Teams
Forum List
Toggle sidebar

Divisions or Protected Rivalries?

If we do end up with Divisions, we need to drop to 8 + 4 for sure.

The best option to me seems to be 2 divisions of 6. Where you play your 5 division games every year, and then 3 of the 6 from the other division every other year.

North:
Cincinnati
West Virginia
Iowa St
BYU
Kansas St
Kansas

South:
Baylor
Oklahoma St
Houston
TCU
Texas Tech
UCF
 
Al_4_State said:
I don't think they care about what Texas schools they play, just that they play there.
Click to expand...
If you CAN play a football game in the Metroplex every other year...you DO play a game in the Metroplex every other year.
 
No divisions. Best 2 records play in the championship. Will need good tie breaker rules.

Each team has 2 protected games in a similar regional group.
UCF-Cin-WVU yearly games together.
ISU-KU-KSU
BYU-TCU-BU
OSU-TTU-Houston

7(or 6) other conf games are against non-protected teams which will help with more balanced schedules within conference vs if there were divisions & mean each team will play the other teams more often. A team would go like 1 or 2 years not playing a regular season game against a conf opponent at worst. Not like missing a team for 8-10 years like SEC teams in separate divisions.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Hoggins
I would hate to see us go North/South and box all the Texas schools together again. I can't see that going well. The conference is so spread out I feel like that gives those teams an advantage (at least the Texas schools and OSU).

No divisions, 2 protected rivalry games each. Somehow I'd love to ensure we could play the Big 8 schools every year, as well. Losing the home and home series in basketball really sucks.
 
I like pods. I would HATE divisions as Southern schools would dominate the Northern schools in Football

N) ISU, KSU, KU
W) BYU, TCU, BU (Religion pod would be great, also splits 4 TX schools across 2 pods)
S) OSU, Tech, UH
E) CIN, WV, UCF

North is weakest in football over the last 20 years but best in basketball.

Football protected pod games. Play 2 rotating pods every year (Every team plays at least 1 game in Texas every year) 8 conference games. Mandate 2 non-con games against a B1G, SEC, ACC, and PAC team (Made for TV). Everyone plays 1 game in Florida every 4 years. Final regular season week is inter-conference playoffs. #1 North against #1 West and so on. #1 winners go to the CCG. Trade off home games every other year among pods.

Basketball protected H&H against your pod. Play everyone in the conference once. Play H&H against 2 rotating pods. Every team get at least 1 game in Texas every year. Everyone plays 1 game in Florida every 4 years. 19 conference game slate is a +1 addition from the old format.
 
Last edited:
Do we continue playing conference championship in Dallas or do we move it to arrowhead or Florida?
 
Kinch said:
Do we continue playing conference championship in Dallas or do we move it to arrowhead or Florida?
Click to expand...
Florida makes no sense to me but I’m all for Arrowhead.

What’s our current contract with Jerryworld like?
 
Didley said:
If we do end up with Divisions, we need to drop to 8 + 4 for sure.

The best option to me seems to be 2 divisions of 6. Where you play your 5 division games every year, and then 3 of the 6 from the other division every other year.

North:
Cincinnati
West Virginia
Iowa St
BYU
Kansas St
Kansas

South:
Baylor
Oklahoma St
Houston
TCU
Texas Tech
UCF
Click to expand...

CyclonesForever said:
Iowa State has been playing a home and home with K-State for over 100 straight seasons without ever missing a game. I will be so unbelievably pissed if that game stops being an annual game. I want to keep playing our old big 8 conference mates every year since we've been together since forever and are the core around which the big 12 was created. As long as Kansas and K-State are preserved (Oklahoma State too ideally), I'll be happy.

But if we do go to divisions, I'd like it to be:
North:
BYU
Kansas
K-State
Iowa State
Cincinnati
West Virginia

South:
Oklahoma State
Texas Tech
TCU
Baylor
Houston
UCF
Click to expand...
I keep seeing this split, but the more logical, at least to me, is if you swapped UCF and BYU. Why have a division span 3 time zones. Also, one division already has the Texas recruiting advantage, give the other Ohio and Florida for recruiting leverage, probably does not really matter but its better than Utah...
 
Al_4_State said:
I don't think they care about what Texas schools they play, just that they play there.
Click to expand...
As the other guy said, I think the metroplex is important to them. They recruit the **** out of Texas.
 
cyfan92 said:
I like pods. I would HATE divisions as Southern schools would dominate the Northern schools in Football

N) ISU, KSU, KU
W) BYU, TCU, BU (Religion pod would be great, also splits 4 TX schools across 2 pods)
S) OSU, Tech, UH
E) CIN, WV, UCF

North is weakest in football over the last 20 years but best in basketball.

