B1G-Pac-12 collaboration gives 'benefits of expanding without expansion'

CHICAGO - Big Ten administrators faced an “either/or” last fall when it came to football scheduling.

Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany told reporters multiple times since the league's 2010 expansion he wanted the 12 football programs to “play each other more, not less” in the wake of divisional realignment. Delany devised a plan to add a ninth league game so that non-divisional, nonprotected opponents could play one another six times - rather than four - over a 10-year period.

But there was a problem. Coaches grumbled about playing the odd schedule, especially with the prospect of five road games every-other year. There also were the logistics of finding three home non-conference opponents during those seasons to generate enough athletics department revenue from home football games. The nine-game league proposal, which was approved in August 2011 to start in 2017, was less palatable than Delany had hoped. So he weighed his options.

“I think in the nine-game conference schedule who you don't play was one factor,” Delany said. “But then the other factor was five home games, four away. I think that if you could create a situation where you improve your schedules, you improve the fan experience, you improve the games that are going on television without affecting the home and away segment inside your conference, (that) was the preferred method of proceeding.”

Four months after the nine-game slate was approved, it was scrapped. Delany and league officials instead opted for an all-sports collaboration with the Pac-12 Conference with football as the centerpiece. Delany would like for all Big Ten schools to play at least one non-conference football game against the Pac-12 by 2017, if existing schedules allow.

“It's intersectional so it allows us to reach out and broaden our appeal and hopefully it broadens their appeal,” he said. “I think one of the attractive things about it was it had some of the benefits of expanding without expansion. The idea was to upgrade the quality of schedules either through nine (league games) or through a collaboration.

“We do want it all to fit in, whether that means you have 12 games or 11 games or 10 games in the first cycle. But we're going to want 12 games ASAP.”

Wisconsin Athletics Director Barry Alvarez called the collaboration “healthy” because it forces schools from both leagues to schedule quality non-conference opponents at least once a year.

“It's want our fans want,” Alvarez said. “They want to see more competitive games. It gives a continued relationship with a conference with values very similar to ours. A long-standing tradition as far as playing.”

It does face some obstacles, however. Many schools already have robust non-conference games scheduled in 2017, such as Michigan State-Alabama and Nebraska-Tennessee. The collaboration needs to sync with non-conference rivalries like Iowa-Iowa State and the league's multiple games with Notre Dame.

Delany said the schools and conferences will work in concert to organize the game, with six on the road and six at home with an annual rotation. Top officials from both leagues have met to discuss all sports scheduling, not just football.

“I would say football is probably the most challenging, but it's not impossible,” said Mark Rudner, the Big Ten's senior associate commissioner for television administration and scheduling. “It's just taking a great deal of coordination. Our institutions have been actively involved in future football scheduling and some of it goes way out to the next decade. But we're plowing through it. I think it will come together.”

While the schools' athletics directors have agreed to make it work, the logistics have yet to reach the matchmakers. Iowa has openings for major opponents in 2016 and beyond, and associate athletics director Mark Abbott is at a standstill for scheduling games.

“I guess the position that I've taken at this point is pretty much wait and see,” said Abbott, who handles football contracts. “I haven't been making a lot of calls, I haven't really done a whole lot until we get a little bit more with regard to what this Pac-12 situation is going to mean.”

The collaboration stretches beyond football. Rudner said he envisions a Ryder Cup format for golf, a combined super-track meet in Olympic years and possibly a tournament-style baseball event. It's all in the planning stages, but Delany hopes much of collaboration is finalized soon.

“My hope would be in the not-too-far distant future - maybe it's months - we'll have a more specific idea about what the models might be,” he said.