So long, Big 12. Nebraskaâ??s membership in the Big Ten Conference is official.The Big Tenâ??s board of presidents and chancellors unanimously welcomed Nebraska to the club on Friday, just a few hours after the school formally disclosed its interest. The move takes effect July 1, 2011. Nebraska chancellor Harvey Perlman said the Big Ten offers stability “that the Big 12 simply cannot offer.”
I recently officiated my brotherâ??s wedding, and so Iâ??ve had marriage on the brain, and the union between the Big Ten and Nebraska seemed like an obvious happy marriage to me.
With Nebraskaâ??s move to the Big Ten, the Big 12 on the brink of irrelevancy, if not destruction.
Pac-10 commissioner Larry Scott went on a come-join-us mission across Texas and Oklahoma over the weekend, a trip that could officially doom the Big 12 and set in motion another round of conference jumping. The conference tilt-a-whirl that started with Coloradoâ??s defection to the Pac-10 last week. The conference jumble started in December, when the Big Ten said it was looking at expansion. Nebraska and Missouri indicated theyâ??d be interested in switching allegiances and were given a leave-or-stay deadline of last Friday by the Big 12.Nebraska left, breaking ties with Big 12 schools that dated, in some cases, to the 1890s. The Cornhuskers will join the Big Ten in 2011.
Wisconsin football coach Bret Bielema wasnâ??t too chatty when asked to comment on Nebraskaâ??s impending move to the Big Ten Conference from the Big 12. â??Youâ??ve heard so much over the last two months you donâ??t know where everything is,â? Bielema said Thursday morning on the Lucas & Lepay radio show. â??Believe me, theyâ??re not asking football coaches (our) opinion on anything. Bielema did speak fondly of his two-year stint in the Big 12 (2002 and â??03) as an assistant coach at Kansas State.
Has your head stopped spinning yet? Barring a miracle, it appears as though Nebraska will be joining the Big Ten. Hereâ??s some early reaction and news.
Big Ten Conference Commissioner Jim Delany was beaming like a proud father after seeing Nebraska added as the leagueâ??s 12th school. “It is a historical day,” Delany said Friday in Lincoln, Neb., after a news conference to announce Nebraska was leaving the Big 12 for the Big Ten. “And itâ??s one that weâ??re all very proud of, welcoming Nebraska to the Big Ten family.”I think it is a phenomenal fit – academically, athletically and culturally.” The Big Tenâ??s Council of Presidents/Chancellors voted unanimously Friday to accept Nebraskaâ??s application. Nebraska is set to begin competition in the 2011-â??12 academic year, which means the 2011 football schedules already done must be revised.
Less than 24 hours before Nebraska officials were expected to announce the school would leave the Big 12 Conference and apply to join the Big Ten, expansion speculation reached dizzying heights. The most jarring moment came Thursday afternoon when KCTV News in Kansas City, Mo., reported that Big 12 members Texas and Texas A&M, thought to be headed to the Pacific 10, were exploring joining the Big Ten. Big Ten officials have declined to comment on any reports since commissioner Jim Delany said Sunday the leagueâ??s expansion could come in stages. Stage 1 appears to be the addition of Nebraska, which would give the Big Ten 12 teams and allow for a lucrative football championship game and divisional play.
Nebraska officials on Friday took the first step toward becoming the 12th team in the Big Ten Conference, perhaps as early as the 2011-â??12 academic year. The schoolâ??s Board of Regents voted unanimously for the school to leave the Big 12 and apply for admittance to the Big Ten.
No matter how big the Big Ten eventually becomes – the guess here is somewhere between 16 and 20 teams by the time it and the Pac-10 are done picking the Big 12â??s bones clean – it will always be called the Big Ten. Sentimentalists would call that tradition. Realists would call it marketing a familiar brand.
What, you thought just because it is the weekend no one is still reacting to the Big Ten adding Nebraska to expand to 12 teams? Think again.
Itâ??s been a fun few months speculating who will head to the Big Ten – and, hey, letâ??s be honest, it isnâ??t over yet – but we finally have one answer: Nebraska.And while we saw this coming a couple of days ago, hereâ??s some initial reaction to Fridayâ??s official announcement from around the Web.
UW-Madison chancellor Biddy Martin used the words “positive” and “enthusiastic” to describe a Friday afternoon conference call involving the 11 members of the Big Ten Conferenceâ??s Council of Presidents/Chancellors. The group was elated to welcome Nebraska as the leagueâ??s 12th member and showed it by voting unanimously to accept the Cornhuskersâ?? application for admittance into the Big Ten. “I think this is a great thing for the Big Ten,” Martin said. “I think it stabilizes things and enhances the league. I hope that our fans will feel great about it.”
