Championship,Schedule, Expansion

What the hell, how about another thread?

From ESPN:


Monday, August 2, 2010
Delany talks title game; no name change
By Mark Schlabach

CHICAGO -- Future Big Ten football will have two divisions, a conference championship game and its teams probably will play nine-game conference schedules.

But the newly expanded league will still be called the Big Ten -- even though it will have at least 12 members -- and Notre Dame won't be a part of it.

Those were the messages Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany delivered Monday at his league's Kickoff 2010 news conference.

Since adding Nebraska as its 12th member earlier this summer, Delany has been tight-lipped about the future of his conference.

But on Monday, he began to reveal some of the changes that are coming:
Delany said he anticipates the first Big Ten championship game being played at the end of the 2011 regular season. He still isn't sure where the game will be played, and even said the league might sign a one-year contract with a venue this fall and then visit multiple sites next spring to find a permanent home.
Delany said the league's 12 teams would be split into two six-team divisions within the next 30 to 45 days. The divisions would go in effect in 2011, when the Cornhuskers join the league. He said league officials were examining several criteria as to how to divide the teams, from geography to on-field success to making sure long-standing rivalries are kept in place.
Delany said the Big Ten might play a nine-game league schedule, maybe as early as 2012 or at least within four years. He said adding an additional conference game would improve its teams' schedule strength and would make its games more attractive to TV networks.
Delany said the Big Ten would remain the Big Ten, even if the league decides to add more teams in the future. "The Big Ten is the Big Ten regardless of the number," Delany said.
Delany said the league wasn't currently exploring future expansion, and probably wouldn't address the issue again until its university presidents meet in December. The Big Ten could stop at 12 teams or explore the possibility of adding two or four more teams. Penn State coach Joe Paterno, who has long been a proponent of Big Ten expansion, said he hoped the league would add schools from the East Coast if it decides to further expand.
If the Big Ten adds more schools, Delany doesn't believe Notre Dame will be one of them. Notre Dame athletics director Jack Swarbrick has consistently said his school prefers to keep its independence in football. "I think Jack Swarbrick has been consistent from the beginning," Delany said. "I see Notre Dame playing in the Big East [in basketball and other sports] for many years to come and I see Notre Dame playing as an independent [in football] for many years to come."

I don't know if there should be a permanent home for the championship game. Let it come up for bids from time to time. Why not the Metrodome? They could rent it out for $1 just for the tourist boost it would bring. It would fill a lot of hotel rooms, restaurants, etc. Let's see if anyone wants to beat a $1 rental.

RodentRampage said:

I don't know if there should be a permanent home for the championship game. Let it come up for bids from time to time. Why not the Metrodome? They could rent it out for $1 just for the tourist boost it would bring. It would fill a lot of hotel rooms, restaurants, etc. Let's see if anyone wants to beat a $1 rental.

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Let me count the ways...

At this point, I've made a vow never to set foot in that dump again. If the Gophers manage to get to the B10 title game and its in the Dump...I want to puke thinking about it.

I think a rotating champ game would be just fine. In the Dome... no thanks. If it was there, and the Gophers were in it, I'd be there, don't get me wrong.

I like the idea of a very large rotation of venues, moving it from city to city keeps the event fresh and opens it up to a vast amount of people.

Looking at Big Ten states, the following NFL venues would work:
Metrodome, Minneapolis
Lambeau Field, Green Bay
Soldier Field, Chicago
Ford Field, Detroit
Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis
Cleveland Browns Stadium, Cleveland
Paul Brown Stadium, Cincinnati
Heinz Field, Pittsburgh

Picking one permanent venue gets stale and boring in my opinion. Do I have any desire to keep going to Indy for the Big Ten bball tournament? Not really.

We may have no love for the Metrodome, but the Big Ten might find the deal pretty sweet. I expect that a bid would be put in to have the championship game in the dome. The question would be whether or not the Big Ten felt it was a good business decision. It would be good for the local economy.

The dome sucked for Gopher games. There was no way for it to have a collegiate feel. It would be a different atmosphere if it were an event, like a conference championship game. The dome sucked as a home for the Wolves before Target center, but it serves well for BBall regions and final 4s.

