On Paying College Athletes

Whether or not to pay college athletes is a debate that never goes out of style. Even ESPN.com jumped on board this summer with "Pay For Play" , a week-long feature on this very topic.

The debate is fascinating to me, as college football and basketball generate huge amounts of revenue for individual schools yet the student-athletes do not get a cut of the revenues, a la the NFL. Of all the sports followed by a large amount of American sports fans, college football and basketball remain on the last frontiers of amateurism. Yes, technically NCAA student-athletes are amateurs, but improper benefits, especially in big-revenue sports have been given to select athletes for decades.

I have found that when "Pay for Play" is discussed in the media, it almost exclusively revolves around college football and basketball programs, their athletes, and the multi-billion dollar contracts that these sports generate. Less often discussed is the fact that most athletic departments actually lose money due to operational costs of the entire department. Also drawing less mention is the fact that if you are going to pay the star quarterback, due to Title IX, you also have to pay the female swimmer as well (This is not an indictment of Title IX, which protects both men's and women's sports. Most men's sports too, do not make revenue for their schools).

In one of the "Pay For Play" articles, Michael Wilbon writes that
that some college athletes deserve to be paid. However, he fails to outline a plan for even the limited number of athletes to be paid. With the expense of running a college athletic program and the revenues where they are at, how could there ever be an effective solution for paying all college athletes. Even in a fantasy world, where all college athletes were just paid a small amount of money per week (say, $120/week), this wouldn't stop the high profile athletes from obtaining or being offered improper benefits.

I don't think the current "compensation" system should be changed. I also don't think its perfect either, specifically, there are hardship cases where it seems like reasonable amounts of money can be provided. A lot of focus goes to the "1 and done" athletes in college basketball and select football players who don't make the most of their education. Behind the scenes, many college athletes are making the most of their education and definitely making do with what they are provided with. College sports are incredibly time consuming and difficult, but in exchange college athletes receive many benefits not offered to other college students.

For its impracticality, the ineffectiveness it would have at cutting off improper benefits, and the benefits afforded to student-athletes, college athletes should not be further compensated.

Fallout in Columbus

I was dissapointed to hear about the amount of lying and covering up Jim Tressel did over the past few months, ultimately costing him his job last week. In the coming months, it seems like Ohio State will get hit with signficant penalties, including the loss of scholarships and a possible bowl ban. Ohio State has owned the Big Ten over the past decade, so as a fan of another team, it would be easy to be happy about an apparant "changing of the guard." I do not necessarily feel this way. When one of the conference's marquee teams is down, like Michigan the past few seasons, the brand of the Big Ten suffers.

In the past week, many have compared the issues with Ohio State football to that of USC last year. USC was 8-5 last season after dealing with the initial shock of the Reggie Bush scandal and its accompanying penalties. It was pretty clear that once Tressel covered up for his players, that he would eventually lose his job and Ohio State would face penalties. However, I beleive OSU's penalties will be much more severe than USC.If USC's sanctions were largely the result of improper benefits to just two players, Reggie Bush and O.J. Mayo, how can Ohio State not have a smaller penalty admist the reports that have circulated?

The current issue of Sports Illustrated includes a special investigative report into the violations of OSU players under Tressel. SI reported that 28 players, 22 more than what had previously been stated, had traded or sold memorabilia dating back to 2001. The fact that the memorbillia-for-tattoos culture has penetrated several recruiting classes indicates that this wasn't just restricted to a superstar player here and there like at USC.

For Ohio State to get to its typical 10-2/11-1 season, it would take a heck of a coaching job, by a rookie head coach, dealing with all the distractions. Even the most jaded Buckeye fan would admit they are not as confident in this season as in the past. It would not shock me if Ohio State lost three of the four games against Miami, Wisconsin, Michigan State and Nebraska. Despite everything, I would still be suprised if the Buckeyes had a worse season than 9-3.

