Michigan Wolverine Thursday: Big Ten Division is Starting to Leak

Two of the highest profile athletic directors in the Big Ten are starting to give us some insight into what the Big Ten Divisions are going to look like in 2011.  

Last week Michigan's AD (and former Domino's CEO) David Brandon mentioned on the radio that he would prefer Michigan and Ohio State to be in different divisions with the potential move of "The Game" from the last schedule spot in the year.

Now Barry Alvarez, the AD from Wisconsin, said that Iowa and Wisconsin will be in separate divisions and that the Big Ten Conference will move to a nine-game schedule in 2015. 

Here is my take: it's impossible to make everyone happy in this division, it's just not possible. 

Most concerning to me is the level of competition in the divisions.  Michigan cannot be expected to play high-profile games like Penn State, Nebraska, Ohio State, and Michigan State every year.  Throw in Notre Dame, and then this gets ridiculous.

The level of competition inside and outside the divisions has to be the No. 1 priority, in my mind.  Yes, you have to keep the rivalries, but Michigan can't be expected to play all the best teams or even most of the best teams every year.

I guess we will see how this one shakes out.

Michigan 2011 prospect Chris Bryant seems to have a good head on his shoulders:

"Definitely academics—that's one thing that stands out," replied Bryant when asked to describe his decision criteria. "My father always preached to me that you cannot play football forever, you need something to fall back on, so academics are going to stand real strong for me. Just kind of a powerhouse football, place known for football, a great college atmosphere for football, just very supportive and a good football team, great coaches. I want to go to a place that is known for football and academics at the same time."

Chris is planning to wait until signing day to make his decision known.   If he wants to be Blue, he may want to make his decision early with less than 20 spots available this year.