Big Ten Reportedly Discussing Eliminating Divisions for 2024 CFB Season

The Big Ten conference is set to welcome USC and UCLA as new members starting with the 2024-25 season, but more changes could be coming that year.

ESPN's Adam Rittenberg reports that the Big Ten is considering eliminating divisions from the conference in 2024.

The Big Ten has been divided into the East and West Divisions since 2014. The East Division consists of Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, Penn State and Rutgers, while the West Division is made up of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern, Purdue and Wisconsin.

When the Big Ten announced its new media rights deals last year, Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith said in August the conference had discussed getting rid of divisions, but nothing was solidified at that time. The Athletic's Scott Dochterman reported in February that the notion had also been discussed during the winter meetings, and "a general consensus [is] divisions will go away in 2024 but nothing is finalized."

Under the current format, the East Division has been dominant on the college football field, winning each of the last nine conference championship games. Ohio State leads the way with five conference championships, followed by Michigan with the last two and Penn State and Michigan State each having one apiece.

If divisions were eliminated, the Big Ten would follow suit with other Power Five conferences like the Big 12 and the Pac-12, who send the two teams with the best records to the conference championship game.