Early September league games coming to the B1G

[Dan]

Good.

Also look for B1G conf games to be played in Sept, like the SEC wisely does. Delany said he hopes that gets approved.

Yet to be determined, but I'd doubt it. RT @nezzy21: @TeddyGreenstein opening weekend?

http://twitter.com/TeddyGreenstein

[trevdv]

This only further defeats the purpose of the non-conference IMO. People are already questioning whether playing non-conf sisters of the poor should count towards bowl eligibility, and now Delany is proposing teams play these inferior opponents at any point during the season? What is the purpose of even calling it the "non-conference" season if Ohio State is playing Michigan State and Florida is playing Arkansas during it?

I don't know, maybe it's me just being stubborn to change, but it'll take some time to get used to seeing conference opponents play each other in week two and out of conference opponents playing each other in the always-more-meaningful December schedule.

Answer this question: are you comfortable with seeing Northwestern-Illinois play week one, and North Dakota State-Illinois play in week nine? I'm not. Not yet anyways.

[DrewD007]

Originally Posted by trevdv

This only further defeats the purpose of the non-conference IMO. People are already questioning whether playing non-conf sisters of the poor should count towards bowl eligibility, and now Delany is proposing teams play these inferior opponents at any point during the season? What is the purpose of even calling it the "non-conference" season if Ohio State is playing Michigan State and Florida is playing Arkansas during it?

I don't know, maybe it's me just being stubborn to change, but it'll take some time to get used to seeing conference opponents play each other in week two and out of conference opponents playing each other in the always-more-meaningful December schedule.

Answer this question: are you comfortable with seeing Northwestern-Illinois play week one, and North Dakota State-Illinois play in week nine? I'm not. Not yet anyways.

The B1G is the only conference that waits until the last week of September to start playing conference games. I really couldn't care less when our conference games are played.

[trevdv]

Originally Posted by DrewD007

The B1G is the only conference that waits until the last week of September to start playing conference games. I really couldn't care less when our conference games are played.

Really? I wasn't aware the Big 12 or Big East had conference games in early September.

[Thacher_H_Guild]

Originally Posted by trevdv

This only further defeats the purpose of the non-conference IMO. People are already questioning whether playing non-conf sisters of the poor should count towards bowl eligibility, and now Delany is proposing teams play these inferior opponents at any point during the season? What is the purpose of even calling it the "non-conference" season if Ohio State is playing Michigan State and Florida is playing Arkansas during it?

Call them nonconference games instead of having a nonconference season. I know change is difficult, but this is a very good one for fans.

This is also an overdue change in a time when conferences are fighting for national TV viewers. The B1G should have a couple good match-ups every week.

[stevo99]

I'm all for this.

Having a quality opponent come to town before the weather turns makes for a great atmosphere.

[GilThorpe]

Originally Posted by stevo99

I'm all for this.

Having a quality opponent come to town before the weather turns makes for a great atmosphere.

I forget when it switched, but in the early 80's we opened the season once with Northwestern and I believe another year with Michigan St

[aiwpfan]

Originally Posted by GilThorpe

I forget when it switched, but in the early 80's we opened the season once with Northwestern and I believe another year with Michigan St

In '95 and '96, we opened against Michigan, first weekend of the season.

[BZuppke]

I hope they're proposing just one of these per school so that the non conference schedule can mostly remain in September.

[trevdv]

None of you think it would be strange to play a DII school in the more crucial month of November? I don't see how there could be the same sense of urgency for B1G teams if they were playing in early September compared to late November.

[Dan]

In recent years, the B1G has started league play in Week 5.

With the exception of the rare bigtime non-conference matchup here-and-there, that produced 4 long boring weeks of B1G football in September.

Spacing out a handful of league games in Weeks 1-4 would break the September B1G monotony.

Here's how the other major conference similar to the B1G -- 12 teams, 8 league games -- scheduled early league games-

ACC
Week 1: 2
Week 2: 1
Week 3: 2
Week 4: 2

SEC
Week 1: 1
Week 2: 3
Week 3: 2
Week 4: 4

[trevdv]

Originally Posted by Dan

ACC
Week 1: 2
Week 2: 1
Week 3: 2
Week 4: 2

SEC
Week 1: 1
Week 2: 3
Week 3: 2
Week 4: 4

Okay, I'm down with one or two games in the first week... As long as one Big Ten school doesn't have 1/4 of their conference season finished by the time week three comes around...

[illinifan4249]

I think the best part of this could be having a league night game in September. As a student I know that I would love a game against Ohio St or Nebraska or even Purdue in September, really get campus buzzing.

[mattcoldagelli]

Originally Posted by trevdv

None of you think it would be strange to play a DII school in the more crucial month of November? I don't see how there could be the same sense of urgency for B1G teams if they were playing in early September compared to late November.

November is the more crucial month because that's when you're usually playing conference opponents, not because of something special about football in November.

