NYTimes on Leaders and Legends
Today's NYTimes has an article about the controversy over the division names: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/22/sports/ncaafootball/22bigten.html?_r=1&ref=ncaafootball
The article is mostly factual, but generally negative on the names and talks prominently about the criticism and ridicule.
December 22nd, 2010 at 10:29 AM ^
Delany said there was discussion about using the names of famous Big Ten coaches like Woody Hayes and Bo Schembechler, but that idea was dropped because it would exclude other universities where they did not coach.
And yet they named the championship trophy after a coach currently coaching in the league -- a trophy he himself only won three times in the eighteen years he's been in the conference.....
December 22nd, 2010 at 11:00 AM ^
December 22nd, 2010 at 12:58 PM ^
Woody Hayes? Not so much.
December 22nd, 2010 at 10:33 AM ^
“It’s going to take fans a little more time to figure out which school is in which conference, instead of a geographic location to give you a mental snapshot,”
The M-N-Iowa Division and the Everyone Else Division.
December 22nd, 2010 at 10:39 AM ^
“My experience is that fans never love something new, and they’ll always criticize it,” said Edward O’Hara, the chief creative officer at SME
Yes. But especially if the new thing is generic, elitist, and shows little to no creativity. These names suck. End of discussion.
December 22nd, 2010 at 10:58 AM ^
they can't comprehend the massive bag of suck that is the new division names. If it was at all legit, some people would like it. Just sounds absolutely ridiculous. What's wrong with East/West like some others said?
December 22nd, 2010 at 11:02 AM ^
A little trick is just to get the fans involved...put names up for a vote. Doesn't mean you MUST choose the winning names if you realize there is some problem with them after the poll goes up, but you can at least gauge interest and not dictate names onto fans who are the ones meant to enjoy them.
You would also want to get Big Ten conference buy-in from administrators and athletic directors, but I'm assuming they at least did that.
December 22nd, 2010 at 3:11 PM ^
I believe that would result in the "Stephen" and "Colbert" divisions...
December 24th, 2010 at 8:42 PM ^
Ah yes, the Colbert Bridge in Europe!
http://central.blogactiv.eu/2008/10/04/the-colbert-bridge-over-the-danube-by-night/
December 22nd, 2010 at 11:28 AM ^
So in his experience 90% of fans loathe the designs put out by SME? That can't be good for business...
December 22nd, 2010 at 11:50 AM ^
"Edward O’Hara"... He's useless. Gone.
December 22nd, 2010 at 1:41 PM ^
I'm sure O'Hara was sipping his New Coke when he was quoted.
December 22nd, 2010 at 10:46 AM ^
East and West is about the only choice that will not piss anyone off.
December 22nd, 2010 at 10:48 AM ^
Simple but elegant. It's football not opera.
EDIT: beat me to the punch.
December 22nd, 2010 at 10:56 AM ^
Leaders and Legends...just sounds so frigging hokey. Couldn't go with East or West or North or South...who care where the schools are. Works in the NFL...NFC East has the Cowboys, yet no disparaging talk.
I wonder how much money they paid to some ridiculous ad agency for this little bit of genius.
December 22nd, 2010 at 11:01 AM ^
And...
NFC West has St. Louis
AFC East has Miami (South)
AFC South has Indianapolis
AFC West has Kansas City
Nothing's perfect. Take note Big 10 conference. East and West.
December 22nd, 2010 at 11:23 AM ^
Arizona was in the NFC East. The Cincinnati Reds were in the National League West while the Cubs and Cardinals were in the NL East...If TCU can joint the Big East, the Big Ten can just go with East/West.
December 22nd, 2010 at 12:26 PM ^
December 22nd, 2010 at 2:45 PM ^
December 22nd, 2010 at 2:47 PM ^
is the Big 12 sticking with that name this season? Maybe they should go back to the old name: Big 8. Then just like the B10, they'll be two under.
