Big Ten scheduling

[kaz36]

I was sitting here thinking about our schedule since we joined the conference. How many times has Ohio State or Michigan played in Lincoln vs us playing there? I seem to remember someone saying that in the first 9 years of us being in the conference that Michigan will only be in Lincoln once. Is that right? Also, we've been in the league for what, 6 years and this is the first time we've played Indiana. Isn't there a better way to try and even this out or is it impossible with 14 teams?

 

[sthusker]

I was looking at our future schedules and 2018 stands to be one of the tougher one I can remember for a long time
2018
09/01 Akron Lincoln
/ 09/08 Colorado Lincoln
/ 09/15 Troy Lincoln
09/22 #Michigan Ann Arbor
/ 09/29 #Purdue Lincoln
/ 10/06 #Wisconsin Madison
/ 10/13 #Northwestern Evanston
/ 10/20 #Minnesota Lincoln
11/03 #Ohio State Columbus
/ 11/10 #Illinois Lincoln
/ 11/17 #Michigan State Lincoln
/ 11/23 #Iowa Iowa City /

Colorado mich st at home
Mich Ohio state Wisconsin Northwestern Iowa all on the road

 

[chicolby]

Jeez, how are our cross-over games against the East playing @Michigan, @Ohio State and home against Michigan State. Don't be fooled by Michigan State's down year. They will be just fine by 2018. Throw in the division game @Wisconsin and we better hope we have a QB in place who can get a solid year of experience next season. There literally aren't any other teams in the east one would rather not play than those three and we get them all in the same season. I wonder if Iowa dodges all the tough teams once again.

 

[hddude55]

Comparing Iowa's schedules for the next few years and the past few years to ours -- even when overlooking their pathetic nonconference schedules -- is really puzzling. Virtually every year our schedule of crossover games is tougher.

 

[redwine65]

I know a NU fan somewhere is keeping track if the home and away games are kept even. and if there's a imbalance in how the west/east games are set up, probably ain't a good idea to play psu,msu,mich and osu all in the same year.

 

[scarletred]

What is BS is that the last time we played tOSU,Michigan and Penn St the games were all on the road NOW when we return to play them ALL again we have to travel back again.

Have played tOSU and Michigan only twice up too this point, we will be play tOSU every year till 2019 and by that time we have only played Indiana twice.

 

[NikkiSixx]

I was sitting here thinking about our schedule since we joined the conference. How many times has Ohio State or Michigan played in Lincoln vs us playing there? I seem to remember someone saying that in the first 9 years of us being in the conference that Michigan will only be in Lincoln once. Is that right? Also, we've been in the league for what, 6 years and this is the first time we've played Indiana. Isn't there a better way to try and even this out or is it impossible with 14 teams?

I think the conference scheduling is garbage.

Some teams get easy schedules, others get difficult ones. In addition, cross division losses count against winning one's own division. Further adding a variable level of difficulty that is not uniform for all teams in the division.

As each team looks towards the path of a national championship, the erratic scheduling adds yet another timing variable where all things need to line up to make the weather favorable for a title run.

What makes the most sense to me, is to add more teams (4-6), to get to 18-20 teams, where the divisions don't play one another except the championship game.

 

[huskerfan66]

I was looking at our future schedules and 2018 stands to be one of the tougher one I can remember for a long time
2018
09/01 Akron Lincoln
/ 09/08 Colorado Lincoln
/ 09/15 Troy Lincoln
09/22 #Michigan Ann Arbor
/ 09/29 #Purdue Lincoln
/ 10/06 #Wisconsin Madison
/ 10/13 #Northwestern Evanston
/ 10/20 #Minnesota Lincoln
11/03 #Ohio State Columbus
/ 11/10 #Illinois Lincoln
/ 11/17 #Michigan State Lincoln
/ 11/23 #Iowa Iowa City /

Colorado mich st at home
Mich Ohio state Wisconsin Northwestern Iowa all on the road

I heard this yesterday on the radio. 2018 brutal.

 

[maplesyrup95]

That's so freaking pathetic to me that we will have played Michigan 3 times away and only 1 time (2013) at home through 2020.

A lot of this has to do with Rutgers and Maryland joining the Big Ten. Do they randomize these schedules or what is done to schedule the teams? Even though I am pissed to quite pissed that these future schedules are set up the way that they are, I would argue that if we can beat all of those opponents, we'll be in the playoff. In other words, we have playoff-caliber schedules for the next 5 years. It'll be a hell of lot better than everyone/the media saying we "don't play anybody" like Iowa last year. Still, there are some flaws with all of this stuff that deserve some attention.

 

[jeans15]

Who cares. ..we own Michigan and Michigan St regardless where we play.

 

[Npower]

In order to be the man you have to beat the man.
- Ric Flair

GBR!