As far as Tressel is concerned, I honestly can't see Jim Tressel coaching college football again at the BCS level. Maybe at a smaller division of college football, but after all the penalties blow up, no school is going to want to be associated with Tressel. If interim coach Luke Fickell does well, the interim tag will be removed. If not, a host of great candidates will emerge in 2012.

2011 ABC/ESPN CFB Primetime Schedule

College football is practically here! Well, not quite yet. However, The World Wide Leader has released its Big Ten prime-time schedule for the 2011 college football season:

•Sept. 1:UNLV at Wisconsin, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN
•Sept. 10:Notre Dame at Michigan, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN
•Oct. 1:Nebraska at Wisconsin, 8 p.m. ET, ABC or ESPN or ESPN2
•Oct. 1:Notre Dame at Purdue, 8 p.m. ET, ABC or ESPN or ESPN2
•Oct. 8: Ohio State at Nebraska, 8 p.m. ET, ABC or ESPN or ESPN2
•Oct. 22:Wisconsin at Michigan State, 8 p.m. ET, ABC or ESPN
•Oct. 29:Wisconsin at Ohio State, 8 p.m. ET, ABC or ESPN or ESPN2

Significance of Games:
Every game involves at least one team in ESPN's College Football Live preseason top 25...all three of the Big Ten co-champions from 2010 (OSU, MSU, and Wisconsin) will be covered at least once...The Wisconsin-UNLV game is a Thursday season-opener...The Notre Dame-Michigan will be the first ever-night game in Michigan Stadium...Nebraska's first two Big Ten conference games, Oct. 1 and Oct. 8, will be carried in prime-time...The MSU-Wisconsin game last year was Wisconsin's only loss of the season...The Wisconsin-OSU game last year was Ohio State's only loss of the season
(Courtesy of ESPN Media Zone iPhone App).

The Big Ten typically gets six primetime games on the ESPN "Family of Networks," but an exception was made for the seventh game. This schedule also doesn't take into account the Big Ten Network's list of prime-time games yet to be released.

UPDATED: Pat Fitzgerald Contract Extention

Updating a previous story, Northwestern extended the contact of Coach Pat Fritzgerald through the 2020 season. The former All-American linebacker at Northwestern finished his fifth season as head coach and has a record of 34-29. His previous contact ran until 2015, so basically, Fitzgerald is getting a new 10 year deal which starts in 2011. The 10 year contract, is the first of its kind in NU athletic history.

This demonstates NU's increasing committment to athletics. Fitzgerald himself, has remained committed to his alma mater in the face of potential offers (Michigan, Notre Dame, and Stanford all rumored to have interest during their recent coaching searches). Fitzgerald was first approached with the extension in January, but he held off until assurance that NU would improve its athletic facilities in order to remain competitive with recruiting.

According to Teddy Greenstein of the Chicago Tribune, the contract is worth $1.8 million (NU isn't obligated to release its finanical data).


Previous Story:
The Northwestern blog, Sippin' On Purple, is among several outlets reporting the impending announcement of a contract extension for Pat Fitzgerald. His current contract runs out at the end of the 2015 season.

The NU football coach has led the Wildcats to a record of 34-29 in his five seasons at the helm. Yes, the record doesn't seem terribly impressive, but consider that Coach Fitz is the first coach in school history to lead a team to three consecutive bowl appearances. Also, Fitzgerald will enter the 2011 season only 15 wins shy of tying the NU all-time record for coaching victories. Oh, and he's only 36, still one of the youngest (and most charismatic) coaches in college football.

Considering these facts and the team's past futility, NU is clearly enjoying its best years. While Fitzgerald's extension has been in the works for several months, the details will finally be revealed today during a press conference. (Of course, since Northwestern is a private institution, it is not obligated to release the amount of the contract).

Today is College Football Signing Day!

