New Big Ten Bowl Deal Announced Today

Later today, the Big Ten will announce a new agreement for its post-season bowls. Via ESPN's Adam Rittenberg. They are as follows:

• #1 - Rose Bowl (vs Pac-10)
• #2 - Capital One Bowl (vs SEC)
• #3 - Outback Bowl (vs SEC)
• #4 - Gator Bowl (vs SEC*)
• #5 - Insight Bowl (vs Big 12)
• #6 - Texas Bowl (vs Big 12)
• #7 - Cotton Bowl** (vs Big 12/C-USA)
• #8 - Little Caesars Pizza Bowl (vs MAC)

So, this gives the Big Ten, which has struggled lately in bowl games, another bowl game. This agreement is expected to last until 2014. It was take effect next year, and will not impact bowl games for this season.

It should also be noted that if the Big Ten #1 team is accepted into the BCS Championship game, or  the #2 team receives a BCS at-large bid, that the Big Ten could, conceivably, have 9 teams playing in bowl games as long as we have 9 teams with at least a .500 record. In the national championship scenario, it isn't certain that the #2 team would automatically receive a bid to play in the Rose Bowl, so a Big Ten team in the national title game might not alter the rest of the bowl lineups.

Howeva!

If the #1 team goes to the Rose Bowl, and the #2 team receives an at-large bid to another BCS game, then the rest of the Big Ten teams would be bumped up a notch. So, for example, the #3 Big Ten squad would end up in the Capital One Bowl.

*- ESPN's Adam Rittenberg reported that this game would be played against an ACC opponent. Later, it was corrected to an SEC matchup.

**- The Cotton Bowl is where this game will be played, and is not necessarily the name of the bowl game itself. This game would feature a match up against either a Big 12 team or Conference USA.

The #4 and #5 bowls (Gator and Insight) will alternate each year between the 4th and 5th position.