Those of you who don’t follow Illinois sports that closely may not be aware the Illini play in the Big Ten Conference.

The Big Ten Conference is an athletic conference made up of 11 universities: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue and Wisconsin.

You may think to yourself, “11 schools? Then why is it called the Big Ten?”

Well, here’s how it happened.

The Big Ten was founded in 1896 by seven universities: Chicago, Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Northwestern, Purdue and Wisconsin.

In 1899 Indiana and Iowa were admitted, while Ohio State joined in 1912.

Chicago withdrew in 1946 and Michigan State was added three years later.

After 40 years of having a consistent league roster, the Big Ten Conference expanded to 11 members.

On June 4, 1990, the Council of Presidents voted to add Penn State University to the conference.

While other conferences, such as the Atlantic Coast Conference and the Big East Conference have added and subtracted teams, the Big Ten has remained constant with its 11 teams.

Today the Big Ten Conference sponsors a total of 25 championships, 12 for men and 13 for women, and more than 250 athletic programs.

It also provides more than $63 million in athletic scholarships to 7,500 men and women student-athletes.

• Illinois Fighting Illini

• Location: Urbana-Champaign, Ill.
• Enrollment: 40,670
• Founded: 1867
• Colors: Orange and Blue
• President: Joseph White
• Athletic Director: Ron Guenther
• Joined Big Ten: 1896

  Michigan Wolverines

• Location: Ann Arbor, Mich.
• Enrollment: 37,197
• Founded: 1817
• Colors: Maize and Blue
• President: Mary Sue Coleman
• Athletic Director: Bill Martin
• Joined Big Ten: 1896

  Northwestern Wildcats

• Location: Evanston, Ill.
• Enrollment: 7,400 undergrad
• Founded: 1851
• Colors: Purple and White
• President: Henry Bienen
• Athletic Director: Mark Murphy
• Joined Big Ten: 1896

  Purdue Boilermakers

• Location: West Lafayette, Ind.
• Enrollment: 37,871
• Founded: 1869
• Colors: Old Gold and Black
• President: Martin Jischke
• Athletic Director: Morgan Burke
• Joined Big Ten: 1896

  Indiana Hoosiers

• Location: Bloomington, Ind.
• Enrollment: 38,903
• Founded: 1820
• Colors: Cream and Crimson
• President: Adam W. Herbert
• Athletic Director: Rick Greenspan
• Joined Big Ten: 1899

  Michigan State Spartans

• Location: East Lansing, Mich.
• Enrollment: 43,159
• Founded: 1855
• Colors: Green and White
• President: Lou Anna K. Simon
• Athletic Director: Ron Mason
• Joined Big Ten: 1949

  Ohio State Buckeyes

• Location: Columbus, Ohio
• Enrollment: 54,989
• Founded: 1870
• Colors: Scarlet and Gray
• President: Karen Holbrook
• Athletic Director: Eugene Smith
• Joined Big Ten: 1912

  Iowa Hawkeyes

• Location: Iowa City, Iowa
• Enrollment: 28,705
• Founded: 1847
• Colors:Black and Gold
• President: David Skorton
• Athletic Director: Gary Barta
• Joined Big Ten: 1899

  Minnesota Golden Gophers

• Location: Minneapolis, Minn.
• Enrollment: 45,361
• Founded: 1851
• Colors: Maroon and Gold
• President: Robert H. Bruininks
• Athletic Director: Joel Maturi
• Joined Big Ten: 1896

  Penn State Nittany Lions

• Location: University Park, Pa.
• Enrollment: 40,571
• Founded: 1855
• Colors: Blue and White
• President: Graham Spanier
• Athletic Director: Tim Curley
• Joined Big Ten: 1990

  Wisconsin Badgers

• Location: Madison, Wisc.
• Enrollment: 41,219
• Founded: 1848
• Colors: Cardinal and White
• Chancellor: John Wiley
• Athletic Director: Barry Alvarez
• Joined Big Ten: 1896

  Current champs

  Men’s sports

  Baseball: Michigan

  Basketball: Ohio State

  Cross Country: Wisconsin

  Football: Ohio State/Penn State

  Golf: Northwestern

  Gymnastics: Ohio State

  Indoor Track: Wisconsin

  Outdoor Track: Wisconsin

  Soccer: Penn State

  Swimming: Indiana

  Tennis: Ohio State

  Wrestling: Michigan

  Women’s sports

  Basketball: Ohio State

  Cross Country: Michigan

  Field Hockey: Penn State

  Golf: Purdue

  Gymnastics: Minnesota

  Indoor Track: Michigan

  Outdoor Track: Minnesota

  Rowing: Ohio State

  Soccer: Penn State

  Softball: Northwestern

  Swimming: Penn State

  Tennis: Northwestern

  Volleyball: Penn State

  Recent Illini champs

  Men’s sports

  Baseball: 2005

  Basketball: 2005

  Cross Country: 1984

  Football: 2001

  Golf: 1988

  Gymnastics: 2004

  Tennis: 2005

  Track: 1994

  Wrestling: 2005

  Women’s sports

  Basketball: 1997

  Gymnastics: 1990

  Track: 2005

  Soccer: 2005

  Volleyball: 1992

  Meet our rivals

  Muck Fichigan

  That’s right. Muck ’em. Michigan has been a thorn in the Illini side in football (21-63-2 verses the Wolverines in football; haven’t stopped them in Champaign since 1983) and it was Michigan that stopped the 1989 Flyin’ Illini from winning the national title in basketball.

  Michigan always seems to be good in other sports too. That’s why one campus T-shirt company created the infamous “Muck Fichigan/Ann Arbor is a whore” shirt. It’s a must have for any true Illini fan’s wardrobe.

  Iowa

  OK, Iowa really isn’t a rival. Illini fans hate Iowa. Ever since Bruce Pearl blew the whistle on cheating at Illinois (which was never proved to have existed) and getting the Illini put on probation right after the run to the 1989 Final Four, there is not even a little bit of respect for the Hawkeyes.

  Throw in that Iowa has recently dominated the Illini on the gridiron and this is just one school no Illini fan ever wants to see do well.

  Ohio State

  Those blasted Buckeyes, like Michigan, have killed Illinois on the footbal field – though it hasn’t been too long ago since Illinois had a winning streak against them.

  Add in that the Buckeyes stopped the 2005 Illini chance at an undefeated season and broke the tennis team’s run of Big Ten championships, and Ohio State is just another one of those pain-in-the-neck teams.