Around the country, today marks one of the most significant days in the college football calendar. Today is National Signing Day, which marks the beginning of the national signing period for high school prospects to sign a National Letter of Intent (NLI). While many prospective players have given verbal commitments, nothing is binding until the NLI is signed by a player. Basically, once a player signs an NLI, no other NCAA school can recruit said player.

To the casual or non-sports fan, today might not seem like such a big deal. However, to coaches, recruiting and the ability to re-stock the team's depth chart is equally as important the coaching during the season. The recruitment period is just as big of a deal to fans as well. If don't believe that, check out ESPN's College football recruiting page and the amount of stories and information devoted to talent speculation and trying to determined which 17 or 18 year old will win the Heisman in 2014.

The amount of information about college football recruiting is justifiably so. When each college announces their Class of 2011 today, these are the players who will make up a core part of each roster. While schools can add players after today (the signing period ends April 1st), today's basically college football's equivalent "free agency," except the big signings aren't as spread out as other sports, like MLB or the NBA.

With that said, many of the top recruits have not yet signed, and are specifically waiting to announce their decisions today or are not quite ready to make their decisions. Several outlets, both television and online are airing coverage of college football signing day, including ESPNU's National Signing Day Special, which extends to a record 10 hours running from 9 a.m. - 7 p.m. ET today.

For more information on the recruiting cycle in general, I'd recommend Bruce Feldman's Meat Market: Inside the Smash-Mouth World of College Football Recruiting, which profiles a the yearlong recruitment cycle of Ed Orgeron, then the Ole Miss head coach.

College Football Notes (1/14)

While there was talk of Commissioner Jim Delaney and the Big Ten revisiting the names of their two football divisions, it appears that "Legends and Leaders" will remain through the 2011 football season, to allow time for market research to be conducted on the effectiveness of the names. I still don't think its as big of a deal as the competitive balance that the Big 10 will have in 2011.

In football, USC is down to just 59 scholarships after one of their receivers left the program recently. Over the past summer, the Trojans infamously received a heavy probation from the NCAA, resulting in a two year bowl ban and a loss of ten scholarships per year. I know the Trojans played under the regular 85 scholarships this season, but 59, wow!

A feel good story out of Houston: QB Case Keenum has been granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA. Keenum was on pace to break several NCAA records before tearing his ACL in a September game, sidelining him for the rest of the season. In 2009, Keenum passed for 5,671 yards.

The "Legends" and the "Leaders"

One of the hot topics in college football this week is the newly released Big Ten logo and football divisions . With the addition of Nebraska next year, the Big Ten will now have 12 teams (confusing, right?), which forced the conference to restructure to two six-team divisions with a football conference championship. Most Big Ten fans were happy with the addition of Nebraska while not diluting the brand of the Big Ten in the process.

Many Big Ten fans were not thrilled with the conference after the two football divisions were named "Legends" and "Leaders." A Chicago Tribune survey in today's paper revealed that 94% of fans disliked/disapproved of the name changes. I'm not a huge fan of the division names either, or the logo for that matter. But I think there are more important things, such as the actual competitions.

The Big Ten Conference is convinced that fans will eventually get used to the division names. I'm honestly not to bothered by "Legends" and "Leaders," I think its more important to have the right divisions set up, based on competitive balance and traditional rivalries, as opposed to geography, which would have made the conference names easier to decide. More important than the silly division names is the fact that divisions will be competitive, and the Big Ten will be stronger going into 2011.

Light Reading

I'm one book away from starting to read my copy of "Death to the BCS," a book against the traditional post-season in college football written by Dan Wetzel, Jeff Passan, and Josh Peter. Once I finish reading the book, I will put up a book review and go into what I believe is right and wrong about the book's points and in depth on my views into a college football playoff.

