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University of Minnesota Athletics
Big Ten Announces Division Alignments
9/2/2010 12:00:00 AM | Football
The Big Ten Conference office announced football division alignments beginning with the 2011 season as recommended by conference directors of athletics and reviewed and supported by the Big Ten Council of Presidents/Chancellors. Nebraska will officially begin conference competition in 2011, giving the Big Ten 12 football programs for the first time in conference history.
The winner of each Big Ten division will meet in the inaugural Big Ten Football Championship Game, to be played December 3, 2011, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. The championship game will determine the Big Ten Champion and the conference's participant in the Rose Bowl Game or Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game.
The Big Ten football division alignments will include a division featuring Illinois, Indiana, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue and Wisconsin, and a division featuring Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska and Northwestern. Each school will play the other five schools within its division and will also face three teams from the other division, including one cross-division matchup guaranteed on an annual basis. The guaranteed cross-division matchups are Illinois-Northwestern, Indiana-Michigan State, Ohio State-Michigan, Penn State-Nebraska, Purdue-Iowa and Wisconsin-Minnesota. Names for each Big Ten football division will be announced at a later date.
"I just think it is real exciting for our conference, first and foremost that we're adding a team like Nebraska," Minnesota head coach Tim Brewster said. "Obviously they're a great football program. They're a great fit for our conference. Now that we've seen alignment take place, the thing that I was most interested in, is us being able to play Iowa and Wisconsin every year. We're going to get the opportunity to play those games. Those games are extremely meaningful to us. Everything else on top of that is a plus."
"I think all Gopher fans are going to be extremely happy with the divisions and certainly with the schedule that we're going to face in 2011 and 2012," Minnesota athletic director Joel Maturi said. "I think it was a fair and equitable process. The divisions are very equitable and that was the number-one principle and goal and secondly, to keep those traditional rivalries. For the most part we've done that and obviously, from the Minnesota standpoint that has happened."
"Over the past several months, Big Ten staff and directors of athletics have met on several occasions to discuss and finalize division alignments," said Big Ten Commissioner James E. Delany. "We focused on competitive equality, traditional rivalries and geography. We considered multiple models and countless permutations in an effort to achieve the most competitively balanced divisions while at the same time respecting our traditions, preserving existing rivalries, and creating opportunities for the establishment and growth of new rivalries. We have listened to the feedback from our institutions, alumni and fans, and while we understand that no final alignments could possibly satisfy all of our constituents, we believe that we have achieved a very exciting result."
The 115th season of Big Ten football kicks off Thursday, Sept. 2, as Indiana hosts Towson, Minnesota plays at Middle Tennessee State, and Ohio State welcomes Marshall. The conference's other eight teams open action on Saturday, Sept. 4.
Minnesota's Division
Iowa
Michigan
Michigan State
Minnesota
Nebraska
Northwestern
Other Division
Illinois
Indiana
Ohio State
Penn State
Purdue
Wisconsin
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