New Conference Divisions and Championship Game Locations

Earlier in the summer, there was excessive talk of the realigning of conferences in College Football. Many analysts and websites were predicting a massive migration of teams to different conferences. Some even had six Big 12 teams, including Texas and Oklahoma, heading to the Pac-10.

As I predicted here on this site, the changes would be minimal. The only major defections ended up being:
-Nebraska to the Big 10
-Colorado and Utah to the Pac-10
-Boise State to the MWC

Now that the minor dust has settled, let’s assess what this means for those conferences that made a change.
The changes will take effect starting with the 2011 football season. The Pac-10 and Big Ten (now each having 12 teams) have aligned themselves to finally have much desired Conference Championship games. In order to do that, both conferences will have to break their schools into two 6-team divisions (like the ACC and SEC have done) and then a Conference Championship venue must be picked.

Here, I take a crack at predicting those things.

Let’s start with the Big Ten. Here is how I see the conference divisions shaping up:

East
Ohio State
Penn State
Michigan
Michigan State
Indiana
Purdue

West
Nebraska
Wisconsin
Iowa
Minnesota
Northwestern
Illinois

The Midwest is filled with possible venues to host a Big Ten Championship game. Here is a Top 5 list as to where I see the Big Ten staging this contest:

1. Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis) - This is the premier facility in the Midwest. Newly opened in 2008 it provides the perfect indoor venue for a December football game. Capacity = 63,000

2. Ford Field (Detroit) - Another high-quality indoor facility. Opened in 2002, this field has already hosted a Super Bowl, so it knows how to handle a high-profile event. Capacity = 65,000

3. MetroDome (Minneapolis) - Although further west than the others on this list, the Metrodome provides protection from the harsh winter weather and also was newly refurbished this year with Sportexe (a new and improved field turf). Capacity = 64,111

4. Soldier Field (Chicago) - Probably the best city (Chicago) of the bunch, Soldier Field was newly reopened after massive overhauls in 2003. The weather might be an issue, but Big Ten players can handle the cold. Capacity = 61,500

5. Paul Brown Stadium (Cincinnati) - Opened in 2000, Cincy provides a nice central location with new facilities. Capacity = 65,500

On to the Pac-10. Here’s how I see the divisions forming:

South
USC
UCLA
Utah
Arizona
Arizona State
Colorado

North
Oregon
Oregon State
Stanford
California
Washington
Washington State

Like the Big Ten, the Pac-10 will have no trouble finding stadiums and cities that want to host the Conference Championship game. Here is a Top 5 list as to where I see the Pac-10 having the game:

1. University of Phoenix Stadium (Glendale, AZ) - A State of the art facility that was opened in 2006. It hosts the annual Fiesta Bowl, Arizona Cardinals, and has hosted a Super Bowl. Its retractable roof provides protection from the weather. Capacity = 63,000

2. Qualcomm Stadium (San Diego) - Although it’s not new, the stadium is still up to the task of hosting a Championship game. The mild San Diego weather is also an enticing factor. Capacity = 71,294

3. Rose Bowl (Pasadena) - Not much needs to be said about this classic venue. It would provide a perfect setting for the Pac-10 title game, with the winner getting to return for the Rose Bowl in January. Capacity = 90,000

4. Oakland-Alameda County Stadium (Oakland) - A solid stadium which had its last renovations in 1996. The centrality of location makes this venue a good choice. Capacity = 63,026

5. Qwest Field (Seattle) - A beautiful new stadium nestled in the Northwest, Qwest Field provides a beautiful setting for a West Coast Championship game. However, the poor Seattle weather in December may knock this venue out of the running. Capacity = 72,000

It will be interesting to see how it all turns out. Stay tuned.