All-Big Ten Picks

The Big Ten Conference released its list of All-Big Ten Football Teams for 2010 today. As a Northwestern fan, I was pretty happy with the lists, one of which is generated by Big Ten Coaches, and one by Big 10 media members. Quarterback Dan Persa was named to the first team by the coaches, and the second team by the media, which is a testament to how well he played before his Achilles' Tendon injury. Persa may have a chance to win the Chicago Tribune Silver Football, a prestigious award given to the Big Ten MVP. Jeremy Ebert, NU's leading receiver also received a first-team selection from the media.

Overall, the selections for Northwestern and the Big Ten as a whole were very fair. What surprised me the most was the fact that Denard Robinson was named Offensive Player of the Year by the league's coaches yet was not a first-or second team selection by the league's coaches.

"Little Sisters of the Poor"

In an interview with the AP this past Wednesday, Ohio State President Gordon Gee implied that Boise State (prior to the Nevada loss) and TCU did not deserve a chance to play for the BCS National Championship. In his words, Gee stated that Ohio State and other power-conference schools play tough schools and not "the Little Sisters of the Poor" on their schedules.

Many people defended Gee's comments as simply admitting the viewpoint of the fans who believe a non-automatic qualifier should be left out of the BCS Championship. However, Gee is not an Ohio State fan, he is the school's president, and it just looks really bad that Ohio State is picking on the non-automatic qualifiers. As Dan Wetzel points out, Gee is likely defending the BCS, which favors teams like Ohio State over teams like Boise and TCU.

My viewpoint is that an undefeated non-automatic qualifier deserves a chance at the BCS national championship or in the future if their is a playoff. If TCU doesn't play in the national championship, there is no way you can say that Oregon or Auburn (the top 2 teams in the country) would automatically beat TCU. I'm looking forward to next weekend of college football. If Auburn or Oregon loses, it will open the door for TCU to appear in the national championship and be able to prove that it can beat anyone. If not, TCU is projected to go to the Rose Bowl where they can go head-to-head against a team like Wisconsin

Inside the Cam Newton Allegations

About a week and a half, I was prepared to write a blog post celebrating Auburn's star quarterback Cam Newton, the Heisman Trophy frontrunner, for passing up a question on the possibility of skipping his senior season to enter the NFL Draft. Newton declared that it would be "selfish" to think about individual awards or the NFL in a season where Auburn is contending for a national championship. The fact that the best player in college football would so candidly reject a question about the NFL seemed refreshing compared to recent actions of Brett Favre and Randy Moss.

Only a few days later, both ESPN and The New York Times reported of a story that last year as a junior college player, Newton was being shopped around to various colleges by a middle man. In the past week, their has been several alleged reports which would not render Newton ineligible, but would damage his credibility in the eyes of Heisman voters. The latest report, from ESPN last night, alleges that Newton decided on Auburn from tons of scholarship offers, because the money "was too much" to pass up. Alleged reports have indicated that Newton or his father set up a "pay-to-play" plan in which Newton would have been paid by boosters to attend Auburn. For the most part, Auburn has neither confirmed or denied any or the reports and the school has simply stressed the fact that Newton remains eligible to play.

Newton's lofty performance this season, coupled with the fact that he is still eligible to play, has left him as the favorite to win the Heisman. Newton's on-field performance is clearly deserving of the award, however, it would be hard for me to consider him a Heisman winner if the allegations turn out true. Many sportswriters, including Sports Illustrated's Michael Rosenberg acknowledge that "pay to play" plans and under the table payments have been a dirty staple in college football history, and for that it would be a mistake to victimize Newton. In some ways, yes, it is wrong to single out Newton. However, it is a greater mistake to look the other way and allow these under the table payments to continue. You cannot justify something in 2010, based on an issue that has been largely ignored.

"Because its always been this way," simply isn't a good enough answer anymore. More than ever, there is scrutiny inside college sports. With budgets of tens of millions of dollars, College Athletic Departments are being held accountable like corporations. Just like corporations have a moral responsibility, so do athletic departments and their representatives (coaches, staff, and players). It is time for the appropriate parties to live up to that responsibility.

