Hoosier State of Mind
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Indiana Hoosiers: Building a perfect Big Ten conference

By Adam Childs

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MARCH 11: Trainers wear rubber gloves as they work in the bench area during the first round of the Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament game between the Nebraska Cornhuskers and Indiana Hoosiers at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on March 11, 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. The Big Ten Conference announced that fans would not be allowed to attend the remainder of the tournament due to concerns over the COVID-19 virus. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MARCH 11: Trainers wear rubber gloves as they work in the bench area during the first round of the Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament game between the Nebraska Cornhuskers and Indiana Hoosiers at Bankers Life Fieldhouse on March 11, 2020 in Indianapolis, Indiana. The Big Ten Conference announced that fans would not be allowed to attend the remainder of the tournament due to concerns over the COVID-19 virus. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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West Virginia: Kennedy McKoy
Kennedy McKoy #6 of the West Virginia Mountaineers (Photo by Adrian Garcia/Getty Images) /

Indiana Hoosiers: Making the perfect Big Ten

We can’t decide which would be better between 10 or 12 teams and honestly think both would make a perfect situation. Ten teams would allow everyone to play each other in football and play each other twice in basketball. That is a huge plus, instead of skipping over teams and having some imbalanced schedules. Twelve teams are good because you can have two divisions of six in football. You miss some teams but you play most of them and you can rotate them so you don’t go three-plus years without playing another school.

If we went to 12 these would be the two teams we would add.

Illinois Fighting Illini

Yes, Illinois has been a mainstay in the Big Ten, but they were left out of the ten in favor of Iowa. It really came down to those two teams, and we just like the upside of Iowa better. Illini fans will probably hate us for it, but this is our list and we skipped over them for the ten but hey they are here for the 12 team conference. Indiana has had some good rivalries with the Illini, but they aren’t ones that just stick out in your mind. Adding them to the 12 team conference is mostly about geography. They do bring good but not great programs to the table and they are familiar.

West Virginia Mountaineers

We venture a little east for the Mountaineers but think they would be a great addition for a 12 team conference. It makes no sense right now why they are part of the Big 12. It seemed like their best option to be in a Power Five conference so they jumped at it. This is another team that fits the hard-nosed type of play we want in our new Big Ten. Geographically they aren’t too far away. They bring good programs to the table and would make some great rivalries in the conference. They slipped in just ahead of Pitt, Minnesota, and Cincinnati.

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