Penn State and the Big Ten Decision

[star2city]

A three-part series in State College's newpaper had rather interesting insights into the long drawn out process of how Penn State was admitted into the Big 10. The decision took at least six years and met considerable opposition at some Big 10 schools. Somehow, the whole process remained confidential so the public announcement was a shock to most of the media. Even after the initial announcement, Penn State was almost rejected.

PSU saw opportunity in joining the Big Ten

The idea wasn't new.

When Bryce Jordan became Penn State's president in 1983, talk of the university joining the Big Ten Conference had been trickling into administrators' ears for a few years.

But before he settled in full-time, as he was still commuting from Austin, Texas, to State College, Jordan had a talk with football coach Joe Paterno, who had recently tried to spearhead an eastern all-sports conference. The idea was strong in Jordan's mind, and he knew the topic was of great interest to the coach.

What could have been:

Paterno, who also served as Penn State's athletic director from 1980-81, had attempted to forge an eastern all-sports conference in the early 1980s that would have consisted of Penn State, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Rutgers and Temple, among others. Not enough of those universities came on board -- Pitt joined the Big East in basketball -- and the vision never came to pass.

So instead of looking north and south and east for new alliances, Penn State looked west. And the West looked back.

Imagine if the proposed eastern league had joined with a few of the following, which were all independents at the time: West Virginia, Miami (FL), Boston College, Florida State, South Carolina, Georgia Tech, and Virginia Tech.

Personal relationships mattered:

Stanley Ikenberry served as Penn State's executive vice president for administration from 1971 until he became the University of Illinois' president in 1979. In 1989, he was the chairman of the board of Big Ten presidents, known as the "Council of Ten."

Ikenberry knew Penn State. He knew that in terms of size, academic reputation and athletic tradition, it matched up well with the existing Big Ten schools.

"I knew the university and the people," said Ikenberry, now an education professor at Illinois. "There was a level of trust on their part and my part that might not have otherwise been available."

Penn State barely gained acceptance:

To gain admittance, Penn State needed votes of approval from seven of the 10 university presidents. The Council of Ten convened in Iowa City on May 3, 1990, talking late into the night about the pros and cons of adding an 11th member.

The next morning, Ikenberry called Jordan.

"I told him that at that point I did not have the necessary seven votes," Ikenberry said. "And that he should prepare himself for the possibility that this thing might go down."

After two more hours of discussion that morning, Ikenberry called a recess. Wisconsin chancellor Donna Shalala took him aside and said she believed Northwestern president Arnold Weber was hesitating because of his belief that Penn State's entrance into the conference would lead the Big Ten to ask Northwestern to leave.

That was not anyone's intention, said Ikenberry, and when the meeting resumed, the council instituted a three-year moratorium that would freeze the number of teams in the conference at 11.

Northwestern was satisfied. Penn State had its seven votes, and was formally accepted into the conference on June 4, 1990. But not everyone celebrated.

Opposition after the decision:

The most outspoken detractors were Indiana basketball coach Bob Knight, who made half-kidding remarks about the difficulty of traveling to State College, and Minnesota athletic director Rick Bay who, according to Jordan, was "almost vitriolic in his opposition." Opposition also came from Penn State alumni, who were doubtful that the Nittany Lions would be able to establish the same sort of rivalries they had forged with in-state and Eastern foes with their Big Ten brethren.

And though the majority of university presidents were pleased with the outcome, several of their athletic directors quietly grumbled about it, as much about the fact that they hadn't been consulted as about the decision itself.

[star2city]

Part 2: Transition has been one of adjustments

Travel:

The Nittany Lions, who had been within driving distance of the majority of their Atlantic 10 rivals, quickly realized the adventures of trying to find connecting flights from State College to the Big Ten cities of the Midwest.

"On one of the trips, we had 18 different flights," Rose said. "Now, we charter."

Expectations: some exceeded, others not

The women's volleyball, men's soccer and women's basketball teams won conference championships during the 1993-94 scholastic year. The football team won its first Big Ten title -- finishing the season 12-0 and No. 2 in the polls -- in 1994.

Other programs struggled to make the adjustment. The men's basketball team, which had become one of the top teams in the Atlantic 10 and had gone 21-8 in 1991-92, was 2-16 in its inaugural Big Ten season. Just three years later, the Nittany Lions went 12-6 in the conference and earned an NCAA Tournament berth, but the success was short-lived; the men's basketball team has had a losing conference record in 10 of the 11 seasons since.

Recruiting:

Recruiting was another. For years, Penn State, particularly in football, had its pick of the top recruits in the East. When they joined the Big Ten, the Nittany Lions expanded their recruiting area, drawing some top prospects from Michigan and Ohio, but the conference's other 10 teams began luring some prize recruits out of Pennsylvania.