Persa's Return to Penn State

Growing up in Pennsylvania, Northwestern's Dan Persa cheered on the Penn State football team. Both his mother and older sister are Penn State alums, and Persa too, hoped he would draw recruiting interest from the Joe Paterno and the Nittany Lions as a star high school quarterback in PA. Despite a productive career, one in which he became the first player in Pennsylvania to pass for 2,000 yards and rush for 1,000 in a single season, Persa barely drew any notice from Paterno and his staff. Apparently Persa was overlooked, because he was perceived as too small to play for Penn State. Instead, Persa opted to play at Northwestern, where he has emerged as one of the country's best quarterbacks, and a legitimate candidate for the Big Ten MVP
. Persa has completed 74.4 percent of his passes (2nd in the nation) and ranks in the top ten in total offense.

Tomorrow, Persa will return home to lead Northwestern against Penn State in State College, PA. The game will be intriguing, not only because of Persa's return, but the fact that Joe Paterno is seeking his 400th coaching win. This is a huge milestone, only two other coaches have won 400 games, and may never happen again. College football coaches simply have too much pressure, from the media, large contracts, alumni, boosters, and university officials, to last as long as the ageless Paterno, Penn State's coach since 1966. Most college football writers believe that, at best, seeing 400 again is extremely unlikely. Because of the rarity of this feat, the game will be broadcast nationally on ABC or ESPN2 at 2:30 CT. Paterno has admitted he regrets not recruiting Persa. For Persa, this is the game to show his State University what he is made of.

The game should be a close one, and hopefully the Wildcats can delay Paterno's milestone for the next week. Either way, it will be compelling.

Northwestern at Penn State
State College, PA
2:30 CT/3:30 ET
TV: ABC (Midwest), ESPN2 (Outer Markets)

In Case you Missed It: First Half Recap

For the most part, the college football season has crossed the halfway point (many, but not all teams have played 6 of their 12 games so far). I know a lot of people probably don't follow college football as closely as I do, so I'm making a first-half recap of the college football season.

Here are the big things that have happened so far: the transformation of the Pac-10, decline of major powers, and a cloudy national championship picture.

USC is no longer the big dog in the Pac-10. After a demoralizing off-season, the Trojans have lost two consecutive conference games and have not resembled the dominant teams of the 2000s. In their demise, Oregon and Stanford are among the conferences two best teams. Oregon is a lot of college football reporters' picks to make it into the national championship. Led by LaMichael James, the Ducks feature flashy uniforms and an explosive offensive that can put points on the toughest defenses. Stanford, who suffered a loss to Oregon already, has also impressed early in the season. Don't discount Oregon State, who is 2-0 in the Pac-10.

USC is not the only traditional power going through tough times. Penn State just lost to Illinois and is 3-3. Texas has already lost to UCLA and Oklahoma. Florida already has two losses. Notre Dame is also 3-3 and has shown any form of dominance. Unlike last season where Texas and Alabama were in the driver's seat for most of the 2009 college football season, no two teams have emerged as clear-cut favorites to make it to the BCS National Championship Game

There are now just 13 unbeaten teams left in college football. 4 of the 13 are from non-BCS conferences, Utah, Nevada, Boise State, and TCU. #21 Nevada is ranked for the first time in a half-century, and its offensive formation, The Pistol, has gained national attention. Meanwhile, Boise State, the preseason Cinderella story, took care of Virgina Tech and Oregon State during their first two games of the season, and most likely will cruise through their schedule until meeting Nevada on November 26th. I also think Boise will be tested during a November 6th game against Hawai'i.


One of the biggest upsets of the season happened last weekend, as South Carolina defeated #1 Alabama, ending a 19 game winning streak. Up until this past weekend, Alabama was seen as practically a shoe-in for the national championship. The Crimson Tide still have National Championship hopes, though they still have a tough schedule ahead and face a pair of currently undefeated teams in LSU and Auburn later in the season.

