The OSU firing got me thinking about what the "best" jobs in the Big Ten were, and I think there might be more parity than in any other conference. I'd defer to insiders who know a lot more about what would go into the day-to-day for a coach, but I think I would look at the (non-Illinois) Big Ten jobs like this if I were a coach. Again, this is not a ranking of how "prestigious" each job is, it's how much I would be interested if I had my pick of the litter!
TIER ONE: I'm not leaving these jobs except for MAYBE a Blue Blood. Maybe not even then if I'm happy there and they give me a fat raise.
Michigan State: Good instate recruiting, recognizable brand, great fan support and yet more realistic expectations than Indiana even though they have every right to be greedier! Great spot, IMO.
Indiana: Hate to say it, but it's a great job. Disproportionate NIL money funded toward hoops, great instate recruiting (and a preference toward IU historically), good facilities (IIRC) and probably the best overall fan support through thick and thin in the Big Ten. Additionally, while they're still totally delusional, their fans seem to be BEGINNING to accept that they cannot afford to have Blue Blood expectations anymore, at least with a new coach.
Wisconsin: Very underrated, IMO. Cool campus in a cool town with good facilities, great recent history, better instate recruiting than one might think (and only competition from Marquette for fan interest, in Milwaukee only). Additionally, their fans actually seem to be much more chill about results than even Illinois fans.
TIER TWO: These are my "sleeping giant" jobs, but there are at least some things about them that I might not like.
Ohio State: RELATIVELY low expectations at a place with a good history and tons of money. Great instate recruiting with minimal competition. Playing in that arena would suck, though. It also might get annoying being such a second fiddle program on that campus.
Rutgers: I really believe if someone like Scott Drew wound up at RU instead of Baylor, they'd be a powerhouse now. They're the Illini football of college basketball except with a better home court atmosphere and maybe even comparatively better instate recruiting. I'm willing to bet the facilities and NIL are a step behind, but fan interest is clearly there and you have a lot of potential to fundraise in that state.
TIER THREE: "Good jobs" on paper but something at each that might scare me away.
Purdue: Hot take, but Purdue's great success is a testament to the coaches they've had ... not the job. Meh facilities, tons of competition for instate talent, a smaller fan base due to that same reason, etc.
Maryland: Crazy-!!! fan base with crazy expectations that ALSO doesn't pack the house. Worst of both worlds on that front. I have also heard people say College Park is not attractive. Instate recruiting is pretty elite and good tradition, but I would see this as a "trap" job, haha.
Minnesota: Underrated overall but still just not a lot of history of winning.
Michigan
TIER FOUR: I'm honestly still unsure how I feel about it.
Nebraska: GREAT fan support compared to the historical success, an awesome arena, pretty low expectations and a lot of money in the athletic department ... but I have to question how easy it would be to recruit kids to Nebraska for hoops.
TIER FIVE: I'll probably pass.
Iowa: I have respect for Iowa's program historically, but I think this is a tough job. Bad instate recruiting (that you share with Iowa State), fairly crappy facilities, limited NIL disproportionately channeled toward football and completely erratic fan support (actually a great mirror to Illini football fans, IMO).
TIER SIX: Absolutely not.
Northwestern: Academic standards and crap fan support alone would make this one suck, at least for me.
Penn State: I used to apply at least some of the same "sleeping giant" logic to PSU that I did to Rutgers above, but man ... their support for this program is just awful. Additionally, I think they have the worst arena in the conference. While PSU football seems to "lock down its borders" for recruiting and fan interest much better, it seems love for PSU basketball is practically non-existent outside of Happy Valley (if it even exists there!). I am willing to bet there are a lot of bandwagoners in that state who do something like cheer for PSU in football and Villanova in hoops, and it would be hard to get them on board.
What could have been, indeed.
