B1G Basketball Schedules: Ranking the Drops

Finally, let me warmly welcome you to the 2023/2024 B1G College Basketball Season. New schedules, new non-cons, and new coaches and players. The B1G finally figured out their Excel pivot table for scheduling and released it on the 19th of September - what a glorious day!

Analyzing the schedule, teams, and performance will come in due time - but to get us started, I’ve ranked each school’s schedule announcement graphic/video/static text on a website.

Without further ado, first to worst!

RUTGERS SCARLET KNIGHTS

You know this was coming when you saw my byline. But this video is extremely dope - especially when you see Cliff get out of the mini-bus at the end and realize he’s been driving the whole time... It almost makes the campus seem coherent instead of 5 different micro-environments that don’t make any sense when you actually drive around.

NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS

If you’re reading this and you haven’t watched Keisei Tominaga play, you’re in for a real treat. Tune into that Nebby/Purdue game on Jan 9.

Clean design and your best player leading it off? Nice.

WISCONSIN BADGERS

Couldn’t be any more Wisco if they tried. Clean, simple, Kohl’s in the background - and really no one player out on the graphic. Exactly like the buzzcuts play.

MINNESOTA GOLDEN GOPHERS

It seems like they were going for a 80’s-ish aesthetic here. It works really well as Goldy’s colors really stand out in contrast and let you do a lot with the design. I do wish they had some players on here, but let’s be honest - what Minnesota fan would actually know anyone on the basketball roster?

NORTHWESTERN WILDCATS

Again, small fonts and for some reason a decision to put grey on purple?

But it’s this far up for the Seinfeld joke. Classy and on par for NW.

IOWA HAWKEYES

I like this, ONLY because Payton Sandfort looks like he just got the Sega Genesis that came bundled with Sonic and Knuckles on Christmas Morning.

Other than that, absolutely no information.

ILLINOIS FIGHTING ILLINI

So, this tweet is super cluttered. BUT! I really enjoy both the calendar (if you’re a visual time learner) and the drop down schedule at the end. It’s got a ton of players with poses that are relatively normal and framed/formatted well to fit page sizes. It’s just a lot.

Outside of Chicago they MAY have issues reading this much text though.

PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS

Again, PSU has the Minnesota color touch. Anything looks good with the Blue & White, but there’s really no information here.

MARYLAND TERRAPINS

The exact opposite of the above. Is there a need for the yellow? Red and black together are large no-nos in graphic design, especially with white inlays. Color blind victims are going to end up in West Lafayette instead of College Park.

It looks like the movie poster for A Quiet Place 3: More Quiet, More Monsters, More Jim Halpert.

OHIO STATE BUCKEYES

In true Ohio State fashion, they only decided to list matchups they deem “Marquee”. Tiny-ass font, with a key at the bottom? I’m surprised they didn’t charge fans just to read this.

Buckeyes have the self awareness of Joseph Goebbels, I swear.

MICHIGAN WOLVERINES

I love how they mention “in conjunction with the B1G”. Like Michigan has the power to just go set their own schedule. If Ohio State is on Mars, Michigan is looking for other solar systems.

Michigan wants to be Notre Dame so bad, and it’s so obvious.

Also, Dug. What are you doing, man? It looks like you’re pointing at your _____.

PURDUE BOILERMAKERS

I will give the absolute smallest amount of credit to the team that made this. That’s a LOT of photoshop, cropping, layering, etc.

But we can’t see anything at the bottom, Purdue’s color palette is two colors that look the same and the occasional white, and what kind of poses are those players doing?

Mason Gillis looks like he has a walking cane. Ethan Morton both doesn’t have the arms to make that pose and looks like he’d rather be around a 4 foot bong. Braden Smith is... small.

MICHIGAN STATE SPARTANS

The only credit here goes to MSU trying to connect to the youth(s). I have some teenagerish kids, and they write, type, and text in all lowercase. It’s as infuriating as you think it is, because they also write academically with the same mechanics.

I know a LOT of MSU fans through marriage, so I’m really happy they put the full location of East Lansing for all home games. They’re liable to forget or get confused.

INDIANA HOOSIERS

Yeah, couldn’t find an Indiana schedule graphic. Enjoy this video from the more creative Indiana University.

edit: i missed this, thanks 87. Put it between two of the B1G East schools. But IUPUI’s is way better: