Report: Big Ten to keep divisional format until USC, UCLA arrive in 2024

The Big Ten plans to keep its current East-West divisional format for the 2023 season before deciding on a new model when USC and UCLA join the conference in 2024, sources told The Athletic's Scott Dochterman.

The conference also expects to release its 2023 schedule this week.

The Big Ten explored the idea of scrapping its current geographical division setup in favor of a single divisional arrangement, but administrators found too many issues, such as protected games, television concerns, and scheduling.

Both USC and UCLA are set to join the Big Ten ahead of the 2024-25 season after announcing their departures from the Pac-12 in June.

Keeping the conference's East-West format for another year will allow key rivalries to stay intact and feature games to collaborate with new broadcast partners.

The Big Ten agreed to a seven-year, $7-billion agreement with Fox, CBS, and NBC that will start on July 1, 2023.

Commissioner Kevin Warren chose to keep the structure the same to avoid possible conflicts from "unintended consequences" of a new format.

The East has dominated its West counterpart, winning all eight conference championship games. The Big Ten previously used a Legends and Leaders division for three seasons before adopting its current format when Rutgers and Maryland joined the conference in 2014.