December 22nd, 2010 at 10:58 AM ^
The Big 10 could have made things so much cleaner if they had swapped Iowa for Wisconsin. Then we'd have the division with the I, O, P schools and a division with the M, N, W schools (call them the slants?).
Anyway, for the Indiana/Illinois/Penn State/Purdue/Ohio State/Wisconsin division, I'd suggest the name "Pioneer". It evokes imagery of the first western migrations in the US, and pioneer also refers to the inventiveness of the folks associated with Big 10 institutions. As a plus, the PIO of Pioneer reminds the audience which schools (sort of) are in the division. And it's loosely a synonym of "Leader". Minus is that there's already a Pioneer League in the NCAA; who knows if that'd cause confusion.
For the other division, we have Michigan/Michigan State/Minnesota/Northwestern/Nebraska and then Iowa. I'd love to come up with a division name that both resonates and meets the alliteration gimmick, but I'm stumped. "Monument" is too much like "Legends". A word that conveys the productivity of the Big 10 region, both in agriculture and manufacturing, would be great. I just can't think of it.
December 22nd, 2010 at 1:45 PM ^
December 22nd, 2010 at 6:19 PM ^
Calling a group of people "the Slants".
December 22nd, 2010 at 7:52 PM ^
i don't wanna see any witty, creative, weird names. East and West is the answer, as long as Michigan is in the east, that way we can have shirts that have a block M and say "the beast from the east"! i would so buy one!!
December 22nd, 2010 at 8:40 PM ^
the Champions of the West. Well, I guess it would be no different than the "Leaders and the Best" being not in the division titled "Leaders."
December 22nd, 2010 at 9:09 PM ^
Actually if you call the Legends the West, the only :"outlier" is Wisconsin and it makes great sense for the Victors.
December 22nd, 2010 at 11:05 AM ^
I'm still annoyed about the Groban-Buble Trophy. You'd think they could have come up with a better name.
December 22nd, 2010 at 11:14 AM ^
Griese-Brees was the best. It sounds like a bad fart joke.
December 22nd, 2010 at 6:18 PM ^
The bad fart joke thread on this before it was pulled...
December 22nd, 2010 at 11:13 AM ^
These are the worst division names ever. I would have taken any of the following as division names:
1. North / South
2. East / West
3. Midwest / Other Part of Midwest
4. Coke / Pepsi
5. Bo / Woody
6. Young Paterno / Old Paterno
7. Tate / Denard
December 22nd, 2010 at 11:20 AM ^
1. Tastes Great / Less Filling
2. Eloi / Morlock
3. Yada Yada / Etc Etc
December 22nd, 2010 at 12:15 PM ^
I couldn't care less if Michigan was in the North, East, Bo, Woody or Tastes Great division. The names are irrelevant. I just want Michigan to WIN!
I've got to admit that the new logo irks me though...
December 22nd, 2010 at 8:03 PM ^
especially if they put Michigan in a "woody" division, i'd be pissed!
December 22nd, 2010 at 1:15 PM ^
I heard about the Delta and Beta which is 10 and Big in latin...i like the concept but the names don't really sound like great division names. I would like something a bit more complex, but nothign really sticks out to me
December 22nd, 2010 at 1:49 PM ^
Delta and Beta which is 10 and Big in latin
Who told you this? They're wrong
December 22nd, 2010 at 2:30 PM ^
He means Spanish. Delta Beta is Spanish for Big 10... cut him a break.
December 22nd, 2010 at 3:18 PM ^
No. And when we cut him a break, we're going to have to give everyone else who doesn't know the difference between latin and spanish a break too. And when will it ever end?
December 22nd, 2010 at 7:32 PM ^
The article is mostly factual, but generally negative on the names and talks prominently about the criticism and ridicule.
When - by Jim Delaney's own reckoning - 90 percent of the feedback is negative, that will happen.
December 25th, 2010 at 10:58 AM ^
(Great) Lakes and Plains.