In its final season in the Big 12, Nebraska too, is a national championship contender. Last Thursday against Kansas State, freshman quarterback Taylor Martinez (nicknamed T-Magic), ran for 241 yards, and has emerged as a Heisman candidate. I watched the game, and Martinez is an absolute stud. The 'Huskers could meet #6 Oklahoma in the Big 12 Conference Championship, which could determine one of the 2 teams to play in the national championship.

Next year, Nebraska will be in the Big Ten, where Michigan State (after beating Michigan) and Ohio State look to contend for the Big Ten title and an national championship appearance. MSU and OSU will not play each other, which further complicates the national championship picture In the two other BCS conferences, the ACC and Big East, no teams are really having that great of a season.

The initial BCS standings, which play a large factor in determining the national championship, come out on October 17th, and there is still plenty of football left to deciding who will make it to the national championships.


Aaron's Midseason Heisman

1. LaMichael James, Oregon
2. Kellen Moore, Boise State
3. Taylor Martinez, Nebraska
4. Denard Robinson, Michigan
5. Andrew Luck, Stanford

College Bowl Trouble?

According to this this ESPN.com article, the NCAA might have trouble finding enough winning teams to place into bowl games. Over the past college football season, the number of bowl games was increased from 33 to 35, meaning that 70 teams are placed into bowl games at the end of the season. With the amount of FCS (Div. I-AA) teams who have upset FBS Schools, there is speculation that there will not be enough teams to fill all the spots.

Before a losing team gets selected, the FCS should get a chance or two (possibly the FCS national champion or runner up) to play in a bowl game which cannot be filled by the NCAA

Week 1 in Review

College football got off to a great start this past weekend, and this upcoming weekend looks even better with Miami-Ohio State, Florida State-Oklahoma, and Alabama-Penn State.

I was happy to see that Boise State- Virginia Tech on Monday night was such a great game. I feel like more football fans, and sports fans in general, watched it because there was no Monday Night Football. I felt like it was a great showcase for college football and I'm glad the game was so competitive.

As far as my predictions. I went 10-1. Ok, so a lot of the games were predicatable. I did not expect Michigan to have such an impressive showing over a respectable Connecticut team. Michigan-Notre Dame should be a great game this weekend, pitting two programs trying to revive themselves.

Oregon won their game 72-0 without star tailback LaMichael James. Holy Smoke! The Ducks and their dangerous offense travel to Tennesse this week.

I was happy with the Northwestern win, but at the same time I expected more from the run game. I hope they can really put the petal to the floor this weekend against FCS opponent Illinois State.
I was cheering for Hawaii to beat USC at home, and it could have definitely happened. The Warriors scored 36 points and were a few plays of pulling in even with USC, who won 49-36. USC, despite its off-season of turmoil, is still ranked, and can with the AP National Championship with an undefeated season. Still 36 points to Hawaii? USC plays Virginia this week, and it will be interesting to see if last week's defensive performance becomes the norm or the exception.

My Big Ten Preview & Prediction

College Football starts tonight at 6:30 CT, which means I only have a few hours to make a relevant preview and prediction of the Big Ten football season. I think the Big Ten enters 2010 with a stronger reputation then it usually has during the preseason. Prior to the 2009-10 college football bowl season, the Big Ten's bowl struggles (especially in BCS games) led prognosticators to downgrade the conference during the following season. However with Iowa and Ohio State winning the Orange and Rose Bowls, I think the Big Ten has gained back a lot of the respect it has lost. Many believe Ohio State, which starts the season ranked 2nd, can ultimately win the BCS National Championship. Quarterback Terrelle Pryor, the Rose Bowl MVP, and the fact that Ohio State has won the past 5 Big Ten titles are perhaps the two biggest reasons why Ohio State is touted so highly. However, Iowa and Wisconsin are also worthy enough to be considered as a preseason favorite.