What happened to today's deadline for division set-up? Now it appears we're another 30 to 45 days out. I'm guessing the powers that be already have it done but are waiting to release it so it gets lost in the shuffle, at least somewhat, of the start of the football season.

What could be more neutral than the dome?

strokemonster said:

What happened to today's deadline for division set-up? Now it appears we're another 30 to 45 days out. I'm guessing the powers that be already have it done but are waiting to release it so it gets lost in the shuffle, at least somewhat, of the start of the football season.

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I'm wondering that too, but I suspect they are going to release it along with the (tentative) schedules of the next couple years. They may have decided the alignment, but who gets to miss out on OSU first? Who can cancel their mid-season game with Central Michigan so that a big ten game can replace it? All these things have to ironed out.

I'm thinking a splash announcement. If the fans can look at the upcoming schedule, the excitement might dull any nitpicking of the overall alignment scheme. Maybe not though, i just wish they would hurry things up!!

The decision of where to hold it

Will come down to M O N E Y. First access to the most fans, relative close to all teams, a local poplulation sales, corporate sales, sponsorship of the game. The fringes of the conference are out. It has to be inside the Big 10, yet not a backyard tournement. I have always thought the Big 10 Basketball Tournement in Indianapolis was just a little to cozy for Purdue and Indiana.

Back to what Delany indicated. To have a Championship they will probably look at one sight do the 'due diligence' (make sure we make as much as we can) and have it. Then look at possible other sites.

The suspense in dividing the conference, the game. I think its common sense, but what do I know.

Break the teams EAST/WEST

The Western Conference

Illinois
Northwestern
Iowa
Wisconsin
Minnesota
Nebraska

The beauty of this is not only close rivalries, but travel.

But you say, all the power is in the East. Not so fast. Take another look at the West. I would have to say the East has Penn State and Ohio State, Michigan vs. Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin?



Now where do you have the Championship, Chicago. Soldiers Field. Its central to the Conference, heck its central to the USA. Its the Hub. Its outdoors. Its a historic site. Its remodeled, corporate boxes and all. There are more than enough hotels, restaurants, bars, for everyone.

Its seems to me the decision has been made but Delany did not want to release it during the Coach and Player showcase.

auric@heart said:

Now where do you have the Championship, Chicago. Soldiers Field. Its central to the Conference, heck its central to the USA. Its the Hub. Its outdoors. Its a historic site. Its remodeled, corporate boxes and all. There are more than enough hotels, restaurants, bars, for everyone.

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The biggest problem with Soldier Field is that it's the smallest NFL stadium and it is laden with premium seating. Those two factors plus Chicago being a massive corporate center leads me to think that most average fans would be shut out of a championship game at Soldier Field.

I think it works as part of a rotation but as a yearly venue there wouldn't be enough access for the fans.

NateDawgUM said:

I like the idea of a very large rotation of venues, moving it from city to city keeps the event fresh and opens it up to a vast amount of people.

Looking at Big Ten states, the following NFL venues would work:
Metrodome, Minneapolis
Lambeau Field, Green Bay
Soldier Field, Chicago
Ford Field, Detroit
Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis
Cleveland Browns Stadium, Cleveland
Paul Brown Stadium, Cincinnati
Heinz Field, Pittsburgh

Picking one permanent venue gets stale and boring in my opinion. Do I have any desire to keep going to Indy for the Big Ten bball tournament? Not really.

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Love the rotating venues - Would definitely keep the game fresh and interesting for fans of the schools that aren't playing in the game.

auric@heart said:

But you say, all the power is in the East. Not so fast. Take another look at the West. I would have to say the East has Penn State and Ohio State, Michigan vs. Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin?

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That's the thing, so many people are insisting that only Penn State, OSU, Michigan and Nebraska matter. The western schools should to anything but an East West split, as should PSU. If they stick to their guns, we'll get the east-west split. If they cave, different story.

Now where do you have the Championship, Chicago. Soldiers Field. Its central to the Conference, heck its central to the USA. Its the Hub. Its outdoors. Its a historic site. Its remodeled, corporate boxes and all. There are more than enough hotels, restaurants, bars, for everyone.

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Well, we have a major hub here in the Twin Cities. We have plenty of hotels, restuarants and bars for everyone. Maybe not right next to the stadium... but we have Huberts... And the Dome could be rented for $1.