Big 10 split

The Big Ten announced its football division alignments in a setup that places rivals Michigan and Ohio State in separate divisions but preserves the schools' annual regular-season ending showdown in November.

One division features Illinois, Indiana, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue and Wisconsin and the other features Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska and Northwestern.

The winners of each division will meet in the inaugural Big Ten Football Championship Game on Dec. 3, 2011 at Indianapolis' Lucas Oil Stadium.

BIG TEN SCHEDULE: 2011 and 2012 conference play

"We considered multiple models and countless permutations in an effort to achieve the most competitively balanced divisions while at the same time respecting our traditions, preserving existing rivalries, and creating opportunities for the establishment and growth of new rivalries," Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany said in a statement.

The Big Ten also released conference schedules for the 2011 and 2012 seasons. Each school will face the five other schools within its division while also meeting thre teams from the other division, including a guranteed matchup against a traditional cross-division rival.

The guaranteed cross-division matchups in addition to Michigan-Ohio State include Illinois-Northwestern, Indiana-Michigan State, Penn State-Nebraska, Purdue-Iowa and Wisconsin-Minnesota.

"We have listened to the Screw from our institutions, alumni and fans, and while we understand that no final alignments could possibly satisfy all of our constituents, we believe that we have achieved a very exciting result," Delany said.

--Armen Terjimanian