Well it appears we should make it to the B1G championship game 7/10 years with Wisconsin making it a few and maybe northwestern sneaking in once. No excuse for not dominating this division
I'm noticing a lot of relegating UW to 2nd fiddle in this new division. I might point out 48-17, 30-27 (with a 17 point lead blown), 70-31. One team has been clearly ahead of the other but its not Nebraska. Traditionally UW doesn't hold a candle to NU but on the field recently UW is clearly in the drivers seat in this new alignment.
Also I might echo what others have said, the difference in the strength of the divisions is misleading. Very rarely since PSU has joined the conference has all three of OSU, PSU and UM been good at the same time. Maybe for about three years around 97-2000 but most OSU fans would probably claim they were down at that point despite making Rose Bowls. Point being those three look great on paper but UW has been every bit as good for the last 15-20 years as PSU and UM.
You already know that you underestimate Northwestern at your own peril, they are a very solid program good for 7-10 wins every year. Iowa has been way down the last two years but for the last 15 years they have been battling UW for 4th in the B1G pecking order (Name recognition not on field product) and I wouldn't expect them to stay down for long. This has kind of been their MO. They have two rebuilding seasons where they win 6-8 games followed by two very solid years where they win 10+ when those players become upperclassmen. Laugh now they'll be back soon enough, and thats coming from someone whose motto concerning Iowa is 'F*%$ Iowa'. This is the first cycle where UW has been able to reload while Iowa had to rebuild so we'll see if thats a sign that UW has pulled ahead for good or if Iowa will catch up with some fresh blood on the coaching staff. Again though they will be a solid team more years than not.
Minnesota is a joke now but it was less than 10 years ago when they were beating SEC teams (Bama, Arky, Etc.) in bowls with multiple NFL running backs gaining huge chunks of yards. Brewster completely ruined that program but IIRC Minnesota was the leading rushing team in the B1G from 99-2006 or so, ahead of OSU and UW. If they rediscover their B1G power roots they are another team that can win 7-8 games a year. As it stands they are the worst program in the B1G which is really sad for one of CFBs all time giants. I don't think NU or UW will have to worry about Minny challenging for the division anytime soon but they should be a team that can beat you on the right day, and thats not the case right now. Hopefully that changes y 2014.
Illinois is a crazy program. They always have way more talent then their record shows but every once in a while they put it together and make a nice run. For as bad as they have been they've been to 2 BCS games, which is more than most programs can say. Purdue has never recovered from the Starks Flip in 04 (Purdue was #5 in the NCAA, fresh off the highs of the Drew Brees years, Gameday was at W Lafayette, Kyle Orton was the Heisman front runner and UW was their last tough game that year. If Purdue gains 3 yards on 3rd down with a little over 2 mins left in the game they most likely win the B1G and go to the Rose Bowl for the 2nd time in 4 years...
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Bottom line is the West has a lot of midrange teams while the East is feast or famine. As others have mentioned the 9 game schedule means that we'll all play at least one of the big names every year, with another opportunity in the Big Ten title game. They definitely have more prestige but this is the B1G, every game is on national TV and if you go undefeated you will be in the National Title game. I like it just because it feels natural to be paired with Iowa/Minn/Ill/Northwestern/NU. UW/NU will have a chance to become the rivalry it deserves to be, especially considering we basically jacked your program in every way. Add to that the way we rubbed your faces in the dirt twice on the national stage to start things off and this has the makings of a beautiful relationship.
