Big Ten divisions taking shape

Alvarez said that Big Ten officials and athletic directors have been analyzing "everything - overall record, conference record, opponents, opponents' records, BCS ratings, Sagarin ratings" in an effort to achieve what commissioner Jim Delany calls "competitive fairness."

That's the first criteria the Big Ten will use. Second is preserving rivalries. Third is geography, though Delany did acknowledge travel concerns at Big Ten media days.

Teddy Greenstein