Tom Allen Excited About Big Ten Expansion: 'You're Going to See Equitable Schedules'
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Tom Allen can't help but be excited for 2024, when the Big Ten expands with USC and UCLA and — more importantly for Indiana — eliminates the East and West divisions.
After the Big Ten added Rutgers and Maryland in 2014, the East division has carried the conference's reputation and relevance in dominant fashion.
In those nine seasons, Ohio State finished No. 6 or higher in every postseason AP poll, won five conference titles and was crowned national champs in 2014. Michigan has taken control of the conference recently, winning the Big Ten and reaching the College Football Playoff the last two years. Michigan State won the conference in 2015, followed by Penn State in 2016, a team that's been ranked inside the top 10 at some point in each of the last seven seasons. And altogether, the Big Ten champion has come from the East every season since the two divisions were created.
Since 2014, Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State boast a combined 65-15 record against West division teams, good for a whopping .813 win percentage.
And every year, Indiana faced a grueling schedule that featured those perennial powerhouses. In that stretch, Indiana went 2-25 against Ohio State, Penn State and Michigan, and had a 9-14 record against the West.
West division teams played that trio an average of 11.4 times across nine seasons, with Wisconsin having the most matchups at 15, and Purdue having the least with seven. All three are on Indiana's 2023 schedule together for one last time, and all three will likely be double-digit favorites over the Hoosiers.
Allen is focused on preparing his team for fall camp and a Sept. 2 season opener against Ohio State, but he's admittedly giddy about the changes coming in 2024.
"You're going to see equitable schedules," Allen said at Big Ten Media Days. "Where teams are going to be playing teams more equally across the conference, which I think is a great thing. That excites me, as well, and playing some different teams on a more consistent basis."
Indiana Hoosiers head coach Tom Allen speaks to the media during the Big 10 football media day at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Robert Goddin-USA TODAY Sports
All of this isn't to say Indiana's schedule will become easy all of a sudden, but it creates a smoother path to bowl eligibility moving forward.
In 2024, Indiana will host Florida International, Charlotte, Maryland, Minnesota, Penn State, Purdue and UCLA, while traveling to Louisville, Michigan State, Nebraska, Northwestern and Wisconsin. That season will mark the first time since 2012 that the Hoosiers won't play both Michigan and Ohio State in the same season.
"There's a lot of great football teams in this conference," Allen said. "Everybody's schedule is going to be tough, and I'm excited for the future of the Big Ten Conference."
The following season, in 2025, Indiana will host Old Dominion, Louisville, Indiana State, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State and Rutgers, while traveling to Illinois, Maryland, Ohio State, Purdue and USC.
At Big Ten Media Days, Allen was asked about the impact that not playing Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State every year will have on his program moving forward.
"What do you think?" Allen responded, laughing. "It's going to be different, and obviously it's going to rotate. But I'll tell you what, with USC and UCLA, USC you look at the way they've recruited the last several years, and they're right there with the top-five teams in the country. The conference is deep, there's no doubt. Everybody you play is going to be good, but Ohio State and Penn State and Michigan, historically speaking, they've been three of the top 10 programs in the nation for a long, long time. They're hard to beat."
There's no question about that. Indiana opens with Ohio State this season on Sept. 2, and according to the Fanduel gambling website, the Buckeyes are a whopping 27.5-point favorite. Outside of the two-time defending champion Georgia, Ohio State has the lowest odds (plus-115) to reach the College Football Playoff.
While Allen has been looking forward to conference expansion and scheduling alterations dating back to this time last year, these changes could have the opposite effect on West programs. In year one under new coach Luke Fickell, Wisconsin avoids Michigan and Penn State altogether, and plays Ohio State at home. Iowa, Illinois and Northwestern won't face conference favorites Michigan and Ohio State unless they reach the Big Ten title game. Nebraska hosts Michigan, but avoids two of the three conference stalwarts.
But even if it means more difficult schedules for some and a break in seasons with top-10 strength-of-schedule slates for others, expansion in 2024 puts the Big Ten in an optimal position from a big-picture perspective moving forward.
"I do think it's a good thing for the whole conference to have everybody playing each other in a more equitable way," Allen said. "It's an exciting time to be part of this conference. When you think about coast to coast, which we are, it changes recruiting. I'm excited. I've never played UCLA or USC in a game, and other than [the 2015 Foster Farms Bowl] my first year as head coach, I've not played in the state of California before, outside of that. So just a new time, new era.
"There'll be a lot of travel, and we've got to figure out those cross-country flights for mid-year games, but at the same time, I think any time you can add really quality programs to your conference, that's nothing but a great thing."
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