Gophers football OK with Big Ten ditching divisions if rivalry games remain

[Ope3]

No doubt that playing NW, Purdue, Illinois, and Nebraska every year has boosted Fleck's (conference) win total. None of those schools are special to the U and playing them shouldn't mean anything more than playing any other Big Ten team. But they have been good for our program.

Now, we'll play every Big Ten team at a minimum every other year. That's not a bad thing, in general. May mean fewer wins for the good guys though.

I do think there is some value beyond the win total for playing Northwestern, Illinois & Nebraska annually:

- Easy travel for the teams
- Less than a days drive for the fans
- Same time zone

However TV does not give a rip about any of those things, so they are non-issues.

If I ruled the conference I think the ideal Gopher football schedule would be something like this:

Every Year - Iowa & Wisconsin
Frequently - Nebraska, Illinois, Northwestern (say 4 times in 6 years)
Occasionally - USC, UCLA, Purdue, Indiana, Michigan, Michigan St, Ohio St, Penn St, Maryland, Rutgers (say 3 times in 6 years)

Disclaimer, I think the math gets close to the required games over 6 seasons, but it would be fine if it needs to be fudged a game here or there.

 

[Gophers_4life]

I do think there is some value beyond the win total for playing Northwestern, Illinois & Nebraska annually:

- Easy travel for the teams
- Less than a days drive for the fans
- Same time zone

However TV does not give a rip about any of those things, so they are non-issues.

If I ruled the conference I think the ideal Gopher football schedule would be something like this:

Every Year - Iowa & Wisconsin
Frequently - Nebraska, Illinois, Northwestern (say 4 times in 6 years)
Occasionally - USC, UCLA, Purdue, Indiana, Michigan, Michigan St, Ohio St, Penn St, Maryland, Rutgers (say 3 times in 6 years)

Disclaimer, I think the math gets close to the required games over 6 seasons, but it would be fine if it needs to be fudged a game here or there.

Everyone agrees that Iowa and Wisc need to be played every year, and guaranteed they will be.

No other team should be played every year, perpetually. I'm fine playing one other team every year for a four year period, then switching up who that team is.

I like playing every other Big Ten team every other year.


Math works perfectly for that, with 16 teams and 9 conf games.

 

[Ope3]

Everyone agrees that Iowa and Wisc need to be played every year, and guaranteed they will be.

No other team should be played every year, perpetually. I'm fine playing one other team every year for a four year period, then switching up who that team is.

I like playing every other Big Ten team every other year.


Math works perfectly for that, with 16 teams and 9 conf games.

I wouldn't be in favor of such a format, but could live with it...until the conference expands again at some mystery date, which could be soon. Or not.

 

[Gophers_4life]

I wouldn't be in favor of such a format, but could live with it...until the conference expands again at some mystery date, which could be soon. Or not.

Big Ten won't be adding teams again for several years

 

[WAGopher]

We've played nebraska more than ohio state and only 6 less times than indiana and 13 less than illinois. It's not like they're rutgers or maryland

And we’ve played Nebraska more than any other B1G school has.

B1G games vs Nebraska
(inc. UCLA and USC):
———————————
63 Minnesota
53 Iowa
22 Indiana
20 Illinois
18 Penn State
16 Northwestern
16 Wisconsin
13 UCLA
12 Michigan
12 Michigan State
11 Purdue
10 Ohio State
06 Rutgers
05 USC
02 Maryland

 

[Gophers_4life]

Iowa makes sense, they're right on the border.

There was never a good reason for Minnesota to schedule Nebraska 33 times in 43 years over the 30's to 70's.

Neat history.

Meaningless now.

 

[WAGopher]

I should add that I like the idea of playing Wisconsin, Iowa and Nebraska every year. But we have played Michigan 104 times for what used to be considered the most famous college sports trophy and it would be special to continue playing them more often too.

 

[WAGopher]

Sa

Iowa makes sense, they're right on the border.

There was never a good reason for Minnesota to schedule Nebraska 33 times in 43 years over the 30's to 70's.

Neat history.

Meaningless now.

It seems there is far more chatter here when we play Nebraska than any other team besides WI and IA. I don’t think it’s a meaningless rivalry.

 

[Gophers_4life]

It seems there is far more chatter here when we play Nebraska than any other team besides WI and IA. I don’t think it’s a meaningless rivalry.

Never said that, and I agree that some people care about the game. More than a game against NW or Purdue, sure.

I don't think anyone knows or cares that they played 33 times over 1932-1974. That's the meaningless part.

Gophers won a lot of those games! Maybe Nebraska sucked back then?

 

[WAGopher]

Never said that, and I agree that some people care about the game. More than a game against NW or Purdue, sure.

I don't think anyone knows or cares that they played 33 times over 1932-1974. That's the meaningless part.

Gophers won a lot of those games! Maybe Nebraska sucked back then?

Gotcha, and I did misunderstand what you were saying was meaningless.

 

[Gophers_4life]

I should add that I like the idea of playing Wisconsin, Iowa and Nebraska every year. But we have played Michigan 104 times for what used to be considered the most famous college sports trophy and it would be special to continue playing them more often too.

The third team that is played every year for four years can rotate between Nebraska, Michigan, and some other subset of teams that makes sense.

 

[Ope3]

Big Ten won't be adding teams again for several years

Impossible to know. Impossible to be surprised either way.

 

[PMWinSTP]

I don't know how we would maintain

Wisc,
Iowa,
Michigan,
Nebraska, ....

And everyone else's preferences and not end up with ... mini skewed divisions... or teams who just get hosed for years and years dude to all the conflicts.

The "no divisions" solution to differeing schedules seems like it easily result in even worse wonky scheduling.

Get rid of the last team on your list...

 

[Plato]

Divisions are gone in the two conferences that got the most TV money.
The BIG has to meld USC and UCLA into the 2024 schedule in a way that pleases the TV companies.
Two guaranteed rivalry games make that scheduling easier than three rivalry games.
Now we will see if ESPN has the cajones to make the SEC play nine conference games and other Power 5 schools in 2024.
AL is playing WI at Madison in 2024 and in Tuscaloosa in 2025 to strengthen their non-conference schedule.

 

[Gophers_4life]

Impossible to know. Impossible to be surprised either way.

- If there was another PAC school worthy of adding, they would've been added with USCLA (no such thing as perpetual partial shares, that's fan-fiction)
- No Big 12 (current) is worthy
- Notre Dame would be added in a second, but they're not interested at this time
- ACC are where the next high value adds are, but they're tied up until 2036.

 

[PMWinSTP]

Other than your desire to play Nebraska every year, I agree with everything else in your post.

Playing the Cornhuskers regularly, would be just fine with me. Doesn't have to be annually.

Agree. Would much rather have a crack at the Jug every year over playing the Huskers.

 

[Ope3]

- If there was another PAC school worthy of adding, they would've been added with USCLA (no such thing as perpetual partial shares, that's fan-fiction)
- No Big 12 (current) is worthy
- Notre Dame would be added in a second, but they're not interested at this time
- ACC are where the next high value adds are, but they're tied up until 2036.

All true, until they no longer are, which could be soon, several years, longer or never.

Again, nothing will surprise me. I guess "never" would surprise me.