For the second time in two years, IU football has cancelled a future nonconference series with a Power 4 opponent.
Two years ago Tom Allen’s Hoosiers bought their way out of a home-and-home set of games against Louisville.
And now according to a report by the Herald Times, Indiana has once again paid to get out of a home-and-home series — this time previously scheduled 2027 and 2028 games against Virginia.
The Big Ten Conference used to require that its teams play at least one nonconference game against a fellow Power 4 (at the time Power 5) squad. That’s how the games against Louisville and Virginia got on the slate in the first place.
But since moving to nine conference games, the league has relaxed the Power 4 nonconference requirement, and also now allows Big Ten squads to play an FCS school.
What Indiana is doing — playing three relatively easy nonconference games — is part of a larger trend, especially by Big Ten schools. The last two national champions — Michigan and Ohio State — played three non Power 4 opponents during the nonconference portion of their seasons.
With the College Football Playoff now expanded to 12 teams and likely headed to 14 or 16 sooner than later, there’s a real opportunity to be in the national title chase every year for the Power 4 teams with just one or two regular season losses. That’s especially true for teams from the Big Ten or SEC, the leagues with the most and best teams.
And Big Ten teams have to be especially cautious when it comes to nonconference scheduling and how that might ultimately impact their standing in the eyes of the CFP Committee — because they start at a disadvantage.
While all Big Ten schools play nine league games each season, the SEC (along with the ACC) only plays eight. Most SEC schools are playing one Power 4 nonconference game, but that only serves to level the playing field with the Big Ten.
So beyond providing a more entertaining product for fans, there’s no real compelling reason for Indiana to risk an additional loss each year during the nonconference. And if the fans are provided a CFP bid in December, they’ll forget all about the boring early season games. No IU fans were agonizing over September games against Florida International, Western Illinois and Charlotte as they got ready to see the Hoosiers face Notre Dame in the CFP last year.
Let’s be clear: More competitive nonconference games would be better for the fans, better for television ratings, and better for the overall health of the sport.
But until the Power 4 conferences come to some form of agreement, say something like they all play nine conference games plus one Power 4 nonconference game, then it doesn’t make much sense for Big Ten schools to stick their necks out and risk getting chopped by the CFP.
Maybe some form of agreement across the Power 4 will happen. The SEC has considered for the last three years whether to expand from eight to nine conference games and has twice come close to doing so. There’s even been talk of a Big Ten vs. SEC scheduling agreement, similar to the now defunct Big Ten vs. ACC basketball challenge.
Maybe the CFP Committee will develop criteria that nudges the Big Ten back towards a tougher nonconference. There’s already talk of a tweaked formula that places greater emphasis on strength of schedule.
But until something changes, expect more of the same from Indiana during the nonconference. The Hoosiers open the 2025 season with Old Dominion, Kennesaw State and Indiana State. 2026, 2027 and beyond will look similar.
There are other advantages that shouldn’t be overlooked when it comes to scheduling three lower-tier nonconference opponents. This approach also guarantees Indiana at least seven home games every season, with eight every other year. More home games mean more revenue, something that’s more important than ever as schools look for pennies under the couch cushions to help fund revenue sharing with the players.
As things stand, the only future IU nonconference opponent of any significance comes in the form of a home-and-home with Notre Dame in 2030 and 2031. Obviously those games have a special appeal given the proximity of Notre Dame and their national significance.
But for all the same reasons discussed herein, there isn’t much sense in IU subjecting itself to that kind of nonconference challenge. We’ll have to see if those games against the Irish survive. Hopefully for the good of the sport they do, but it seems like a lot will have to change over the next few years.
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