If Ohio State wins the conference, it will have earned it. The Buckeyes have to travel to both Iowa and Wisconsin. Ivan Maisel of ESPN believes Iowa will win the Big Ten because it hosts Ohio State and Wisconsin. The Big Ten should be a very competitive season and there are a lot of interesting stories. Besides the aforementioned schools, Penn State and the ageless Joe Paterno will be starting its first true freshman at quarterback, Michigan trys to improve amidst ongoing NCAA investigations, Michigan State trying to improve its standing in the conference, etc.

Before I go into my predictions, I'll list the "must-see" games worth keeping an eye on:

*Sept. 11- Miami (FL) at Ohio State
*Sept. 18- Iowa at Arizona
*Sept. 18- Notre Dame at Michigan State
*Oct. 2- Penn State at Iowa
*Oct. 9- Michigan State at Michigan
*Oct. 16- Ohio State at Wisconsin
*Oct. 23-Wisconsin at Iowa
*Nov. 13- Iowa at Northwestern--in my dreams, Northwestern is 9-0 at this point
*Nov. 20- Ohio State at Iowa
*Nov. 27- Indiana at Purdue

Predictions

1. Ohio State (12-0 overall ,8-0 in the Big Ten)
2. Wisconsin (11-1, 7-1)
3. Iowa (11-1, 7-1)
4. Michigan State (9-3, 6-2)
5. Northwestern (9-3, 5-3)
6. Penn State (8-4, 4-4)
7. Purdue (7-5, 4-4)
8. Michigan (6-6, 3-5)
9. Indiana (5-7, 3-5)
10. Minnesota (4-8, 2-6)
11. Illinois (3-9, 1-7)

Coach of the Year: Pat Fitzgerald, Northwestern
Offensive Player of the Year: John Clay, Wisconsin
Defensive Player of the Year: Adrian Clayborne, Iowa


Week 1 Picks

> Towson @ IND - INDIANA
> Marshall @ OSU - OSU
> W Mich @ MSU - MSU
> E Ill @ Iowa - Iowa
> Ill @ Mizz - Mizzou
> UConn @ Mich - UCONN
> Pur @ Notre Dame - PURDUE
> Wis @ UNLV- WIS
> NU @ Vandy - NU

Big Ten Divisions

The division of the Big Ten for Football starting in 2011 was announced tonight on the Big Ten Network. However, it was broken first earlier today by ESPN. com's Andy Katz.
Katz reported earlier in the day that the divisions would consist as follows:

Division X: Michigan, Nebraska, Iowa, Michigan State, Northwestern and Minnesota.
Division O: Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin, Purdue, Indiana and Illinois.

The division were confirmed later on the Big Ten Network special. The Big Ten plans also included protected rivalries, which will give every school a protected rivalry game (between division X and division O) that will occur every year. Ohio State and Michigan, are one of the protected rivalries, which will allow the many trophy games between Big Ten schools to continue. It is important to remember that the Big Ten divisions apply only to football, and not every sport.

I think the biggest news revealed on the Big Ten Network specials was the fact that Ohio State and Michigan will meet (in their protected crossover), during the final week of the college football season, as they have traditionally met. Many believed that "The Game" would be moved to somewhere in the middle of the season, and were upset about the Big Ten breaking the tradition that Ohio State and Michigan would meet in the last week. The tradition was saved, which means it holds the possibility that Ohio State and Michigan could possibly play two games in a row if they win there individual divisions.

I think the Big Ten did a good job with the divisions. Its important to preserve tradition to a degree and I think through the protected rivalries, the Big Ten will save a majority of the trophies games (Little Brown Jug, Floyd of Rosdayle, etc.). The divisions are very even, in terms of both traditional powers and the up-and-comers in the league. As the Daily Herald's Lindsey Willhite points out the teams in the two divisions have the same combined record since 1993.

