The Front Row

BIG TEN Squared? One slight advantage is that our strength of schedule might improve a little bit because Va is slightly better than Troy.

Bax, any expansion, even for texas and nd, will limit the games against traditional rivals. Keep in mind, though, that as the ncaa shifts to 4 super conferences and a 4-8 team playoff, the fact that we are not adding football powers to the big ten is irrelevant. This conference will absolutely be included in the formula. The winner will be in the playoffs every year. There will no longer be complaining by the sec as their winner will be there too. If anything, it keeps our path clear. All four super conferences will be viewed as power conferences and all of the slow big ten garbage will be long gone. Either stay put with the old big ten or go for the whole thing with 20. I say bring em on.

Unfortunately "it's not about the ball" to paraphrase a great man.

I'm totally with coach K on this when he says that you just can't - or shouldn't - screw with traditional regional rivalries. They are the bedrock of the big time college sports.

Why is the SEC so proud??? It's the south against the north and right now they are winning

Why is the Big Ten v Pac 10 such a big deal each new year??? Midwest versus West Coast. Trust me I grew up in OHIO but went to college in the mid 70's at Cal Poly and the Coasters HATED Ohio State and Woody Hayes and Pete Rose. The Rose Bowl was us versus them....

The fact that the Okie/Nebraska game went to every other year and then away altogether is ATROCIOUS.

The guys running this show now better sort this out or they will kill the goose that laid the golden egg.

62 years we added two teams. Both had the look and feel of B1G programs. Our Brand is very recognizable. With expansion we will broaden our Brand and reach more TV'S but will anyone recognize the brand?

Coke classic versus the new coke... We know how that ended...

Was on phone. Didnt mean to DV you; was actually trying to give an up vote. I strongly agree that 20 teams is too many because if the limited contact with our more traditional foes but as i said earlier, got to follow the "Benjamin Trail."

As for having ther feds control it , NO EFFIN WAY!!! They can't find their own assholes in a small well-lit closet with the aid of a lead sled dog to sniff it out for them. Not in a million years would i want them messing with one of the true joys I still have in this world. Its better to allow CF to evolve on its own even if we are less than satisfied with the results. This is nothing the feds would do that we couldn't do for ourselves and do it better.

The purpose of the expansion is to make money not get football "heavyweights". It is also the intent of the conference to bring in AAU accredited schools with good research credentials to enhance our CIC pot which is much larger than the BTN take. Not everything is about football.

Bax, you seem to assume GT or NC or UVA would continue to field weak teams once they're in the BigTen. Why? Presumably Rutgers and Maryland didn't join the BigTen to become perennial doormats. I'd assume the same for any new entrant, from whatever current conference. Don't you think the new members will likely bring in new coaching staff, increase recruiting budgets, and ramp up the competitiveness of their football teams once they join?

Adding weak teams to a Conference already famous for losing its Bowl games makes zero sense. You can't capitalize on an expanded TV market if your product on the field sucks. So I'd assume any new teams would commit -- either to Jim Delany contractually or to their regents internally -- to put more resources toward better football programs. They know what they're getting into and don't want to be doormats any more than you want tOSU to play doormats. Surely these Universities don't expect to reap the financial rewards of BigTen membership while embarrassing themselves on national TV every Saturday.

I love Clemson! Beautiful campus in a small town in South Carolina filled with passionate Tiger fans. Personally, I would toss aside AAU and contiguity rules for the opportunity to face Clemson on the gridiron. No logic to my thoughts, simply words from the heart. My daughter was within an inch of rowing for Clemson and, to this day, we have the greatest admiration for the University. After The Ohio State University and the University of Alabama, both family alma maters, Clemson remains our third favorite college sports team. Unfortunately, the Purple and Orange Cats have no shot at B1G membership.