CHAMPAIGN — Big Ten football teams have no say in their conference schedules.
They get what they get. Will it be unfair to some? Probably. Feel free to shop for another league with a better TV deal. Actually, no such animal exists except for the SEC, and they aren’t going there.
But the Big Ten teams do have control about who they play in the nonconference schedule. More accurately, whoever was athletic director and/or coach four or five years ago had control.
These deals are made many years in advance, a practice that can leave a team caught with a bad matchup. When Illinois decided to play a home-and-home with Kansas in 2014, it had no idea the Jayhawks would turn into a Top 25 team with playoff aspirations Lesson learned.
The Big Ten TV partners want intriguing games each week, so if they had their say, it would be Ohio State-Alabama going at it every Saturday. A financial component comes into play with nonconference scheduling. A power like Ohio State makes more money with a home game against a MAC team than it does with a home-and-home against an SEC or ACC opponent. And the school needs the money to take care of the oversized budgets.
The Buckeyes have traditionally been willing to test themselves against nonconference powers. But not this year. One of the preseason national title favorites, Ohio State is going soft in the nonconference. Let’s see how that works out when the College Football Playoff selection committee sets the bracket. Playing three ho-hummers last year didn’t hurt national champion Michigan, so maybe that is the way to go.
Which Big Ten team is taking on the biggest challenges in 2024? And which have decided easy wins are most important? Here’s how I see it four months before the openers in late August:
1. UCLA. New coach (DeShaun Foster), new conference and a nasty trio of nonconference games. The Bruins start at Hawaii (fun trip if you like that kind of thing), then go to LSU (one of the toughest buildings in the country). They also host Fresno State, which is coming off a nine-win season and wants nothing more than to knock off the former Pac-12 school.
2. Southern California. Nice to see the newcomers loading up before they head east. Awesome opener for Lincoln Riley on Labor Day weekend against LSU in Las Vegas. Note the Trojans, unlike their crosstown rivals in Westwood, didn’t agree to a game in Baton Rouge, La. Smart. A home game against Utah State won’t be a pushover. And the Trojans close at home against Top-10 team Notre Dame. Fun.
3. Michigan. New coach Sherrone Moore won’t say anything bad about old boss Jim Harbaugh, but he left him with a tricky debut schedule. The doozy is the second game at home against Texas. The Longhorns are receiving plenty of buzz as a potential preseason No. 1. Dangerous Fresno State also visits the Big House, along with Arkansas State. Apparently, the Wolverines never play road games in the nonconference schedule.
4. Wisconsin. The Badgers are high on the list for one reason: the Sept. 14 home game against Alabama. They caught a bit of a break because the Crimson Tide lost Nick Saban to ESPN after last season. If he is still coaching, the team is probably preseason No. 1 and Wisconsin is a huge underdog. With Kalen DeBoer in charge, Alabama will still be good. But not THAT good. Western Michigan and South Dakota lead up to the Crimson Tide visiting Madison.
5. Purdue. Second-year coach Ryan Walters might have preferred this set after he had established his program. Not only do the Boilermakers host Notre Dame, they also make the long trip west to play at Oregon State. Yikes. At least the opener against Indiana State seems easy.
6. Oregon. Most bitter game during the 2024 season? Easy answer: Oregon at Oregon State on Sept. 14. Call the home team the Angry Beavers. They were abandoned by their state rival and their coach fled to Michigan State. Reser Stadium is going to be loud. Oregon hosts Idaho and Boise State.
7. Washington. Like Oregon, the Huskies face an unhappy former Pac-12 rival, Washington State in Seattle. Just at Lumen Stadium, home of the Seahawks. Before then, Weber State and Eastern Michigan visit gorgeous Husky Stadium.
8. Minnesota. Is it just me or does it seem like P.J. Fleck is heading toward a crisis point? Beat North Carolina in the opener at home and the warm seat cools a bit. Winnable home games against Rhode Island and Nevada follow.
9. Illinois. The Sept. 7 home game against Kansas could be a season-turner for Bret Bielema’s team. Beat the likely ranked Jayhawks and Illinois has the potential for a fast start in what it hopes will be a bounce-back year. Eastern Illinois visits for a Thursday night opener on Aug. 29, with Central Michigan stopping by on Sept. 14.
10. Penn State. James Franklin doesn’t have to worry about Ohio State and Michigan every year. He should be fretting about the opener at West Virginia, which is coming off a nine-win season. Home games against Bowling Green and Kent State aren’t so bad.
11. Ohio State. A year after playing at Notre Dame, the Buckeyes are backing off with sure home wins against Akron, Western Michigan and Marshall. Those three schools went a combined 12-25 in 2023.
12. Iowa. Tim Lester and the offense won’t get much of a test in the nonconference slate. Rival Iowa State visits Kinnick Stadium in the second week. The Hawkeyes need to be ready for the third game against Troy, which is coming off an 11-win season, after opening with Illinois State.
13. Nebraska. If the Cornhuskers hope to turn their stuck-in-the-mud program around, the home game against Deion Sanders and Colorado is crucial. Matt Rhule just missed a bowl in his first season and expectations are lifted in Lincoln. UTEP and Northern Iowa also stop by Memorial Stadium.
14. Northwestern. Not sure where the Wildcats will be playing its three home nonconference games against Miami (Ohio), Duke and Eastern Illinois. But I do know they are happy that Mike Elko has moved on from the Blue Devils to Texas A&M.
15. Rutgers. Greg Schiano seems to have the Scarlet Knights moving in the right direction, winning seven games. Beat host Virginia Tech in the third game and more fans will jump on the bandwagon after Rutgers hosts Howard and Akron in its first two games.
16. Michigan State. Nice for new coach Jonathan Smith to ease into the Big Ten with a friendly nonconference slate. The only challenge is a Sept. 21 game at Boston College after Florida Atlantic and Prairie View A&M stop by Spartan Stadium.
17. Maryland. Mike Locksley has the Terrapins winning consistently. That is a lot easier when you pick up three nonconference wins. Good time to play at Virginia, which went 3-9 season, along with home dates with Connecticut and Villanova.
18. Indiana. If first-year coach Curt Cignetti doesn’t beat Florida International, Western Illinois and Charlotte, then he might be on the hot seat. Charlotte and FIU went a combined 7-17 last season, while Western Illinois was 0-11.
