I’ve talked a bunch in the past about the difficulties I’ve had with the prospect of tinkering with the Big Ten’s football schedule. There is a rhythm to football season, and I’ve always thought that moving stuff around would mean significant changes to the flow of November.
I’ve known for a while that the addition of a championship game was inevitable; I was aware last fall that the season would be extended past Thanksgiving for the first time in the conference’s history.
And here we are.
I love Thanksgiving and all that goes with it. My obsession with the Michigan game is well-documented here. And it’s been a little distracting to have both fall in the same week. It’s forced us to make some adjustments, like canceling the annual Beat Michigan Spaghetti Dinner we always have with my folks and Fred and Ethel, because they’re having a Thanksgiving with their family today.
And more importantly, I’ve been scatter-brained about both things this week. I haven’t devoted the time or energy to Michigan that I normally would, here and everywhere else. I’ll be fine tomorrow, but for now, it’s disconcerting.
Expansion was coming, as were changes to the schedule. The addition of Nebraska to the conference was probably the best fit we could have hoped for. I still get my Michigan game at the end of the regular season, and I still get my Penn State game every year. I have to admit — this has gone pretty well.
We’ll develop new traditions. We’ll adjust. But for today, I’m not where I want to be. I hope I’ll get there by tomorrow morning.
