Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany has heard the outrage, displeasure and ridicule over naming the two divisions in the conference "Legends" and "Leaders." The majority of people just plain don't like those names, and the uproar has Delany thinking that decision might have to be reassessed.
↵Delany admitted the disapproval has the conference considering a bow to public opinion during an interview with WGN Radio.
↵↵↵↵"We've had enough experience with names and expansion and development of divisions that we know that you rarely get a 90 percent approval rating," Delany told WGN AM-720. "But to get a 90 percent non-approval rating was really surprising. It showed that we didn’t connect with our fans in a way that we wanted to. It’s humbling, to say the least, because we’re trying to build fan bases, not push them away.
↵"I've been around this business a long time, and I would say it’s one of the more surprising things. There’s a sensibility there that we did not connect with, did not read well."
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Delany may also be the commissioner of the Big Understatement, judging from that quote.
↵But he went on to say that if the Big Ten decides to change those division names, it's not going to be a quick decision. They're going to "let this breathe" until at least after the new year. Maybe this time, however, the conference will be more open to suggestions.
↵While they're at it, can they also reassess that new logo design?