Badger Bits: Could Nebraska unseat Minnesota as UW's biggest rival?
by Adam Hoge on Jun 15, 2010 1:13 PM CDT
in Badger Bits
Email
PrintAs we reported Saturday, Bret Bielema is already petitioning the Big Ten for a yearly trophy game with Nebraska that would be played on the last week of the season.
At least one person doesn't think that's a good idea.
Madison.com's Andy Baggot thinks Wisconsin should be playing Minnesota, not Nebraska, on the last day of the regular season. I couldn't disagree more.
Baggot says the history of the Border Battle should take precedence, but to me, the prospect of an extremely competitive annual battle between two of the Big Ten's best teams on the last day of the regular season is much more attractive than the beating UW has put on Minnesota for the last six years.
Sure, rivalries are cyclical and I'm sure the Gophers will get their wins over UW at some point, but we're talking about national exposure here. The reason why Wisconsin has only been on the verge of the national spotlight for the last decade is because they hardly play any sexy games and they have a bad habit of finishing second, third or fourth in the Big Ten and missing out on the BCS party.
Nebraska is in the national spotlight whether the Cornhuskers are good or bad. That's why their coaching searches and rebuilding under Bo Pelini have been in the headlines for years. Wisconsin has a chance to book an annual battle with Nebraska that will be featured in ESPN's "Rivalry Week" every single season. And if the Big Ten is split into West and East divisions, it will be Nebraska -- not Minnesota -- that the Badgers will be battling with for a spot in the Big Ten Championship Game.
Wisconsin-Nebraska gives you a chance to be relevant at the end of every regular season. Wisconsin-Minnesota does not.
Here's another guy I don't agree with: Don Cunningham of the Fremont Tribune. Cunningham doesn't like Nebraska's move to the Big Ten, which is okay (the other day I pointed out several reasons why Nebraskans might not like the move), but his reasons don't make a whole lot of sense. Instead of making an argument, he pretty much sounds like an angry fan. What the hell is the Fremont Tribune anyway?
I'll allow Boiled Sports to make the counterargument against Cunningham because I'm pretty sure no one else could do a better job than they did.
I will, however, bring up Cunningham's one mention of Wisconsin because it's a huge stretch:
"A road trip to Madison just isn't the same as one to Columbia."
Yes, he's talking about the town you think he is talking about -- Columbia, Missouri -- and yes, he really did just compare it to Madison, Wis. which has repeatedly been named as one of the best college towns in the country.
I have a unique perspective with this crazy statement because I turned down a scholarship to attend the University of Missouri's Journalism School and instead went to Wisconsin because Madison had one of the most unbelievable football atmospheres I had ever seen while Columbia had... well, it had a good journalism school.
What's the new logo going to look like? It's a good question. There has to be a new logo because if the name "Big Ten" doesn't make any sense for a team with 12 teams, then a logo that says "Big Ten" with a No. 11 in it really doesn't make any sense.
Anyway, this guy is already working on it.
17 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
*Raises Hand*
Ummm, doesn’t Minnesota already play a rivalry gameat the end of the year anyway? Granted Minnesota might like it more and Iowa may like to switch but 1) who cares what Minnesota thinks and 2) I think Iowa fans would miss kicking the Gophers around the last week of the season more than they would enjoy playing Nebraska or Penn State.
I think if Nebraska isn’t playing Wisconsin the last week of the season they are playing us, and as interesting a game as that might be I would prefer if we played Minnesota.
http://victorypolka.blogspot.com/
I think the poll on BHGP disagrees with you
The Hawkeye faithful want to play Nebraska. Wisco and Minne putting the longest rivalry in football at the end of the season is hardly settlilng. Wisco and Nebraska makes zero sense.
by HawkeyeInExile on Jun 16, 2010 9:51 AM CDT up reply actions
Well it might not make sense to you...
But Barry Alvarez played at Nebraska and played a huge part in Nebraska joining the Big Ten. Whether or not the fans feel like there is a connection between Wisconsin and Nebraska, the athletic departments are VERY connected and that’s what counts in these kind of situations.
Bucky's 5th Quarter. SB Nation's Wisconsin Badgers community.
I’m biased for an Iowa-Nebraska season ending rivalry because I have relatives who are Huskers.
But that’s the best argument for why Iowa and Nebraska makes more sense. There are thousands of people, especially in Western Iowa, that have connections to both schools. It’s a solid border rivalry with 41 games total, and even if most of those games were before 1980, I can’t tell you how often I’ve had to listen to Huskers talk trash about how they’d crush us if they’d play us. This rivalry would pick up a lot of steam really quickly.
And I know Alvarez went there, but big deal. One person having a connection to a school isn’t enough to trump thousands having a connection to a school even if that person is one of the people making the decisions. Our AD Gary Barta played for North Dakota State. Should we have a rivalry with them?
I was recently surprised to find out that the longest rivalry in football is Wisco and Minnesota. Shouldn’t you guys be advocating for a return of that game to the season ending spot?
by HawkeyeInExile on Jun 16, 2010 6:15 PM CDT up reply actions
I agree that Iowa-Nebraska makes more sense than Wisconsin-Nebraska. I’m just saying that based on the situation, it wouldn’t surprise me if Wisconsin-Nebraska happens. And I’m not just throwing Alvarez’s name out there because he went to Nebraska. He was Delaney’s second-hand man in getting Nebraska to the Big Ten and if he wants the rivalry to happen, it’s likely Delaney will sign off on it.
