INDIANAPOLIS — Behind the stage at Lucas Oil Stadium, the site of the last 13 and the next four Big Ten Championship games, is a banner that stretches across sections 152, 153, 101 and 102.
One side showcases eight programs who have been a part of the conference for at least 10 years, or in some cases, since the very beginning. On the other, half of the team logos on display are brand new to the 18-team super conference.
The farthest west the Big Ten covered in its original 1896 iteration was Wisconsin. Now, four programs in states that border the Pacific Ocean are set to begin their first season with the Big Ten.
“It definitely feels more real especially now that we’re here in Indianapolis,” USC Center Jonah Monheim told IndyStar. “Seeing these other teams, all the logos and the other head coaches, obviously it’s something we’ve acknowledged and addressed. … There’s certainly a lot of change.”
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Through the first two sessions of Big Ten Football Media Days, 12 head coaches and 36 athletes spoke about their programs. On the second day, representatives from USC and UCLA made their official conference debuts.
“Change is good,” quarterback Ethan Garbers told IndyStar. “I like the change that has come in here, and I think it’s just going to be good for UCLA as a whole.”
UCLA football is changing in more ways than one. Aside from jumping from the PAC-12 to the Big Ten, the Bruins welcome a new head coach in Deshaun Foster and a new offensive coordinator in Eric Beiniemy.
Foster has been entrenched in UCLA football since 2012, so his transition to head coach has not been much of an adjustment. However, some players have felt a difference in the program since Foster took the reins from former head coach Chip Kelly in February.
“Especially with coach Foster and the energy he’s brought, I feel like we’re a brand-new team,” defensive lineman Jay Toia told IndyStar. “There’s just a new energy, the atmosphere feels new, everybody’s bought in.”
Perhaps no one is more bought in to the change in conference than Foster. He recognized the unique opportunity UCLA has in moving to the Big Ten. It means UCLA is more nationwide than ever, particularly when it comes to recruiting.
Foster said he isn’t a car salesman, he doesn’t approach recruiting as a sales pitch. But the former NFL running back thinks more aspiring Division I football players from the Midwest or East Coast will be willing to take a chance on UCLA, especially their parents.
“The fact that now they’re gonna be able to either drive to another school during an away game or maybe come to see us and they can still see their kid play, that’s huge,” Foster told IndyStar. ” … You have to take care of home first and then recruit nationally and cast a bigger net.”
New opponents, new opportunities
Joining USC and UCLA in the Big Ten are Oregon and Washington, two teams that have recently cemented a place among the best college football programs in the country. Purdue head coach Ryan Walters welcomes the stiffer competition these four schools bring to the Big Ten.
“It just adds to the prestige and adds to the strength of the Big Ten Conference,” Walters said.
The only new Big Ten program Purdue is scheduled to face in 2024 is Oregon, and instead of traveling to Eugene, the Boilermakers will take on the Ducks in West Lafayette on Oct. 18. However, USC is scheduled to make trips to Michigan, Minnesota and Maryland in 2024, and while all of which take place before Oct. 20, these colder climates will be something the Trojans must get used to. On the flip side, USC hosts Wisconsin, Penn State, Rutgers and Nebraska, all long flights for the Midwest or East Coast programs.
Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley knows there will be growing pains when it comes to a new national travel schedule, but he expects USC to be well-equipped to handle the demands given the history of NFL talent from the program.
“We’re fortunate on the back end, because we’re going to gain all the hours coming back,” Riley told IndyStar. “The recovery for opposing teams coming our way and then going East will probably be a little more challenging for them than it is for us.
“NFL teams have been doing it forever now. Do you see anybody in NFL making a big deal that the Rams gotta go play the Giants? I think at some point after this first year, it’s not going to be a topic.”
UCLA hosts Indiana, Minnesota and Iowa, but the Bruins must make trips to Penn State, Rutgers and Nebraska in a less-than-one-month period from Oct. 5 to Nov. 2. Wide receiver J. Michael Sturdivant is a Texas native, so he is no stranger to nationwide travel with UCLA’s campus more than 1,400 miles from him home.
In fact, travel is an aspect of his journey as a Bruin that he has embraced with open arms.
“College football opens up the world to me and to everyone that plays it to go to places that maybe they would have never gone if they never played football,” Sturdivant told IndyStar. “It’s all a blessing.”
Foster doesn’t think it’ll be the coast-to-coast flights that could cause trouble for his players, but rather, the new environments and fan bases the Bruins will have to compete against in road games such as those against Penn State.
“It’s going to Beaver Stadium with 100,000 (people), it’s not the flight to the game,” Foster said. “When they get inside and seeing the wow factor, it’s more of getting that out of the way before we play the game.”
Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti said the process of creating schedules for each of the conference’s 18 programs was not just decided by a committee in Indianapolis but by also taking input from university administrators, team coaching staffs and athletes. And he confirmed the scheduling process will be one that endures constant evaluation.
USC quarterback Miller Moss knows there will be challenges when the Trojans travel to Ann Arbor, and not just because of the strength of Michigan’s football team. That’s something that excites him rather than shying him away from the hostile environment that comes with playing at the Big House.
Moss’ teammate Kamari Ramsey knows the defending National Champion Wolverines are perhaps the most notable opponent on their 2024 schedule, even with the annual rivalry matchup against Notre Dame. Not only does the safety view USC’s new yearly Big Ten opponents as opportunities to prove the Trojans standing as a blue blood, but he knows fans of the sport will have the chance to see the best of the best pitted up against each other on a more consistent basis.
“It’s great for college football,” Ramsey told IndyStar. “Different styles play against each other, I’m sure a lot of people want to see these different matchups too.”
Now having coached under the Big XII, PAC-12 and Big Ten banners, and with the increasing prominence of the transfer portal and NIL (Name, Image and Likeness), Riley is used to change. With that in mind, the leader of perhaps the biggest program jumping to the Big Ten feels well-equipped to handle the assumptions and expectations that may come with it.
“USC has always been a national brand and always will be … but it’s not about the pressure, it’s about the opportunity,” Riley told IndyStar. ” … No matter what conference you’re in, it’s always gonna be there, that’s why blue bloods are a little bit different than all the rest.
“… You want to go compare football histories, I’ll put ours up against anybody’s. The Big Ten’s got some teams with some phenomenal histories, but we’re not just learning how to play football.”
Contact Kyle Smedley with comments via email at KSmedley@Gannett.com or via X @KyleSmedley_.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: USC and UCLA football welcoming jump to the Big Ten
