Big Ten Expansion

Since you need the internet to read this, I am going to assume that everyone has heard the news out of the Big Ten (14). Maryland and Rutgers are leaving the ACC and Big East and joining the Big Ten.

Like most things in college athletics, there have been people saying it is a good move by the Big Ten. Others are saying Jim Delany and the Big Ten are dumb.

I’m here to say the Big Ten did a good job. 

Before bashing Delany for extending this offer to one or both schools, you have to think of who else they could have stolen. It’s easy to say you don’t like the schools but the conference was adding two schools. So if you take out Maryland and Rutgers who are you putting in?

Please don’t say Notre Dame, they are partially in the ACC. If they were 100% independent they weren’t accepting it anyways. They’ve been asked non-stop and the answer is the same.

If you are looking west for a team, stop. The Big Ten is moving east, that’s where the money is. When the conference created the Big Ten Network many people were questioning it. Now it is the driving factor for teams join. According to SI and Pete Thamel, Maryland is expected to make more $12 million had they stayed.

This brings up my first reason for this expansion being a good move. The market is there for the Big Ten. 

This figure was put together by the New York Times. In 2011 they did a study to find who people root for and where they live. As you can see the New York Market is up for grabs. There is also a good chance the current Big Ten teams will gain more fans in this market if they are on TV more often.

Maryland isn't in the top-10 in the New York market but will allow the Big Ten to get into the D.C market. In an SI article Pete Thamel stated he talked to a television executive who said the Big Ten could make $200 million off this move.

Not only do these future markets watch football, they spend time on the computer reading about it. In the same New York Times article they looked at the Google search traffic. The search looked at people searching, "college football" and where they were located.

I will stay under the umbrella of money but go in a different direction. Maryland has a famous alum who can help market the Big Ten on TV, magazines and anywhere you can think. That man is Kevin Plank, the founder of Under Armour. 

Under Armour was already in the conference with Northwestern but the money spent on them is nowhere near Maryland. I'm willing to bet this is something the BTN likes, knowing the ad money they can get.

Another reason that makes this a smart move is the talent that comes from New Jersey and Maryland/D.C.

For this I found an article by the USA Today that had a database of every player drafted in the NFL since 1988. 

Here are the results for players drafted from each state that has a school in the Big Ten.

• Ohio 258
• Pennsylvania 184
• Michigan 158
• New Jersey 149
• Maryland/DC 117
• Indiana 70
• Minnesota 48
• Iowa 45
• Nebraska 43

If you don't think that is helpful stat for a conference in need of some talent you're crazy. There's a thing recruits like and that's playing in front of family and friends. If not in person, they want to be see on TV.

I do understand each year Maryland/DC doesn't send a ton of recruits each year but they have a top-10 ratio. According to rivals in 2011, one in every 329 high school players signed a division I FBS scholarship. The state of Ohio was fifth in the country having 144 players sign, with a ratio of 1-to-382.

This move will also help Penn State out a little bit. They will benefit the most on the recruiting side. Things will still be hard for them under the sanctions but help a little bit. Once they get off these sanctions then they can take full advantage.

I know move to what really matters for most fans, competition. Both teams can play football and compete. I don't mean they can hang with OSU, Michigan, Wisconsin and Nebraska every year. They can however stay in the middle of the pack and build their program.

Since 2001 Maryland has gone 5-2 in bowl games, while Rutgers went 5-1. That's more than Purdue (3-3), Indiana (0-1), Northwestern (0-6), Michigan State (2-5), Minnesota (3-4) and Illinois (2-2) have.

Both Maryland and Rutgers have more wins than a couple other teams but I didn't count them for a couple reasons. The main reason being the competition and those teams go bowling on a regular basis.

In the teams I did mention comparing to Maryland and Rutgers, their opponents are similar. They may not be able to compete with the top teams every year but the teams at the bottom of the Big Ten aren't good. Below is a list of the teams that finished in the final AP Poll from 2001 to last year. You will notice Indiana and Northwestern aren't on it.

Years school were ranked in the final AP Poll
Ohio State: 2002-2010
Michigan: 2001-2007, 2011
Wisconsin: 2004-2007, 2009-2011
Nebraska: 2001, 2003, 2005, 2009-2011
Penn St: 2002, 2005-2006, 2008-2009
Maryland: 2001-2003, 2010
Iowa: 2002-2004, 2009
Illinois: 2001, 2007-2008
Michigan St: 2010
Purdue: 2003
Rutgers: 2006
Minnesota: 2003

My final reason is the Big Ten wants to be the leader. Conference realignment is happening everywhere. If the Big Ten sits and waits it could end up on the short end. Right now the Big Ten is popular because of money but that could change. If another league made some power moves and then came after a Big Ten school things could get bad.

I applaud the Big Ten for trying to control their own fate.