OPINION: Big Ten officials got the divisional alignment right because they listened to fans

As Michigan and Ohio State fans let out a collective “Phew,” their efforts managed to do something else. At least from the perspective of Ohio State and Michigan, the Big Ten did things absolutely right.

It actually - save for giving the divisions names instead of the temporary “X” and “O” - couldn’t have done things much better in terms of its cash cow programs.

Wisconsin and Iowa fans might be grumbling as the Badgers saw all their natural rivals move to the other division, and the Hawkeyes gained Nebraska but lost Wisconsin, but in the end not everyone was going to be happy.

Delany admitted as much.

Even Michigan lost a little bit. Michigan doesn’t play Penn State for two years, which is probably good for the Wolverines from a competitive standpoint but not from a rivalry standpoint.

Iowa and Wisconsin fans probably don’t want to hear it, Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State and Nebraska drive the Big Ten’s financial decisions.

The Buckeyes and Wolverines always have. Penn State, when it joined in 1993, became a power player soon after. Nebraska, with its Sea of Red coming soon to a half-full stadium near you, will be the second it switches conference affiliation.

They were the top tier of teams in terms of creating divisions, so keeping them happy was of paramount importance.

Which is why Brandon and Smith have to be pleased tonight.

“For me, the most common response was keep it the last game,” Brandon said on the Big Ten Network. “… There were very few people that didn’t feel strongly that wasn’t an important principle. At one point, that seemed like it was in jeopardy.

“(We) got together, worked it out, and we’re really, really happy.”

In part, it’s because of the ferocious reaction of the fans.

If there’s a lesson in this - and to be fair, many columnists also took up the cause of protecting the Michigan-Ohio State game - it is that when put together in a common uniting purpose among programs, the voice of the fan still might make a difference.

Weird, huh?

Messing with where the Ohio State-Michigan game was on the schedule never made sense.

And while moving the game was clearly discussed - Delany said they flirted with the third-to-last weekend of the Big Ten season for the protected divisional crossover rivalries - it was never put up for a vote.

The most common argument heard in moving the game, which stemmed from having a rematch in the Big Ten championship game, never really held much weight. Delany didn’t seem concerned about it Wednesday night.

He brought up when Northwestern made a run to the Rose Bowl in 1996. The Wildcats put up huge ratings - and if Northwestern can do that, Ohio State and Michigan have larger alumni bases and more casual fans than most Big Ten schools.

“I’m not worried about repeats,” Delany said. “We’re going to sell that property. There’s going to be a lot of competition, and it wasn’t a consideration at all.”

Good.

It shouldn’t have been.

So Michigan and Ohio State fans can rest easy. Their sacred game will go untouched at least for the next two years. Now they can move on to other things, like who will start at quarterback for Michigan on Saturday against Connecticut and whether the Wolverines can beat Ohio State for the first time since 2003.

Because those are the pressing issues in Ann Arbor. The Game is safe. As it should have been all along.

Michael Rothstein covers University of Michigan basketball for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at (734) 623-2558, by e-mail at michaelrothstein@annarbor.com or follow along on Twitter @mikerothstein.