Football protected pod games. Play 2 rotating pods every year (Every team plays at least 1 game in Texas every year) 8 conference games. Mandate 2 non-con games against a B1G, SEC, ACC, and PAC team (Made for TV). Everyone plays 1 game in Florida every 4 years. Final regular season week is inter-conference playoffs. #1 North against #1 West and so on. #1 winners go to the CCG. Trade off home games every other year among pods.

Basketball protected H&H against your pod. Play everyone in the conference once. Play H&H against 2 rotating pods. Every team get at least 1 game in Texas every year. Everyone plays 1 game in Florida every 4 years. 19 conference game slate is a +1 addition from the old format.
Click to expand...

2025 example for Iowa State

SD
Iowa
Ark St
@BYU
@KU
TCU
@OSU
BU
@TT
Houston
KSU
@ #1 team from East pod
Big 12 CCG
Sugar Bowl
 
People griping about unbalanced divisions... that's a feature, not a bug. Look how the B1G east and SEC west have feasted on it.

Your best team does NOT have to play the 2nd best team most years and risk a damaging defeat. They play a good (not great) team from the other side, which pads the resume and helps them get to the CFP. In a 4 team CFP that is a big deal. If it goes to 8 or 12 it's probably less important, but it also might help you get a 2nd team in if your #2 from the strong division doesn't have that extra loss from the CCG.

Does 2015 Michigan St make the CFP if they have to play #3 Ohio State a second time, instead of "fake ID" Iowa??

If not 2 divisions, then @ElephantPie idea isn't bad - a couple protected rivalries and then rotate the rest, playing 6 of 9 every year. That way you play everyone 2 out of 3 years. Just a high risk of a repeat CCG, and that is not ideal imho. That's essentially pods by another name; 2 protected rivalries is 4 pods of 3 (@vyfan); 3 protected rivalries is 3 pods of 4.
 
  • Like
Reactions: cycfan1
cyIclSoneU said:
Just stick the red/blue and yellow/green pods together for divisions. The Texas schools and OSU would want that anyway and the pods add almost zero value above divisions.
Click to expand...
I put together the examples to show what the scheduling rotation would look like from an ISU perspective.

In the division format with 8 conference games (Pre 2011 format) we play every team in the division every year, then will play every team in the other division 3 times over a 6 year period. The division format with a 9 game conference schedule would allow us to play each team in the other division 4 times in a 6 year period.

In the Pods (protected rivalry) format, the 8 game conference schedule allows for playing every team outside our pod 4 times over 6 years. And with the 9 game conference schedule we play every team outside the pod 7 times over 9 years.

Either way, the pods system allows for more variety in the schedule from year to year, while avoiding the Strong Division/Weak Division pitfalls that we see with the B1G West and the ACC Coastal, and that we used to see with the old Big 12 North.

Divisions w/ 8 game conference schedule:
Div 8 game.png

Divisions w/ 9 game conference schedule:
Div 9 game.png

Pods w/ 8 game conference schedule:
Pod 8 game.png

Pods w/ 9 game conference schedule:
Pod 9 game.png
 
  • Like
Reactions: Cyclone27inQC
CascadeClone said:
People griping about unbalanced divisions... that's a feature, not a bug. Look how the B1G east and SEC west have feasted on it.

Your best team does NOT have to play the 2nd best team most years and risk a damaging defeat. They play a good (not great) team from the other side, which pads the resume and helps them get to the CFP. In a 4 team CFP that is a big deal. If it goes to 8 or 12 it's probably less important, but it also might help you get a 2nd team in if your #2 from the strong division doesn't have that extra loss from the CCG.

Does 2015 Michigan St make the CFP if they have to play #3 Ohio State a second time, instead of "fake ID" Iowa??
Click to expand...
Sparty either beats Ohio State and makes the playoff anyway, or loses and Ohio State is in the Playoff. Either outcome is fine for the B1G.
 
You can do both easily
Traditional Big 8 Division
ISU
KSU
KU
OSU
OU

Traditional SWC Division
TCU
TT
Houston
Baylor
Texas

Let the Red River happen the remaining two years they're around.

Leaves
WV - the least long term rivals
BYU UCF - Just need to split them
Cincy

If you'd give me those upper, I'm fine with whatever you do below
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Help Support Us

Become a patron
Top Bottom