The University of Wisconsin football program went 73 years between victories against Nebraska.Will the Badgers have to wait that long again to reprise one of their most memorable wins in Camp Randall Stadium history? And who will ultimately gain the bragging rights to being the Big Red in the Big Ten Conference? The Nebraska Big Red? Or, the Wisconsin Big Red?These questions can be raised Friday in light of the prospects of the Cornhuskers soon becoming the 12th member of the Big Ten. That, in turn, could lead to the imminent continuation of the series between UW and Nebraska.
Katie Smith has been promoted to director of compliance at the University of Wisconsin, where she will be charged with keeping the athletic department in line with NCAA rules and regulations.
The University of Wisconsin volleyball team scored a perfect 1,000 on the Academic Progress Rate for the 2008-09 academic year, one of three Division I programs in the state to achieve that lofty standard. A rating of 925 equates to a 50 percent graduation rate, which is calculated over a six-year period leading up to a given academic year, while a rating of 900 translates to a 40 percent graduation rate. Other UW programs with outstanding scores include womenâ??s golf at 993 and womenâ??s rowing at 991, which rank fifth and sixth on the list, respectively. Of the marquee sports at Wisconsin, womenâ??s basketball carried a 986, followed by womenâ??s hockey (983), football (968), menâ??s hockey (967) and menâ??s basketball (966).
University of Nebraska officials said Friday that they will apply for membership in the Big Ten Conference and expect to be accepted.Chancellor Harvey Perlman disclosed the plan during a meeting of the universityâ??s Board of Regents, proposing that play in the new conference begin in 2011 after one more year in the Big 12. He said he believed Nebraska is more “aligned” with the Big Ten when it comes to academics, culture and athletics.He also said the move offered stability “that the Big 12 simply cannot offer.”
Jack Bolas and Craig Miller earned All-America status by finishing fourth and seventh, respectively, in the 1,500-meter race at the NCAA outdoor track and field championships Saturday.
All three Madison products to skate for a Stanley Cup champion â?? a group that includes Gary Suter, Kevin Dean and now Adam Burish â?? played for Chicago during their NHL careers.
University of Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez had not given much thought to his alma mater, Nebraska, being an expansion candidate for the Big Ten prior to commissioner Jim Delany bringing up the topic during an informal discussion in January. “Itâ??s funny because it really hadnâ??t crossed my mind until Jim and I talked about it after the Rose Bowl,” said Alvarez, who was in Pasadena, Calif., to be inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame. “He asked me a lot of questions about Nebraska and whether I thought the school would be a fit.
Who will become Nebraskaâ??s top rival in the new Big Ten? Wisconsin is poised to make the first move.
The passionate fan base, storied football program and geographic proximity to the rest of the conference â?? all these factors helped make Nebraska an attractive candidate for the Big Tenâ??s expansion plans.
Despite what must be a whirlwind couple of days for both of them, as they announced Nebraska will join the Big Ten, chancellor Harvey Perlman and athletic director Tom Osborne took some time out of their busy weekend to speak with the Tribune about their decision to move Nebraska to the Big Ten.
Missouri curators will meet behind closed doors Sunday night for the fourth time in as many days as the school turns its attention to saving the Big 12 Conference after its apparent bid to join the Big Ten failed.
No matter how big the Big Ten eventually becomes – the guess here is somewhere between 16 and 20 teams by the time it and the Pac-10 are done picking the Big 12â??s bones clean – it will always be called the Big Ten.
Big Ten Conference Commissioner Jim Delany was beaming like a proud father after seeing Nebraska added as the leagueâ??s 12th school.
Nebraskaâ??s membership in the Big Ten Conference is official.
One question has been answered. Now there are countless others:Will the Big Ten stop at 12? Will Notre Dame finally cave and join Rutgers to form a 14-team conference? How long will Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany wait before closing the curtain on this expansion? Is it a certainty that a conference title game will be created?
The first ripple in a money-driven, potentially seismic shift in college sports came Thursday when the Pacific-10 Conference announced the University of Colorado will become its 11th member, beginning with the 2012-13 school year. The Big Ten Conference, which has had 11 members since Penn State joined in 1990, could be next with a major move. Regents at the University of Nebraskaâ?? which like Colorado has been a member of the Big 12 â?? could announce as early as Friday that the school is joining the 114-year-old league.
