Whether you're ready or not, Maryland and Rutgers officially become Big Ten members on Tuesday.
And the league is welcoming its two newest schools with a pair of celebrations in the East, which is now a Big Ten region.
Festivities began for Maryland on Monday with the official launch of the Terrapins' new Big Ten inaugural season apparel at the Under Armour Brand House in Baltimore. Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany attended the ceremony, along with Maryland athletic director Kevin Anderson and other Terrapins coaches and staff. Delany showed off some of the new gear in this photo:
The first official piece of Maryland @bigtenconf apparel presented to @kbaterp and Commissioner Jim Delany! pic.twitter.com/zHpA2Nul6X
— Maryland Athletics (@umterps) June 30, 2014
The celebration was set to continue Monday night at Nationals Park, where Maryland and the Big Ten Network will host a block party before the Washington Nationals take on the Colorado Rockies. The league mascots also were on the loose in Washington D.C., leading to some fun pictures like this one:
Love, the #B1G mascots #B1GWelcome pic.twitter.com/40znA8G0uM
— Big Ten Conference (@bigtenconf) June 30, 2014
And this one:
Where's the vertical, @UWBuckyBadger?!? (photo: @bigtenconf) pic.twitter.com/h6aMwWIQyp
— Brent Yarina (@BTNBrentYarina) June 30, 2014
And, OK, one more, because who can get enough mascot pictures?
This is fun: @bigtenconf mascots are on the loose in D.C., and they're chronicling it all - http://t.co/XwZBgaqPn1. pic.twitter.com/hiqQBmtfeR
— Brent Yarina (@BTNBrentYarina) June 30, 2014
Maryland will continue to recognize its entry into the Big Ten with an on-campus party at Mitchell Field from noon to 1:30 p.m on Tuesday. The event will include the unveiling of a special Big Ten ice cream.
Rutgers gets its day in the sun on Tuesday, as Delany will visit the campus for the "R B1G Party" at High Point Solutions Stadium. The event begins at 7 p.m. and is free for fans to attend. A fireworks display will begin around 9 p.m.
So, yeah, this is all happening. We'll have more on the official Big Ten entrance of Rutgers and Maryland in the blog on Tuesday.