"I think it's tougher," Penn State football coach Joe Paterno said during Big Ten Media Day in 2005. "When we got in the Big Ten, I told some of the (other coaches), 'If you guys are smart, we're gonna open up a whole new area over here.'"

Rivalries:

The Big Ten is filled with rivalries -- Minnesota-Wisconsin, Indiana-Purdue, Michigan-Michigan State and, of course, Michigan-Ohio State. Fifteen years into the conference, Penn State is still searching for a rivalry with that sort of sizzle.

"The one challenge we have is just distance," said Penn State athletic director Tim Curley. "It's a hard thing for people who can't go to away events like you would like in a rivalry. But overall in each sport, each one has kind of identified one or two schools, that's our rival in that sport and that's who we need to get ready to play."

But some of Penn State's athletes have trouble identifying those one or two schools.

[star2city]

Part 3: Bond remains strong on both sides

It trailed only Ohio State in overall athletic spending, which is little surprise since Ohio State, with 39 varsity programs, is the only Big Ten school with more teams than Penn State's 29.

The fact that nearly every Big Ten school has a different number of varsity teams is precisely why Penn State's athletic department tries not to measure its budget against those of other Big Ten institutions, but there's no question that it keeps an eye on what other schools are spending on specific sports.

Of course, there are always those who want more. The success of Penn State's women's programs is undeniable, but there are fans who believed that Penn State's football team would have more than two Big Ten championships by this point, and plenty more who cannot understand why the men's basketball team has a winning percentage of .295 in conference games or why the wrestling team is still searching for its first Big Ten championship.

[Big A HG]

Wisconsin and Minnesota are rivals...? In what?! (Die-hard Goofer fans will bust out the wrestling comments now).

WI and MN are rivals in spirit I guess....maybe one of these years the Goofs will be good at something...

ON WISCONSIN!

[hockey1]

Wisconsin and Minnesota are rivals...? In what?! (Die-hard Goofer fans will bust out the wrestling comments now).

WI and MN are rivals in spirit I guess....maybe one of these years the Goofs will be good at something...

ON WISCONSIN!

Minnesota and Wisconsin have a border battle contest every year. Points are awarded to the school who wins a head to head game.

This year there was a total of 32 games played between Minnesota and Wisconsin. Wisconsin won 16 games for a total of 445 points and Minnesota won 15 games for a total of 435 ponts and there was one tie. Wisconsin did win the border battle this year but Minnesota won it last year and it wasn't even close.(530-350 points) You are right, the Gophers are not good at anything

Gone Wisconsin

[Big A HG]

Minnesota and Wisconsin have a border battle contest every year. Points are awarded to the school who wins a head to head game.

This year there was a total of 32 games played between Minnesota and Wisconsin. Wisconsin won 16 games for a total of 445 points and Minnesota won 15 games for a total of 435 ponts and there was one tie. Wisconsin did win the border battle this year but Minnesota won it last year and it wasn't even close.(530-350 points) You are right, the Gophers are not good at anything

Gone Wisconsin

Minnesota must accel at sports no one cares about then...

[happy]

Minnesota must accel at sports no one cares about then...

yeah, MN did win the div one national championship in wrestling and won both mens wcha titles. I am sure wisconsins womens hockey team outshines that by far. I think you will find in the one sport where it matters, mens hockey, MN addded once again to it's overwhelming 2 to 1 winning record against the badgers.

[Big A HG]

Oh, that's right, I forgot that Minnesota men's hockey had more National Championships than did Wisconsin....

wait...

strike that, reverse it.

WISCONSIN: 6

MINNESOTA: 5

[happy]

Oh, that's right, I forgot that Minnesota men's hockey had more National Championships than did Wisconsin....

wait...

strike that, reverse it.

WISCONSIN: 6

MINNESOTA: 5

You forgot MN's 1925 and 1940 championships.

[LeftyZL]

You forgot MN's 1925 and 1940 championships.

The University of Minnesota doesn't even count those 2 championships on their own website towards their actual total. If they don't, you shouldn't either.

[happy]

The University of Minnesota doesn't even count those 2 championships on their own website towards their actual total. If they don't, you shouldn't either.

Yeah, your right, the University of Minnesota and the NCAA is always right. I guess und should start looking for a new nickname, now.

[Big A HG]

On CNNSI.com (Sports Illustrated site), they had a ranking of overall best sports schools in the Big 10. I only remember 4 teams' rankings, but the ones I remember were:

1) Ohio State

2) Wisconsin

3) Michigan

11) Minnesota

Sorry, keep trying.