The two University of Wisconsin seniors qualified on Thursday for Saturday’s final in the 1,500 meters at the NCAA outdoor track and field championships in Eugene, Ore.
Pat Richter believes Nebraska — particularly its football program — will be a nice fit in the Big Ten Conference. The former University of Wisconsin athletic director also doesnâ??t think the Cornhuskers will be the final piece of the leagueâ??s expansion puzzle.
The University of Wisconsin football program went 73 years between victories against Nebraska. Will the Badgers have to wait that long again to reprise one of their most memorable wins in Camp Randall Stadium history? And who will ultimately gain the bragging rights to being the Big Red in the Big Ten Conference? The Nebraska Big Red? Or, the Wisconsin Big Red? These questions can be raised Friday in light of the prospects of the Cornhuskers soon becoming the 12th member of the Big Ten.
Less than 24 hours before Nebraska officials were expected to announce the school would leave the Big 12 Conference and apply to join the Big Ten, expansion speculation reached dizzying heights.
Pat Richter believes Nebraska — particularly its football program — will be a nice fit in the Big Ten Conference. The former University of Wisconsin athletic director also doesnâ??t think the Cornhuskers will be the final piece of the leagueâ??s expansion puzzle.
Before the other dominos start falling, before the race begins to see how far east the Pac-10 will grow, whether Texas will choose to save the Big 12 or put it to pasture, and whether the SEC or Big East will step in to claim the leftovers, we should really stop to pause and reflect on what is, by itself, a monumental moment in the history of college athletics.
Folks — Nebraska is about to join the freaking Big Ten.
For the majority of recreational sports participants, the season ends after the final game. But for the growing membership of various local LGBTQ lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer teams and leagues, the offseason is an opportunity to make Madison a more comfortable, welcoming and fun place to live.
The University of Wisconsin Athletic Department revoked the season ticket privileges of 22 patrons in 2009-10, the most since it instituted a behavorial policy at Camp Randall Stadium and the Kohl Center in 2006-07. All the revovations involved UW students, including 18 for football games, three for menâ??s hockey and one for menâ??s basketball.
Several media outlets are reporting that the Cornhuskers will accept an invitation to become the conference’s 12th member as early as Friday, as the Big 12 faces an uncertain future.
Itâ??s the Midwestâ??s unquestioned power conference, a collection of tradition-rich universities that jostle for position in the Top 25 and haul in staggering amounts of money. Oh, and the Big Ten plays decent football, too.
The Big Red will be joining the Big Ten. A source with intimate knowledge of the expansion talks told the Tribune on Wednesday that Nebraska will be invited to apply for Big Ten membership, a mere formality in the process. An announcement is expected Friday.
The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukeeâ??s menâ??s indoor track team will lose 1.26 scholarships because of poor academic performance, according to NCAA data released Wednesday.The team was the only team among the stateâ??s four Division I programs that received an immediate penalty for poor academic performance.
LINCOLN â?? An executive at a Big 12 school relayed to The World-Herald on Tuesday that he expects Nebraska to become a member of the Big Ten as early as Friday. NU Chancellor Harvey Perlman has declined all interviews about conference realignment and expansion. He is expected to address the topic with the Board of Regents at its Friday meeting in Lincoln.
The University of Wisconsin Athletic Department revoked the season ticket privileges of 22 patrons in 2009-10, the most since it instituted a behavorial policy at Camp Randall Stadium and the Kohl Center in 2006-07. All the revocations involved UW students, including 18 for football games, three for menâ??s hockey and one for menâ??s basketball.
By comparison, there were 10 revocations in 2008-09 (six students, four general public patrons), 17 in 2007-08 (15 students, two GPs) and 12 in 2006-07 (eight students, four GPs). All involved football games at Camp Randall.
Is the University of Texas football program the biggest piece in the college expansion puzzle? Bigger than even Notre Dame? The Longhorns think they are. And theyâ??re not alone in that thinking. Texas athletic director DeLoss Dodds was asked about the mentality â?? Bigger is better? The rich get richer? Only the strong survive? â?? that may be spurring expansion.
â??We did not start this,â? Dodds told the Kansas City Star recently. â??If we need to finish it, weâ??ll finish it. Weâ??re going to be a player in whatever happens.
â??Weâ??re watching whatâ??s happening with the Big Ten, probably to a lesser degree to the Southeast Conference. If the landscape is going to change, weâ??re going to be a part of it, and be a viable part of it.â?