 

[Tuco Salamanca]

For 2017. Add Friday night for selected Big Ten games.

 

[Truehuskerfan]

Jeez, how are our cross-over games against the East playing @Michigan, @Ohio State and home against Michigan State. Don't be fooled by Michigan State's down year. They will be just fine by 2018. Throw in the division game @Wisconsin and we better hope we have a QB in place who can get a solid year of experience next season. There literally aren't any other teams in the east one would rather not play than those three and we get them all in the same season. I wonder if Iowa dodges all the tough teams once again.

Really not much different than Wisconsin this year playing at Michigan and Michigan State and home against Ohio State. Also keep in mind that the tough teams may not always be the same. Iowa was thought this year to have dodged most of the tough teams in the east and the only one they had was Michigan at home. That game at Penn State looks a lot more daunting now than it did before the season.

 

[tro80]

We need to become the team that East Division schools are pissed they have to play again

 

[GretnaShawn]

In order to be the man you have to beat the man.
- Ric Flair

GBR!

 

[chicolby]

Really not much different than Wisconsin this year playing at Michigan and Michigan State and home against Ohio State. Also keep in mind that the tough teams may not always be the same. Iowa was thought this year to have dodged most of the tough teams in the east and the only one they had was Michigan at home. That game at Penn State looks a lot more daunting now than it did before the season.

Yeah, yeah, some top teams have up and down years, like this year Michigan State is down, but the reality is Michigan and Ohio State rule the East and more than not Michigan State will be nipping at their heels. Penn State appears to be on the rise (finally.) But the first three teams are the cream of the East and taking them all on in a season is crazy scheduling. And the B1G conference knows this.

 

[rrthusker]

Seems like we catch OSU and Michigan on the road quite a bit.

 

[MiamiWolv]

I was sitting here thinking about our schedule since we joined the conference. How many times has Ohio State or Michigan played in Lincoln vs us playing there? I seem to remember someone saying that in the first 9 years of us being in the conference that Michigan will only be in Lincoln once. Is that right? Also, we've been in the league for what, 6 years and this is the first time we've played Indiana. Isn't there a better way to try and even this out or is it impossible with 14 teams?

The entire scheduling was screwed up when we added Rutgers and Maryland. Nebraska lost a return trip from Michigan in 2014. Michigan ended up playing two straight road games against Michigan State. We somehow didn't play Wisconsin for six years.

 

[rowdy roddy piper]

Lets play all the toughest conference opponents, beat them all, so theres no doubt we deserve a playoff spot.

 

[rrthusker]

The entire scheduling was screwed up when we added Rutgers and Maryland. Nebraska lost a return trip from Michigan in 2014. Michigan ended up playing two straight road games against Michigan State. We somehow didn't play Wisconsin for six years.

Six years? That`s just nuts.

 

[NU 71 72 74]

Huh, talk about Rutgers. We've been in the B1G since 1895 yet haven't seen Rutgers on our football schedule. Unfair.

 

[Truehuskerfan]

Six years? That`s just nuts.

I read recently that Indiana and Minnesota have only played once since 2008, and when Indiana plays in Minneapolis in 2018, it will be the first time they have played there in 10 years.

 

[rrthusker]

I read recently that Indiana and Minnesota have only played once since 2008, and when Indiana plays in Minneapolis in 2018, it will be the first time they have played there in 10 years.

Wow. How does this happen? Makes no sense at all.

 

[donahues17]

Whoever does the scheduling for the conference are a bunch of morons. Plus with how cross division counts toward division champs is their way of not wanting Neb and Wisc to win the west 90% of the time.

 

[nick614]

I believe this is part of the B1G scheduling plan to get a huge TV contract by having the big name schools play each other a lot. "Parity scheduling".

 

[TwinsRRUs]

Doesn't every conference include games against cross divisions the same way?

Back when Nebraska was in the Big 12, if Nebraska went 5-3 with losses to Texas, OkSU, & Oklahoma while Colorado went 6-2 with the losses to NU & KSU, Colorado would go to the big 12 championship game, even though they are only 3-2 in the division while NU 5-0.

I'm not sure I have ever seen a conference do it any different than that.

Conference records include any and all games against conference teams, regardless of division records unless the overall conference records are the same, then they go by head to head matchup for the tiebreaker, not record within your division.

 

[Hawkeye_311]

Yes the schedule is a mess right now and has been for awhile. It's almost like every team has some quirk in the schedule that doesn't need to be there. Iowa has played @ Minnesota in 5 of the last 7 meetings.

 

[loper]

I believe this is part of the B1G scheduling plan to get a huge TV contract by having the big name schools play each other a lot. "Parity scheduling".

Absolutely correct, the only explanation.