Big Ten and Pac-12 Reveal Scheduling Agreement

I'm sure more details will emerge, but here's what we know right now. This deal will involve all sports, not just football. [via USA Today]...

The Big Ten and Pacific-12 are extending their partnership well beyond the Rose Bowl, announcing Wednesday that they'll step up interconference scheduling, cross-promote on their respective television networks and even set up academic and cultural exchanges.

Without formally expanding either 12-team league, officials say they expect many of the same benefits from collaboration. Each league will extend its reach. There'll be more to sell to TV. Revenues should rise accordingly.

"It's sort of in lieu of what some other people are doing (with expansion)," Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany said.

"Our idea is you can't stand still. You have to build in an environment where people are competing for attention, where they're competing to have the best competitive assets and to present themselves in the best way. I think both of us believe … this is the most constructive way for us to do that."

Also, this little nugget.

By 2017, each team's nonconference football schedule will include one game against a team from the other league. One could be featured annually as a preseason kickoff event, perhaps staged at the Rose Bowl. Others could be played in neighboring NFLstadiums, including the planned Farmers Field in downtown Los Angeles, the San Francisco 49ers' new facility or Chicago's Soldier Field.

It's also said that this agreement might effect the B1G's decision to go to a 9-game league schedule by 2017. Official announcement today at 4PM. More details then.