Also, I think its important to split the two biggest brands of the conference, Michigan and Ohio State, into separate divisions. Michigan probably will be successful, maybe not for the next few years, but will eventually re-emerge as a conference power. Since Michigan and Ohio State will play every year anyway, does it really matter if they are in different divisions? I could have done without "The Game" on the final weekend, you can't cater to the wishes of every single team, but overall the Big Ten made a clean split in making divisions. Most traditional rivalries were able to be saved. I was worried that the division split would dilute the Big Ten brand and destroy some of the traditions, but they really did a great job. Everything can't be saved, but overall, the brand and tradition of the Big Ten has been preserved.

As a Northwestern fan, I'm excited for Division X or whatever it will be called eventually. I think the division is really competitive and even. You can argue that Illinois, Indiana, and Purdue are among the there worst teams so 2011 and 2012 should set up pretty well for Ohio State. For each team, I think the season will be a little tougher, and it will force the lower teams to step up.

For the record, the divisions are unnamed for now, however, the Big Ten will not change its name despite the increasing number of teams.

Northwestern Links

ESPN.com Big Ten Blogger Adam Rittenberg today blogs about Northwestern's attendance problems despite its ability to field a competitive team. Last season, Northwestern finished 83rd nationally in average attendance at just 24,190 per game, even though the team won 8 games this year. NU's struggle to draw fans motivated me to write a blog post ten days ago about why you should go to a NU game this season. So far it seems, NU has made a valiant effort to improve its marketing, hiring former Chicago Rush exec Mike Polisky and launching the school's first large scale sales and marketing campaigns. Northwestern's poor attendance has been a point of mockery for other Big Ten fans to laugh at, so I hope the campaign goes well. Season ticket sales are up, in part to NU's game at Wrigley Field, but I think they have to wait and see what the actual attendance is like, regardless of how many tickets they sell. Hopefully people didn't just buy season tickets for the NU-UofI game and are planning to discard the rest

Big Ten Conference Divisions for 2011, should be announced sometime in September, and for now it looks like the Northwestern-Illinois rivalry will be protected , according to the Tribune's Teddy Greenstein. As far as the conference divisions are concerned, I hope that Michigan and Ohio State are separated in order to have them meet in the Big Ten Championship, like Alabama and Florida do in the SEC. I also hope that they split up Penn State and Nebraska, so there is a good competitive balance. Whatever happens, playing in a stronger Big Ten conference can only benefit Northwestern.

Also, Northwestern has new uniforms. Click here to see the new and old uniforms.

Allstate Wrigleyville Classic

Today, it was announced that the Northwestern/Illinois football game scheduled for November 20th at Wrigley Field will be sponsored by Allstate and called the Allstate Wrigleyville Classic. NU also unveiled the logo for the game, which is a purple mock-up of the classic stadium's marquee.

The Northwestern/Illinois game will be the first football game at Wrigley Field in 40 years (The Bears played at the Friendly Confines for an extended period). I'm pretty sure I'm going to be there on November 20th. The only way to get a ticket for NU-Illinois is through season tickets, so I'm contemplating a season ticket purchase. I can't wait to see the set up. I know recently officials have given clearance for the use of rooftop seating on the gameday. The Allstate Wrigleyville Classic definitely promises to be a classic game in a great environment.

Also as the press release noted, Northwestern football is going through its most successful stretch in school history.

Northwestern opens the 2010 season on Saturday, Sept. 4 in Nashville, Tenn., vs. Vanderbilt (6:30 p.m. CT).

Northwestern Practice at Great Lakes

Northwestern football practiced yesterday at the Naval Station Great Lakes in North Chicago. The Naval Station, is the US Navy's Training Headquarters and 50,000 recruits pass through it annually. Great Lakes also has a lot of college football history , and was even considered a powerhouse when it played college football from the 1910s to the 1940s. Part of the reason Northwestern was at Great Lakes, was to promote their Sept. 11th home opener against Illinois State, which is also "Heroes Day," but Pat Fitzgerald also took his team there to connect with the tradition at Great Lakes. Great move for NU.