The Big Ten Conference announced each team’s opponents for next season on Tuesday afternoon. It will once again be a 20-game conference slate, marking the ninth straight season with that format. Every team will play each conference opponent once either at home or on the road, while three teams will be played twice in a home-and-home series.
Certain rivalries are protected by the Big Ten, including Michigan vs. Michigan State, Wisconsin vs. Minnesota, Illinois vs. Northwestern, Iowa vs. Nebraska, Indiana
vs. Purdue, and more. The four West Coast schools will also play each other twice in order to preserve former Pac-12 rivalries and reduce travel demands.
Who is Illinois’ “rival?”
Illinois will once again play Northwestern twice this season, continuing the basketball version of the Land of Lincoln rivalry. The Illini already face Northwestern and Purdue annually in football, and the same will now be true on the hardwood this season.
Illinois did not play Purdue twice last season, but the teams did meet twice two years ago and will do so again this year. With the two schools located less than 100 miles apart, it is great to see the rivalry renewed with another home-and-home series. Similarly, Illinois will also face Wisconsin twice next season, with games in both Madison and Champaign.
The Big Ten did a much better job this time around of keeping traditional conference rivals together rather than matching Illinois up twice with teams like Nebraska and Maryland, as it did last season. It feels more natural for the Illini to consistently play schools such as Purdue, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Indiana in meaningful conference matchups. Geography and history should matter in scheduling, and it appears conference officials took that into consideration this year.
The rest of Illinois’ conference opponents were released on X, while the official game dates are expected to be announced in September. The schedule is as follows:
- Home: Iowa, Michigan State, Nebraska, Ohio State, Penn State, UCLA, USC
- Away: Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Oregon, Rutgers, Washington
- Home/Away: Northwestern, Purdue, Wisconsin
Conference Record Prediction?
The schedule appears favorable for an Illinois team expected to once again contend near the top of the conference. The Illini will only face projected title contenders Michigan State and Michigan once, while playing Purdue and Wisconsin twice — two teams that could take a slight step back compared to the 2025-26 season.
Michigan on the road will likely be Illinois’ toughest conference test, but only having to face the Wolverines once is a major advantage given their expected national standing. Outside of that matchup, the Illini’s road schedule does not feature many teams projected to finish near the top of the Big Ten standings.
Illinois will also make another West Coast trip this season, traveling to Oregon and Washington in back-to-back games. That trip treated the Illini well during the 2024-25 conference season when they swept both games.
Overall, this schedule gives Illinois a strong opportunity to win 15+ conference games and compete for its first Big Ten regular-season title since 2022.
