Future Schedules
Page Posted
7/1/05;
Updated
6/3/13

 




Future Wildcat Football Schedules:
New Division Schedules for 2014-'15 Are Released
 
The Big Ten has announced the official schedule for 2015 conference games.  Schedule speculation is listed below.

Games listed in red are not confirmed.  Dates printed in red do not yet have a confirmed date and, therefore, are not necessarily listed in the correct order. 



The most recent update to this information was made on June 3, 2013:

The Big Ten has formally released the 2015 schedule (NU's is posted below).  The same divisional cross-over games are in place as for 2014: NU will face Michigan and Penn State again.


Other recent updates:


May 16:

The Big Ten has formally released the 2014 schedule (NU's is posted below).  Among the intesting points to note about the 2014 B1G schedule:
  • In addition to NU's six Western Division foes, the 'Cats will play Penn State and Michigan.  NU will have to wait at least an additional year to begin its series with Rutgers or Maryland. 
  • NU will play Michigan at Ryan Field for the second straight year.  This marks the first time since the 1949-1950 seasons that the Wolverines will have played in Evanston for two straight years.
  • Five of NU's six divisional foes will have bye weeks before playing NU in 2014.  How did that pass the schedule makers' scrutiny?
  • NU will close the B1G season with Illinois, and it looks very likely that NU's 2014 homecoming will be vs. Nebraska.
  • NU is listed as "blank" for the week of November 15, indicating that the scheduled game with Notre Dame is likely to remain on the agenda.
  • NU has not yet formally released its 2014 non-conference schedule, so there is still one mystery opponent, after Vanderbilt wiggled out of its game with NU.

April 22:

The new Big Ten divisions should be titled "Charter" and "Expansion."  The Western Division, with two exceptions (Iowa and Nebraska), contains only charter members of the conference.  The Eastern Division, with exactly one exception (Michigan) contains only expansion members of the B1G.


April 21:

The B1G's new divisions will indeed be based on a straight geographic split, with NU joining the Western Division, and the new B1G teams heading to the Eastern.  The new divisions will be as follows:

Western Eastern
Illinois Indiana
Iowa Maryland
Minnesota Michigan
Nebraska Michigan St.
Northwestern Ohio St.
Purdue Penn St.
Wisconsin Rutgers

The new divisions will take effect for the 2014 season, the first season with Maryland and Rutgers.  The conference will move to a nine-game season beginning in 2016.  A ten-game conference season had been considered, but the B1G ruled it out, because it would threaten teams' seven home games per season.

The proposed move would be good news for Northwestern, for two reasons.  First, the Eastern Division contains more traditionally powerful teams, and any reasonable analysis would select the Western Division as the easier division to win.  Second, the Western Division contains all of NU's traditional rivals in the conference.  With the exception of Nebraska, every other one of the Western teams has had a long and vital series with NU.

The nine-game conference slate in '16 will mean that NU plays each Eastern team at least once every other year.  Unfortunately, it also means that the Notre Dame game at Ryan Field in '18 is in jeopardy.


Feb 5:

NU and the Cubs announced that NU will return to Wrigley Field to play at least five more home game at the Cubs' stadium in 2014 or beyond.  Details, opposing teams, and years have yet to be determined.


Continue to watch the always-precarious upcoming series with Notre Dame.  NU's 2014 trip to South Bend is still apparently on the schedule (for now), but is the Irish's 2018 trip to Evanston still on?  Notre Dame will look for any way to weasel out of it, and trading off a game at Ryan Field for a "home" game in Chicago (or no return game at all) remains totally unacceptable.



Rumored Series;
Dates Unknown


Navy (possibly sometime in 2015-19)
BYU (BYU was trying to schedule)


2014 Schedule
B1G Games Confirmed
H  California Aug 30
-  Bye Week Sep 6

Open
Sep 13

I-AA Western Illinois
Sep 20

Penn State
Sep 27

Wisconsin*
Oct 4

Minnesota*
Oct 11

Nebraska*
Oct 18

Bye
Oct 25

Iowa*
Nov 1

Michigan
Nov 8
A 
Notre Dame
Nov 15

Purdue*
Nov 22
H Illinois*
Nov 29



2015 Schedule
B1G Games Confirmed

Non-Conf. slate likely unchanged
H  Stanford Sep 5
H  I-AA Eastern Illinois
Sep 12

Duke
Sep 19

Ball State
Sep 26

Minnesota*
Oct 3

Michigan Oct 10

Iowa* Oct 17

Nebraska*
Oct 24

Bye
Oct 31

Penn State
Nov 7

Purdue*
Nov 14
A
Wisconsin*
Nov 21
A Illinois*
Nov 28




2016 Schedule
Based on proposed divisions;
Sept. 10 game with Illinois State will
likely be canceled
H  Western Michigan ?
H  Duke ?

Stanford ?

Bye Week ?

Illinois* ?

Iowa* ?

Minnesota* ?

Nebraska* ?

Purdue* ?

Wisconsin*
?

Eastern Div. Team
?

Eastern Div. Team
?
- Eastern Div. Team
?



2017 Schedule
Based on proposed divisions
 
A  Duke ?
-  Rice ?

?
?

lllinois* ?

Iowa* ?

Minnesota* ?

Nebraska* ?

Purdue* ?

Wisconsin* ?

Eastern Div. Team
?

Eastern Div. Team
?

Eastern Div. Team
?




2018 Schedule
Based on proposed divisions;
Notre Dame will likely cancel
H  Duke ?
H  Notre Dame ?

Rice
?

Illinois*
?

Iowa* ?

Minnesota* ?

Nebraska* ?

Purdue* ?

Wisconsin* ?

Eastern Div. Team
?

Eastern Div. Team
?

Eastern Div. Team
?


2019:
H vs. Stanford, Sep 14


2020:
A vs. Stanford, Sep 19


2021:
H vs. Stanford, Sep 18


2022:
A vs. Stanford, Sep 17