9 games in the B10?

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Husker_Power

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It seems likely the nine-game schedule will pass at some point. Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany made it a focus even before the league split into football divisions last summer at Big Ten Media Days. Delany has said multiple times the league’s teams should play more often rather than less often. A nine-game league schedule allows for stronger television inventory and no more late September snoozefests like in 2010 and this fall
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Link: http://thegazette.com/2011/05/13/big-tens-9-game-proposal-to-spur-discussion-could-balance-league-schedules/

 
We knew that was coming. Iowa and Wisc miss each other already. Who's Bo going to want as another crossover?

 
bigg10 said:
We knew that was coming. Iowa and Wisc miss each other already. Who's Bo going to want as another crossover?
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Indiana or Purdue, probably...

I'm sure they'll use the 9th game to protect rivalries like Iowa/Wisconsin, but I wonder if they can figure out a way with some other teams to rotate opponents, rather than creating another permanent crossover for everybody.

 
Sounds good to me. Scrap our first game opponents. They are worthless anyway. "Yeah, we won 70 to 7 against a high school team, lets go celebrate" :thumbsdown

 
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I'm tired of seeing South Dakota State, D2 schools, and the like. Ya, it’s a good idea for a coach, but it sucks for the fans. I know I'm being selfish, so what?

 
An extra game won't be so terrible when a playoff system is implemented. Once the contract with ESPN expires (I believe in five years or so) I'm sure some type of playoff system will be implemented, and then going unbeaten won't matter so much.

 
I know this wouldn't be a popular idea here but I wouldn't mind seeing Ohio State as our 2nd protected crossover game in the future. In that scenario put Michigan-Penn State as another protected crossover game and you'd have the 4 Blue Blood football schools playing each other every year. TV execs would especially benefit from this since they can place a premium on advertising dollars for those specific games. While it'd be a daunting schedule, it could also prove beneficial from a strength of schedule standpoint. Hence a 1-loss Big Ten team could still contend for an MNC the same way a 1-loss SEC team could.

 
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Nexus said:
I know this wouldn't be a popular idea here but I wouldn't mind seeing Ohio State as our 2nd protected crossover game in the future. In that scenario put Michigan-Penn State as another protected crossover game and you'd have the 4 Blue Blood football schools playing each other every year. TV execs would especially benefit from this since they can place a premium on advertising dollars for those specific games. While it'd be a daunting schedule, it could also prove beneficial from a strength of schedule standpoint. Hence a 1-loss Big Ten team could still contend for an MNC the same way a 1-loss SEC team could.
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Wisconsin-Iowa

Penn State-Michigan State

Ohio State-Nebraska

Illinois-Michigan

Indiana-Northwestern

Purdue-Minnesota?

I did the same thing to Purdue that happened in the first set of crossover games. Put everyone else's logical games first and they got stuck with someone that doesn't make sense. Maybe that does happen again given that they are the only team with all of their major historical rivals already in their division. The ones I see as guaranteed are Illinois-Michigan and Wisconsin-Iowa. Penn State and Michigan State were a contrived rivalry since Penn State needed 2 teams that didn't rotate off and they couldn't have both Michigan and Ohio State but I don't see Penn State making any more sense with Minnesota than Purdue does so they would probably go ahead and renew that trophy game. The only teams that make sense for Nebraska are Wisconin and Ohio State but since they will certainly re-instate the Wisky/Iowa game that pretty much leaves Nebraska with Ohio State by default. I suppose you could flip Northwestern and Minnesota since they are both playing a team from Indiana. Not sure where there might be more of a historical significance amonng those 4 teams.

 
Roark said:
Hopefully it doesn't interfere with upcoming games against UCLA, Miami or Tennessee.
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I'd be willing to bet those games are pretty safe, since they are decent programs.

okaive said:
Sounds good to me. Scrap our first game opponents. They are worthless anyway. "Yeah, we won 70 to 7 against a high school team, lets go celebrate" :thumbsdown
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Yeah. I like to win as much as the next guy, but I have a bit more satisfaction beat Washington than Western Kentucky. I guess those kinds of games are useful, but more for evaluation purposes.

Personally, I've always been one who's wanted a tougher non conference schedule. The D2 schools and the bottom of the barrel D1 schools we play in the beginning won't prepare you as much for the tougher games down the road.

 
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