[GilThorpe]

they are gong to go to 9 or 10 league games, and if its 9 for now, it will be 10 sooner or later, especially if we do go to 16

I am okay with a legaue game in week 1 or 2 or 3 , but not 2 games.

[trevdv]

Originally Posted by mattcoldagelli

November is the more crucial month because that's when you're usually playing conference opponents, not because of something special about football in November.

Right, so I'm opposed to this because it takes away some of that emotion and intensity that November football brings.

[mattcoldagelli]

Originally Posted by trevdv

Right, so I'm opposed to this because it takes away some of that emotion and intensity that November football brings.

But it's not taking it away. It's just being moved to September.

[trevdv]

Originally Posted by mattcoldagelli

But it's not taking it away. It's just being moved to September.

So you think that mentally the players can still feel the same intensity in week one as they would with everything on the line in week ten? I don't think so. If you're a coach and you're playing a conference opponent week one, what do you tell your guys? You can't say, "Ok, this is a must-win for us because we're only one game out of first place in the division." No. You don't know how important a week one conference game is, unless you're Nostradamus or something, because you don't know how the teams in your division are going to play out.

[mattcoldagelli]

Originally Posted by trevdv

So you think that mentally the players can still feel the same intensity in week one as they would with everything on the line in week ten? I don't think so. If you're a coach and you're playing a conference opponent week one, what do you tell your guys? You can't say, "Ok, this is a must-win for us because we're only one game out of first place in the division." No. You don't know how important a week one conference game is, unless you're Nostradamus or something.

Yes?

And if no, bully for us, because we're normally dead in the water by week 10.

[trevdv]

Originally Posted by mattcoldagelli

Yes?

And if no, bully for us, because we're normally dead in the water by week 10.

Really? You really believe that playing a conference team week one brings just as much excitement and intensity to players' mentalities as week eight conference games, when you can better see what you need to do in order to go to Indianapolis for the championship game? How can players play with the same intensity, when they don't know what they're playing for? They don't know what's on the line in the Big Ten standings when it's week one!!

And I'm not talking about us. We're irrelevant after week one. :laugh: But what about a middle of the pack team like Minnesota? Last year, they labeled their road game against the Illini a "must win" so that they could become bowl eligible. If that were their first game of the year, how would they possibly know it was a must-win? My point is that big-time conference games in weeks one and two can no longer be called "big-time" because you don't know what's ahead of you in the B1G season.

[Thacher_H_Guild]

Originally Posted by trevdv

So you think that mentally the players can still feel the same intensity in week one as they would with everything on the line in week ten? I don't think so. If you're a coach and you're playing a conference opponent week one, what do you tell your guys? You can't say, "Ok, this is a must-win for us because we're only one game out of first place in the division." No. You don't know how important a week one conference game is, unless you're Nostradamus or something, because you don't know how the teams in your division are going to play out.

By your own logic, this will make any conference games that happen in early November all the more intense because more conference games will have proceeded them.

Also, by this logic, it must be super difficult for teams to get up for the first conference game in week 5 (under the current system) because there is now way to know how important it is. At that point, unless you are Nostradamus or something, you don't know how the teams in your division are going to play out.

I don't recall the coaches complaining about the start of the B1G season being a huge motivational challenge....

[trevdv]

Originally Posted by Thacher_H_Guild

I don't recall the coaches complaining about the start of the B1G season being a huge motivational challenge....

It isn't necessarily a challenge per se, but you don't believe that players are more motivated when they know that something big is on the line late into the season? Which would you be more motivated to here from your coach:

"Ok guys, it's either 1-0 in the conference or 0-1 in the conference."

"Ok guys, it's either first place and a trip to Indy or second place and sitting on your sofas next weekend."

Plus, it'll definitely present more scouting challenges for coaches and players if you're playing a conference team week one. You don't know what to expect from them. You have no game tape of them pummeling DII schools.

[GilThorpe]

were lucky right now to be getting a B1G share paycheck, if the league has to get some decent games on the air in the first four weeks, I am fine wiith that. Lets face it, NO ONE wants to watch those cupcake games early on, if there were to B1G games on TV in each of the first 4 weeks, at least there is something to watch'

its all about TV content now.

[Groundhogday]

Originally Posted by trevdv

Really? You really believe that playing a conference team week one brings just as much excitement and intensity to players' mentalities as week eight conference games, when you can better see what you need to do in order to go to Indianapolis for the championship game? How can players play with the same intensity, when they don't know what they're playing for? They don't know what's on the line in the Big Ten standings when it's week one!!

Apparently you have never seen a week one SEC game.

[KnoxIllini2]

The date of a B1G game should not matter. Arguably a Week One conference game would be more valuable than a cupcake, for instance what if we were playing a rival school week one? Who would not be fired up for a season opening game against a conference rival? It's a jump start on the conference. Also with the talks of the 9 or 10 game conference slate games are going to happen earlier in the season nonetheless.