If you're a purist like me, you rejected the idea of Maryland and Rutgers joining the Big Ten like a popsicle dipped in antifreeze but, regardless of what you and I think, both schools officially join the league in a month and a half. And even though it stomps on any sense of history and purism left in college sports, you have to give credit to both sides. They were at least up front about why the Midwest-East Coast merger was being made: money.
The Big Ten wanted a footprint on the East Coast. Maryland and Rutgers needed money. Both sides admitted as much.
And a new look at each school's finances proves they indeed being truthful.
Courtesy of ESPN's Outside the Lines, here's the balance sheet for 13 of the 14 Big Ten institutions (Northwestern, a private school, did not report financial figures) from 2007-08 to 2012-13.
Moving forward, the Big Ten expects more than $40 million a year in television revenue by 2017-18.... for the 12 existing conference members.