Editing Big Ten Conference (section)

===Protected matchups===
Beginning in 2024, the conference will eliminate divisions but will protect certain matchups. The following are the conference's 12 protected matchups.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-11-20 |title=Big Ten Conference Announces Future Football Schedule Formats for 2024–28 |url=https://bigten.org/fb/article/blt39fc5a9dd81251cf/ |access-date=2023-11-20 |website=Big Ten Conference |language=en}}</ref>

* '''Illinois:''' Northwestern, Purdue
* '''Indiana:''' Purdue
* '''Iowa:''' Minnesota, Nebraska, Wisconsin
* '''Maryland:''' Rutgers
* '''Michigan:''' Michigan State, Ohio State
* '''Michigan State''': Michigan
* '''Minnesota:''' Iowa, Wisconsin
* '''Nebraska''': Iowa
* '''Northwestern:''' Illinois
* '''Ohio State:''' Michigan
* '''Oregon''': Washington
* '''Purdue:''' Illinois, Indiana
* '''Rutgers:''' Maryland
* '''UCLA:''' USC
* '''USC:''' UCLA
* '''Washington:''' Oregon
* '''Wisconsin:''' Minnesota, Iowa

From 1993 through 2010, the Big Ten football schedule was set up with each team having two permanent matches within the conference, with the other eight teams in the conference rotating out of the schedule in pairs for two-year stints. Permanent matches were as follows:{{Citation needed|date=February 2014}}
* '''Illinois''': Indiana, Northwestern
* '''Indiana''': Illinois, Purdue
* '''Iowa''': Minnesota, Wisconsin
* '''Michigan''': Michigan State, Ohio State
* '''Michigan State''': Michigan, Penn State
* '''Minnesota''': Iowa, Wisconsin
* '''Northwestern''': Illinois, Purdue
* '''Ohio State''': Michigan, Penn State
* '''Penn State''': Michigan State, Ohio State
* '''Purdue''': Indiana, Northwestern
* '''Wisconsin''': Iowa, Minnesota

This system was discontinued after the 2010 season, as teams became grouped into two divisions, and would play all teams in their division once, with one protected cross-over game, and two games rotating against the other five opponents from the opposing division.

Most of the above permanent rivalries were maintained. By virtue of the new alignment, a handful of new permanent divisional opponents were created, as all pairs of teams within the same division would face off each season. Furthermore, three new permanent inter-divisional matches resulted from the realignment: Purdue–Iowa, Michigan State–Indiana, and Penn State–Nebraska. The following past permanent matches were maintained across divisions: Minnesota–Wisconsin, Michigan–Ohio State, and Illinois–Northwestern.

The new alignment, however, caused some of the above permanent rivalries to be discontinued. These were: Iowa–Wisconsin, Northwestern–Purdue, and Michigan State–Penn State. These matchups would continue to be played, but only twice every five years on average. More rivalries were disrupted, and some resumed on a yearly basis, when the league realigned into East and West Divisions for the 2014 season with the addition of Maryland and Rutgers. The two new schools were placed in the new East Division with Penn State, and the two Indiana schools were divided (Indiana to the East and Purdue to the West). With the move to a nine-game conference schedule in 2016, all cross-division games will be held at least once in a four-year cycle except for Indiana–Purdue, which is the only protected cross-division game.<ref name="2014 realignment approved"/> The conference later announced that once the new scheduling format takes effect in 2016, members will be prohibited from playing [[NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision|FCS]] teams, and required to play at least one non-conference game against a team in the [[Power Five conferences]] ([[Atlantic Coast Conference|ACC]], [[Big 12 Conference|Big 12]], [[Pac-12 Conference|Pac-12]] and [[Southeastern Conference|SEC]]; presumably, this would also allow for non-conference games against Big Ten opponents that are not on the conference schedule). Games against [[NCAA Division I FBS independent schools|independents]] [[Notre Dame Fighting Irish football|Notre Dame]] (an ACC member in non-football sports) also count toward the Power Five requirement, as did games against [[BYU Cougars football|BYU]] before it joined the Big 12 in 2023.<ref name="McGuire"/>