Thankfully, the Big Ten Conference decided not to change the conferences name upon the new addition of its 12th member, Nebraska. With the release of the new division conference names – Legends and Leaders – and new Big Ten logo, one can only imagine some of the names that would have been tossed around that meeting. There might have been quite a bit of smoke blowing in that one.
How about The Best of the Best Conference (BBC)? Acronym taken? Dang. Alright, what about America’s Main Conference (AMC)? Acronym taken again, and too close to Conference-USA? OK, then Legends and Leaders for our division names and keep The Big Ten.
Somehow, it stuck. Like someone had pulled the fire alarm, the meeting was adjourned at Legends and Leaders. It may be the only explanation for a league obsessed with its Big Ten name and the tradition of its members. Quick, name the Legends that have played for Northwestern or Minnesota. Take your time, any sport. Now name the leaders who will quickly take Indiana and Purdue to new heights. Again, take your time.
If you’re still thinking, you’re not alone. Most of the legends can’t be named this side of the century, while the leaders for the other division are too far in sight to see.
The Legends division is made up of – Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska and Northwestern. The Leaders division is compiled of Illinois, Indiana, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue and Wisconsin.
If you’re thinking the division names are confusing. Try figuring out the new Big Ten logo (above). It actually can’t even be spoken in the English, or any other language, because it’s not a word. It’s really not even a cleaver ‘numbers in words’ logo. The name is seemingly the same, but the I in Big has been changed to a 1. Yes, the number one. Get this why, the 1-and-G are meant to signify a 10. But the league has 12 TEAMS! Completely ignoring, not only the addition of Penn State, its 11th member, but Nebraska as well.
The logo has the creativity of a Lindsay Lohan arts and crafts drawing from rehab and begs the question: What kind of art students are being produced in the conference’s schools?
It seems as if a simple North-South or East-West division might have done just fine. But five conferences already own North-South and East-West division names. Stepping out of the box is OK. The ACC, in my opinion, hit a home run with the Coastal and the Atlantic. The Big Ten could have done the same with the Great Lakes and the Plains.
Apparently, they came up with those. ESPN Big Ten Blogger Adam Rittenberg asked Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany about it.
“Well, we thought that those were not compelling. Like Coastal and Atlantic [in the ACC], you've got people in the mountains that are coastal. We've got schools and how do you tie them in?”
Will someone please tell Delany the names don’t need to be geographically perfect. Someone please tell Delany his conference name is the Big Ten with 12 schools. Even though that fact is getting old, let’s have him explain it.
I've got a solution, though. Take Iowa and Nebraska from the Legends division, replace them with Penn State and Wisconsin from the Leaders. Now you’ve got your Great Lakes and Plains and the level of competition is still equal, and travel costs are actually lower. Wow.
That might have been something to consider before the divisions were set. Now take those divisions – Great Lakes and Plains – stick them in The Big NORTH Conference, and your set. For color, throw in little blue for the lakes, a little prairie yellow for the plains. Done. It took me just two minutes. I’ll be expecting my check in the mail. Or do I pick it up?
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