As for Wisconsin-Minnesota, I outlined my thoughts on that overrated series in the blog post above.
Bucky's 5th Quarter. SB Nation's Wisconsin Badgers community.
I don't see UW in that game
If the league is not going to go with a final week battle of the big boys (NE vs. PA ST) to pair with MI-OH ST as the ultimate double feature, I don’t see how they wouldn’t go with the NE-IA border battle.
It’s fair to says IA’s stature is equal to WI’s in the eyes of the nation, so why would they bother for what looks like a wash when it comes to a final opponent for NE.
Iowa fans clearly want NE for that game too.
Also on divisions
There is no way the league is going to put 3 of the big 4 in the same division, as most Badgers are assuming.
The ratings of a champ game will be highest if 2 of the elites are in there, so they are going to do all the can to maximize the chance for that to happen.
That means 2 elites per division, however they arrange it.
No chance MI and OH ST and PA ST are all on the same side of the bracket.
Actually that is probably not the case.
Teams in the same division will always play each other every season, while the teams in the other division will be rotated on and off the schedule. Because of this, some protected rivalries will have to be broken up. There’s no way Michigan-Ohio State and Ohio State-Penn State will be broken up because those are games that have to played every season. That means they will likely all be in the same division. The same thing can be said for Wisconsin-Iowa, Wisconsin-Minnesota and Iowa-Minnesota.
And right now, one could make a strong argument that Nebraska, Wisconsin and Iowa are stronger together than Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State. The divisions would be more evenly matched this way than they were in the Big 12.
Bucky's 5th Quarter. SB Nation's Wisconsin Badgers community.
Ohio State, Penn State, and Michigan fans don't like to admit it
But Iowa and Wisconsin are establishing themselves as powers in the Big Ten.
The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. ~ Terence Mann
by John Veldhuis on Jun 15, 2010 6:24 PM CDT up reply actions
That Fremont Tribune column is just straight-up idiocy.
Or, as Boiled Sports put it, “lazy, pathetic writing.” Without a doubt the dumbest thing I’ve read about conference realignment. The Fremont Tribune, by the way, is the daily paper here.
I followed the links (unfortunately)
Besides what self-respecting school would stoop so low as to restructure their official name to get their nickname?
And this part just proves the guy did no research; The Illini are Native Americans, not a “restructuring” of the school’s name.
One final, open question: What self-respecting Nebraska fan would want to go back to a conference that absolutely screwed them over in their most recent title shot?
by OBrienSchofieldismyHero on Jun 15, 2010 4:14 PM CDT up reply actions
+1
The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. ~ Terence Mann
by John Veldhuis on Jun 15, 2010 6:25 PM CDT up reply actions
.01%
That’s the first person in Nebraska that I’ve heard who has a negative view of joining the Big 10. I wouldn’t put too much into his opinion since he’s probably in the .01% of Nebraska fans who don’t like the move.
I’ve read a lot about how the divisions could/should be set up over the last few days. I think it’s fairly safe to say that Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Nebraska will be in the same division. Who the other two teams will be remains to be seen. Any combination of Penn State, Illinois and Northwestern (the most popular ideas) will provide enough competitive balance to earn the division winner a place in the conference title game.
And this Nebraska fan has been to Madison (NCAA womens volleyball final four in 1997 or 98). Beautiful city. Can’t wait to visit it again.
Hey guys don't worry about ole' Don...
…as he wouldn’t be able to ‘go’ with us to the Big Ten even if he wanted to. We keep him in a basement somewhere in Fremont. His opinions are completely worthless, as I’m sure you could figure out on your own. My favorite was at the bottom of his article they say ‘Don is a frequent contributor to the Fremont Tribune’. I’d like to check the archives for some of his other gems.
"A road trip to Madison just isn't the same as one to Columbia."
Really, Don? It’s a longer drive, different roads, different city and a better football game. Don’s corn has become fermented.
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recent FanPosts
Badgers Football Schedule
| UNLV | Thu 09/01 | W 51 - 17 |
Oregon St.
|
Sat 09/10 | W 35 - 0 |
|
@
Northern Illinois
|
Sat 09/17 | W 49 - 7 |
| South Dakota Coyotes | Sat 09/24 | W 59 - 10 |
|
Nebraska
|
Sat 10/01 | W 48 - 17 |
|
Indiana
|
Sat 10/15 | W 59 - 7 |
|
@
Michigan St.
|
Sat 10/22 | L 31 - 37 |
|
@
Ohio St.
|
Sat 10/29 | L 29 - 33 |
|
Purdue
|
Sat 11/05 | W 62 - 17 |
|
@
Minnesota
|
Sat 11/12 | W 42 - 13 |
|
@
Illinois
|
Sat 11/19 | W 28 - 17 |
|
Penn St.
|
Sat 11/26 | W 45 - 7 |
|
@
Michigan St.
|
Sat 12/03 | W 42 - 39 |
|
@
Oregon
|
Mon 01/02 | L 38 - 45 |
Certain photos copyright © 2012 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
