For a 10th and final football season, the Big Ten will be split into East and West divisions. Seven teams in one, seven in the other. If we didn’t know better, we’d call it a 50-50 split.
But the geographical alignment of the conference has, unintendedly, led to about as much balance as a seesaw with a right tackle on one end and a placekicker on the other. Michigan’s 21-point victory last season against Purdue in Indianapolis gave the East a 9-0 record in the league title game, an event that has become little more than a formality. Had there been a 12-team playoff in 2022 under the expanded format that takes hold in 2024, three East beasts — Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State — would have been in the field, with the West far outside the picture. Michigan, Ohio State and Penn State all are likely to be in the preseason top 10 this year, with no team from the West even close to that range.
