its five division opponents, plus Purdue..those six games are going to be in place every year. Iowa also plays Indiana and Penn State this year from the Leaders Division. If the league goes to nine games, there would one more opponent on Iowa's schedule from the Leaders, which means there would be just two teams each Big Ten program WOULD NOT face. The three opposite division foes would change every two years, after each school had a chance to play one home and one road game against the programs from the opposite division, then a new set of three schools would come on to your schedule.
Being that Michigan and Ohio State are in opposite divisions, it's highly unlikely that the protected rivalry game is going to go away any time soon. Without the protect rival game, it would be a nice and easy three in, three out scenario. You play three opposite division schools for two years, then you ship them out and bring the other three in, so there would only be a two year gap in between meetings at the most.
In what is likely to be the case, it won't be so balanced and I don't know how the league will decide one what school leaves your schedule in a nine-game set up.
For example, the same five division teams and Purdue are on Iowa's schedule. Say in addition to Penn State and Indiana, Iowa also played Wisconsin for the next two years...that's nine games. That means the only two schools Iowa would not play from within the league over the next two years would be Ohio State and Illinois.
After two years passes, Iowa will still play its five division foes and Purdue, plus Illinois and Ohio State come on their schedule..so one of Penn State, Indiana and Wisconsin would also stay on the schedule, which means there will be one opposite division foe each Big Ten team will face for four straight years and six times out of eight years, since they will come back on the schedule after the subsequent rotation ends.
Balancing that out competitively will be a challenge, to be sure....some school from the Legends will draw Ohio State in that lot...where some will draw Indiana. That's hardly an equitable proposition.
In my opinion, a nine-game schedule is full of more challenges than obvious good...because we haven't even addressed the 5/4 - 4/5 aspects...one year you play five home and four road games, then the next year if flips. That will factor into the Big Ten title chase, in addition to the scenario I just laid out above.
It also means that Big Ten programs will play one less out of conference game...which likely means three home game cupcakes for many programs. It will also cause the Iowa-Iowa State game to need a serious evaluation, as the Hawkeyes would want to host three games for the gate revenues and the CyHawk Series is a home and home.
I am sure we will hear more about this Thursday and Friday at the Big Ten media days in Chicago.
A story in the Indianapolis Star from this week suggests that 2017 might be the year the league moves to a nine-game conference slate.
In that story, Purdue Athletic Director Morgan Burke says “We were told to clear the calendar from 2017 and we’ve done that.†Told by the Big Ten.
Later in the article, Burke suggested that the league would not add another protected crossover rival (Iowa and Purdue are one another's current crossovers), but rather the rate that teams will play the schools from the other division would increase.
So instead of playing against three teams from the opposite division, you would play four in addition to the five games you would play against your own division teams each year.
So this year, Iowa plays its five division opponents, plus Purdue..those six games are going to be in place every year. Iowa also plays Indiana and Penn State this year from the Leaders Division. If the league goes to nine games, there would one more opponent on Iowa's schedule from the Leaders, which means there would be just two teams each Big Ten program WOULD NOT face. The three opposite division foes would change every two years, after each school had a chance to play one home and one road game against the programs from the opposite division, then a new set of three schools would come on to your schedule.
Being that Michigan and Ohio State are in opposite divisions, it's highly unlikely that the protected rivalry game is going to go away any time soon. Without the protect rival game, it would be a nice and easy three in, three out scenario. You play three opposite division schools for two years, then you ship them out and bring the other three in, so there would only be a two year gap in between meetings at the most.
In what is likely to be the case, it won't be so balanced and I don't know how the league will decide one what school leaves your schedule in a nine-game set up.
For example, the same five division teams and Purdue are on Iowa's schedule. Say in addition to Penn State and Indiana, Iowa also played Wisconsin for the next two years...that's nine games. That means the only two schools Iowa would not play from within the league over the next two years would be Ohio State and Illinois.
After two years passes, Iowa will still play its five division foes and Purdue, plus Illinois and Ohio State come on their schedule..so one of Penn State, Indiana and Wisconsin would also stay on the schedule, which means there will be one opposite division foe each Big Ten team will face for four straight years and six times out of eight years, since they will come back on the schedule after the subsequent rotation ends.
Balancing that out competitively will be a challenge, to be sure....some school from the Legends will draw Ohio State in that lot...where some will draw Indiana. That's hardly an equitable proposition.
In my opinion, a nine-game schedule is full of more challenges than obvious good...because we haven't even addressed the 5/4 - 4/5 aspects...one year you play five home and four road games, then the next year if flips. That will factor into the Big Ten title chase, in addition to the scenario I just laid out above.
It also means that Big Ten programs will play one less out of conference game...which likely means three home game cupcakes for many programs. It will also cause the Iowa-Iowa State game to need a serious evaluation, as the Hawkeyes would want to host three games for the gate revenues and the CyHawk Series is a home and home.
I am sure we will hear more about this Thursday and Friday at the Big Ten media days in Chicago.
