STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) - The Big Ten might put more emphasis on geography when shuffling divisions after eastern schools Maryland and Rutgers join the Midwest-centric league by 2014.

Penn State athletic director Dave Joyner said ``there seems to be a lot of sentiment'' within the conference to have divisional alignments based more on geography. He said that would help with travel issues, particularly for sports other than football.

Joyner made his comments in a videotaped interview with a Penn State sports information staffer posted Tuesday on the athletic department's website.

The current 12-team Big Ten split into two divisions for football in 2011. Commissioner Jim Delany had said the conference sought to keep competitive balance and promote new rivalries while keeping traditions and existing rivalries in mind.