Six rings reported stolen by former University of Wisconsin and NFL running back Ron Dayne were returned to him Tuesday in a plastic bag, police said. Dayne had reported the rings stolen from his home in Waunakee. Madison Police Lt. Jennifer Krueger Favour said they were returned anonymously to Dayneâ??s apartment in nearby Madison.
The high-stakes poker game involving major-conference expansion/realignment continued over the weekend, and the involved parties donâ??t appear to be in a hurry to quit playing.
What appear to be Ron Dayneâ??s two Rose Bowl rings, his Heisman Trophy ring and other sports jewelry reported stolen from his Waunakee home in April turned up Tuesday on the porch of a Madison residence where Dayne said a diamond and ruby bracelet commemorating his Heisman win also was recently stolen.
After the Badgers played their last game of the season, an 11-3 Big Ten Conference loss to Michigan State at Goodman Diamond, Chandelle Schulte had an extended postgame meeting with her players in which she announced all the award winners for the season. Before leaving the locker room, she said the annual banquet, scheduled for a few hours later at the Concourse Hotel, had been called off. No explanation was given to the players or their parents,leading to speculation, later verified, that Schulte was on her way out after five seasons as UW coach. Someone from the UW Athletic Department should step up and apologize to the players and their families. It isnâ??t too much to ask.
The nationâ??s most profitable program controls its destiny â?? and everyone elseâ??s.
Six rings reported stolen from the home of former University of Wisconsin and NFL running back Ron Dayne have been returned to his Madison apartment. Dayne reported in April that his two Rose Bowl rings and about $100,000 worth of jewelry and other items were stolen from his home in nearby Waunakee. Last month he reported a second burglary of about $50,000 in jewelry and other items from an apartment in Madison, including a diamond bracelet commemorating his 1999 Heisman Trophy win. Madison Police Lt. Jennifer Krueger Favour says the rings returned were reported stolen from the Waunakee home, but were returned anonymously in a plastic bag to the Madison apartment. She did not describe what the rings were and Dayne did not return a message left on his cell phone.
The habits that make Megan Seidl an honor student and medical school candidate donâ??t necessarily translate to her current passion. Seidl is a record-setting high jumper for the University of Wisconsin womenâ??s track and field team, a senior from Brown Deer who is looking to close her career with a flourish. She advanced to the NCAA outdoor championships, which run Wednesday through Saturday at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., courtesy of a career-best effort outdoors jump of 5 feet, 11¼ inches in a preliminary qualifier last month.
It appears most of the $100,000 in Ron Dayneâ??s Rose Bowl-themed and other distinctive jewelry have turned up at the scene of the crime.
Chandelle Schulte was officially let go as University of Wisconsin softball coach June 3, a move that was understandable, but one that left at least one loose end.
Six rings reported stolen from the home of former University of Wisconsin and NFL running back Ron Dayne have been returned to his Madison apartment.
Barry Alvarez is the Chief Economic Officer of a business that brings in over $90 million annually in Madison, Wisconsin. Alvarez has admitted the business, which is part of a business that has 10 active partners in various endeavors and another “silent” partner in the Midwest, doesnâ??t necessarily need to take in more partners but could be forced into an expansion of the business in order to maximize revenues.
All of the expansion talk over the past few months might now be coming to a head, with not just the Big Ten involved, but the Big 12 and Pac-10 as well. The Big Ten got the ball rolling back in December with talk of expansion. That started a cavalcade of rumors and reports over the past few months.
Only now it is the Big 12 – and Pac-10 – which have dropped the gauntlet. According to the Austin American-Statesman, the Big 12 has told Nebraska and Missouri to basically put up or shut up, giving the two schools a deadline of Friday to tell the conference whether they will continue to flirt with the Big Ten or stay in the Big 12.
The Big Ten did not take formal action during a meeting Sunday about conference expansion, although officials say their timeline may change after the Pac-10 revealed plans for their own expansion.
The top-ranked University of Wisconsin womenâ??s lightweight rowing team has positioned itself well in its quest to win its sixth national title in seven years thanks to a strong showing Friday at the Intercollegiate Rowing Association national championships.
The University of Wisconsin Athletic Board has approved the Department of Athletics recommendations regarding contracts for spring sports head coaches.
Chandelle Schulte is no longer the University of Wisconsin softball coach. The UW athletic board voted not to renew her contract on Thursday afternoon.
