Oregon and Washington joined USC and UCLA as new Big Ten members beginning in 2024, highlighting the latest round of expansion in college football realignment. That brings the league's total to 18 teams, which means the Big Ten's new scheduling model will be altered to include the Ducks and Huskies.
With an expected nine-game schedule to include the four new members from out West, the Big Ten will feature must-watch matchups weekly pitting nationally-ranked competition and potential College Football Playoff threats.
There is a lot to sort out in terms of scheduling and whether the league returns to a split-division format, but for now, let's look at future matchups that will excite fans and certainly warrant a ton of national attention given the expected stakes.
Big Ten expansion with Oregon and Washington sparks media reaction
With four new teams in the Big Ten beginning in 2024, that's going to create several must-watch matchups down the road:
Penn State and UCLA played six times in the 1960s, but have not met since. Given how many Nittany Lions fans made the trip to Pasadena last season for the Rose Bowl win over Utah, they're probably hoping the Big Ten waits a couple of years before this showdown is scheduled. Penn State has rarely headed west during its illustrious football history. The Nittany Lions have traveled twice to play Oregon, three times to play Washington and six times to play USC.
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Nebraska and Washington met 10 times over the last 100 years and have of those games have come in Seattle (last in 2010). Given the early infancy for these respective head coaches, this matchup will be vitally important for both programs no matter when it's first played, whether that's in 2024, 2025 or beyond. Kalen DeBoer hopes to keep the Huskies in the top-tier of the national conversation moving forward while Matt Rhule's first priority is getting Nebraska back to respectability.
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The Terps and Bruins have not played since the mid-1950s, so this is one of those rarely-seen matchups the new Big Ten brings. The Mike Locksley and Chip Kelly angle in interesting as well considering both are considered aces offensively in their profession. Maryland consistently plays one of the toughest schedules annually and it's not going to get any easier when you add some combination of UCLA, USC, Oregon and Washington to the mix. At least for the Terps, that means the likelihood of Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State staying on the slate is slim.
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Imagine the hype behind this one when Riley strolls into Memorial Stadium for the first time against Rhule and the Huskers? Nebraska's 0-4-1 all-time against the Trojans. USC's only been to Nebraska once and left with a 49-31 victory in 2007, a couple years after winning the national championship. This would be a national spotlight game for Nebraska, while USC would be looking at the matchup as a "get in and get out" must-win to try and avoid disaster.
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Washington has never played in Happy Valley and is 0-3 all-time against the Nittany Lions. Those games were played in Seattle (1921), Hawaii (1983) and Arizona (2017), the latter matchups were bowls. By the way, is Penn State's window to win a conference championship and get to the playoff under James Franklin right now pre-expansion? When you look at some of the teams potentially added to the annual slate, it only gets more difficult from here. That being said, playoff expansion will be supremely beneficial to Penn State, Oregon and fringe top 10 teams every year.
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These programs split six all-time meetings. Oregon has won the last three (2020, 2012 and 2001) and Wisconsin won the first three, including both contests in Madison. Oregon hasn't visited Camp Randall Stadium since 2000. Oregon's Autzen Stadium is one of the nation's loudest venues, right on par with the Badgers' home crowd. This game will be one of those playoff-eliminator type matchups in the Big Ten considering the wealth of quality teams at the top of the league.
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The Ducks went into Ohio Stadium during the 2021 season and came out winners, shocking the third-ranked Buckeyes who went on to win the Rose Bowl that season. That means the next installment likely comes at Autzen Stadium, where the Ducks are nearly unbeatable and have put together multiple perfect seasons in recent years on their home turf. Autzen Stadium is one of the nation's most ferocious venues, but the Buckeyes have gone on the road and won before in such environments.
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USC holds a three-game winning streak against the Wolverines, but the teams have not played since 2007. Only twice in 10 all-time meetings has this game been played on campus. Most have been reserved for bowl season at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. Jim Harbaugh and Lincoln Riley have different coaching styles and have never went head to head on the gridiron. That would provide ample storylines and makes this future game in Ann Arbor one of college football's toughest tickets. Record crowd at the Big House, perhaps?
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The Wolverines' only trip to Eugene came in 2003. Michigan leads the all-time series, 3-2, and have shutout the Ducks during all three of those victories, but Oregon has won the previous two meetings. Depending on how quickly this matchup is played in the 'new' Big Ten, this could by Oregon's not-so-friendly introduction to college football's most competitive league. There's the other end of spectrum, too. The Ducks have won three of their last four home games against top 25 competition.
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How often are we going to see this matchups of powers in the Big Ten Championship Game moving forward? Outside of a Cotton Bowl matchup to end the 2017 season, these two played a home-and-home in 2008 and 2009. Those games marked the last time the Buckeyes and Trojans played during the regular season and not in a bowl game since 1989 and 1990. Before that, the last regular-season matchup was in 1964. These two, in the new era, should recruit vastly superior to others in the conference outside of Michigan. Penn State and Oregon would be vying for fourth spot annually in recruiting.
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