Dave Thurman (8:14 pm)

There has been some serious angst and hangwringing the last few weeks as fans have awaited the new Big Ten divisional alignment for football.  Commissioner Jim Delany made it all official tonight on the Big Ten Network, and although Ohio State and Michigan are in different divisions, they will play each year and it will be the final game of the regular season. So, take a deep breath, come down from the ledge, and pour yourself a cold drink.  Life is going to be okay!

At present, the divisions are simply being called "X' and "O," and geography had nothing to do with how they were chosen.

-The "X' division includes Ohio State, Indiana, Illinois, Penn State, Purdue, and Wisconsin.

-The "O" division is made up of Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska and Northwestern.

A team will play each school in its division every year as well as one crossover rival from the opposite division.  For Ohio State the crossover team is Michigan.  Those six games (division teams and crossover rival) are set in stone and will be played every single season.  Of course that means the Buckeyes will play two games each year against the other five "O" division teams, and there will be three Big Ten squads they will not face each year.

Honestly, it all makes pretty good sense.  There seems to be a good balance of power in each division.  Ohio State, Penn State and Wisconsin are the expected power teams in the "X" and Michigan, Nebraska, and Iowa are the big boys in the "O".  Obviously some seasons that will change, but year in and year out those seem to be the most likely candidates to fight for supremecy in the conference, and they have been evenly divided. 

The best news is the fact that "The Game" will still be played every year at the same time as it has been.  Of course it does leave the possibility that Ohio State and Michigan could face each other on the final Saturday of the regular season, and then have to play again a week or two later in the Big Ten Championship Game.  If both win their divisions that is exactly what will occur.  If you go back to 2006 with both teams undefeated and ranked #1 and #2 in the nation, it would have taken some of the luster off of "The Game."  But outside of that, the present divisional alignment seems to be the best scenario. 

Sure some old timers would prefer to go back to ten teams with no divisions, where everybody plays everybody else every year.  But we're in the 21st century and those days are long gone.