There’s an interesting numerical pattern tied to the Big Ten’s 2024 football schedule, which was revealed on Thursday. Version 63 emerged as the victor for the 18-team conference, which will span from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean next summer. Kerry Kenny, the Big Ten’s chief operating officer, stated, “Typically, our football schedules don’t go beyond the late 20s or 30s. This just goes to show the extensive balance we had to consider in terms of geography, travel, and competitiveness. Additionally, from a numerology standpoint, the fact that six times three equals 18 is a unique nod to the fact that we approached this as a mathematical solution rather than simply placing teams on a board.” Without divisions for the first time since 2010 and with the inclusion of USC, UCLA, Washington, and Oregon, the Big Ten’s 129th football season will bring several changes and adjustments. It is also designed for maximum entertainment and excitement. Here are 10 key highlights related to the 2024 schedule release.
**Computerized strategy: USC-Michigan**
One of the most highly anticipated games on the 2024 schedule is USC’s Big Ten debut against Michigan on September 21. This matchup turned out to be both fortunate and strategic for the league. Kerry Kenny explained, “It’s a great talking point to have these two historic programs open the season in a historic venue, and it will certainly excite our TV partners. But we also examined the schedule from different angles.” Both teams will face other high-profile opponents before their showdown. The Trojans will open against LSU in Las Vegas on Labor Day Sunday, while Michigan will host Texas on September 7. Kenny added, “We felt that in terms of each team’s individual schedule, this was a fair outcome. It allowed both teams to have similar preparation leading up to the game. If we had placed it at a different point in the schedule, it would have heavily favored one team over the other.”
**Travel concerns**
With a 14-week season, the Big Ten wanted to minimize the effects of travel on its four new West Coast teams and its existing 14 teams. The newcomers and other teams will have a bye week or a home game following a trip to the Eastern or Central time zones. Kenny stated, “We were fortunate to achieve 100% success in this regard. No team in the Pacific time zone, and none of our 18 teams overall, will have to play road games in back-to-back weeks that span multiple time zones. On the other hand, the 14 Eastern and Central time zone schools traveling west will have eight institutions with a bye week after their West Coast trip, and six institutions with home games following those trips.” The league also managed this for non-conference games. For example, Purdue will play at Oregon State on September 21 and then have a home game against Nebraska the following week. Indiana will travel to UCLA on September 14 and face Charlotte in Bloomington on September 21.
**Rivalry weekend**
For the first year with 18 teams, the Big Ten preserved its final weekend for traditional rivalries. These include Michigan-Ohio State, Indiana-Purdue, Wisconsin-Minnesota, Illinois-Northwestern, and the Iowa-Nebraska matchup on Black Friday. Washington and Oregon will also face each other, while USC and UCLA will play non-conference foes Notre Dame and Fresno State, respectively. As Penn State and Michigan State are not playing each other, there were a few changes to the Thanksgiving weekend. Kenny explained, “In the first year, we wanted to maintain as much similarity to the traditional end of the season as possible. There have been previous years where Penn State and Michigan State didn’t play each other, but they still ended their seasons with Penn State-Rutgers and Michigan State-Maryland matchups. So we decided to keep those four teams together if we couldn’t have Penn State-Michigan State, Rutgers-Maryland, so on and so forth.” The USC-UCLA game rotates between the penultimate and final weekends, depending on when the USC-Notre Dame game occurs. In 2024, the Trojans and Bruins will meet on the weekend of November 23. To ensure that UCLA doesn’t play for 10 consecutive weeks, the league moved the UCLA-Fresno State game to the final weekend.
**Oregon-Washington**
Oregon and Washington often end their regular seasons against Oregon State and Washington State, respectively. However, in 2024, the Ducks and Huskies will play each other in their Big Ten finale. The Big Ten left open the second-to-last weekend for both schools, should they want to continue their historic series. Kenny stated, “Regarding the Oregon-Washington matchup, we were transparent with the leadership of both schools. Ideally, from the Big Ten’s perspective, we wanted that game to be at the end of the season. It aligns perfectly with the tradition and rivalry of the other matchups on that weekend. However, we also wanted to ensure that both schools had the option to play their in-state rivals, if they chose to. So we left that weekend open for those considerations starting in 2024.” After this fall, the Oregon-Oregon State series will have reached 127 editions, while Washington-Washington State will be in its 114th year.
**The Galloping Ghost**
On October 18, 1924, halfback Red Grange of Illinois made football history by defeating defending national champion Michigan. He returned the opening kickoff for a 95-yard touchdown and went on to score additional touchdowns, including a 67-yard, a 56-yard, and a 44-yard run, all within the first 12 minutes of the game. He also threw a touchdown pass, leading to a 39-14 victory. This occurred on the same day as the official dedication of Memorial Stadium. Exactly 100 years later, on October 19, 2024, the Wolverines will visit Memorial Stadium. A 12-foot, one-ton bronze statue of Red Grange stands outside the stadium’s west side, and the stadium’s entryway is known as “Grange Grove.” Kenny shared, “We didn’t require the schedule to land on this date, but we inputted some information into the computer, hoping it would lead us to this date. The fact that it almost aligns with the day, 100 years later, in the same location, with the same teams participating, is another fascinating historical nugget that we discovered while creating this schedule.”
**Fridays, Labor Day, Black Friday**
As part of the agreement with Fox to secure funding for Washington and Oregon, the Big Ten will move games to at least nine Friday nights starting in 2024. However, certain venues may not be able to host Friday night games due to logistical challenges. Discussions will be held to determine which games will be moved. Kenny explained, “We collaborate with our TV partners to identify which games are eligible for the Friday slot based on the existing parameters. Some games are non-negotiable and must remain on Saturdays due to broadcast arrangements. Over the next few weeks, we will finalize the selection process and determine which games can be moved to Friday. Our goal is to complete this in a timely manner, hopefully within a few months.” This year, the Big Ten featured an early Sunday game between Rutgers and Northwestern on Labor Day weekend. Next year, there will be a Sunday game in prime time on NBC.
