We know the Boilermakers have the most B10 Regular Season Titles. It's a place to hang our hats as we wait for the elusive National Title or at least a Final Four (since 1980). The odds Purdue adds to that total, went up last night.
Next year, USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington are going to be added to the B10. There are currently 20 conference games. With 18 teams in the league, that allows each team to have a "home and away series" with no more than 3 teams. With the B10 becoming essentially two full conferences next year, how much does that diminish any future B10 Titles for any team? We all know what it's like on the road in the Big Ten and each team will play the vast majority of conference foes only once during the regular season. Schedules will be extremely unbalanced and league titles might simply boil down to which team gets which team on the road vs. home. It might also boil down to who the three teams are that each team plays twice end up being.
If they keep traditional Rivalries as the home and away series, like Purdue/IU, USC/UCLA, MSU/ UMich, etc, there will be teams that potentially benefit or suffer for having to play another top team, or a bottom team twice.
As it stands now, the unbalanced schedule already makes it harder/easier for some teams to win it. Even moreso next year with 18 teams.
What are everyone's thoughts? Will regular season titles still matter that much? Do they matter more because the team that wins will likely have to win the most road games? Will only tournament success matter (B10 or NCAA)? Records about the number of bids per league will be shattered as 6 power conferences become 5. The landscape of the sport is changing. Even football is adding a 12 team playoff. Is the shine going to wither on regular season championships?
Next year, USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington are going to be added to the B10. There are currently 20 conference games. With 18 teams in the league, that allows each team to have a "home and away series" with no more than 3 teams. With the B10 becoming essentially two full conferences next year, how much does that diminish any future B10 Titles for any team? We all know what it's like on the road in the Big Ten and each team will play the vast majority of conference foes only once during the regular season. Schedules will be extremely unbalanced and league titles might simply boil down to which team gets which team on the road vs. home. It might also boil down to who the three teams are that each team plays twice end up being.
If they keep traditional Rivalries as the home and away series, like Purdue/IU, USC/UCLA, MSU/ UMich, etc, there will be teams that potentially benefit or suffer for having to play another top team, or a bottom team twice.
As it stands now, the unbalanced schedule already makes it harder/easier for some teams to win it. Even moreso next year with 18 teams.
What are everyone's thoughts? Will regular season titles still matter that much? Do they matter more because the team that wins will likely have to win the most road games? Will only tournament success matter (B10 or NCAA)? Records about the number of bids per league will be shattered as 6 power conferences become 5. The landscape of the sport is changing. Even football is adding a 12 team playoff. Is the shine going to wither on regular season championships?