UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Penn State and Nebraska will be seeing more of each other starting next season when the Cornhuskers join the Big Ten Conference.

The two teams will play each other on an annual basis as part of a guaranteed cross-division matchup.

"We are pleased to have Nebraska as Penn State's annual crossover game," Penn State athletic director Tim Curley said in a statement. "We have had outstanding contests with Nebraska in the past and look forward to hosting the Cornhuskers in Beaver Stadium in 2011.

The Big Ten revealed its two six-team divisions Wednesday night:

• Penn State, Ohio State, Wisconsin, Purdue, Indiana and Illinois.

• Michigan, Nebraska, Iowa, Michigan State, Northwestern and Minnesota.

Beginning in 2011, each Big Ten school will play the five other teams within its division, three teams from the other division and a guaranteed yearly cross-division game.

The winner of each division, which commissioner Jim Delany said he hopes to have names for within 90 days, will meet in the inaugural Big Ten championship game Dec. 3, 2011, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

That game will determine the Big Ten champion and the conference's participant in the Rose Bowl or Bowl Championship Series national championship game.

"Over the past several months, Big Ten staff and directors of athletics have met on several occasions to discuss and finalize division alignments," Delany said. "We focused on competitive equality, traditional rivalries and geography.

"We considered multiple models and countless permutations in an effort to achieve the most competitively balanced divisions while at the same time respecting our traditions, preserving existing rivalries and creating opportunities for the establishment and growth of new rivalries.

"We have listened to the feedback from our institutions, alumni and fans, and while we understand that no final alignments could possibly satisfy all of our constituents, we believe that we have achieved a very exciting result."

The Big Ten also announced updated conference schedules for the 2011 and '12 seasons.

The Nittany Lions will face Big Ten opponents Iowa, Purdue, Illinois and Nebraska at Beaver Stadium in '11, while visiting Indiana, Northwestern, Ohio State and Wisconsin. Penn State also will have non-conference home games against Indiana State, Alabama and Eastern Michigan and play Temple on the road.

In '12, Penn State will play Northwestern, Ohio State, Indiana and Wisconsin at home and face Illinois, Iowa, Purdue and Nebraska on the road. The Lions also will play Ohio, Navy and Temple in home non-conference games and Virginia on the road.

"We are pleased with the final divisional alignments and look forward to playing our divisional opponents starting next season," Curley said. "Divisional play will add a new dimension to Big Ten football and this new era will add to the tremendous interest and excitement for all Penn State, Big Ten and college football fans."

Ron Musselman's Penn State blog and videos are featured exclusively on PG+, a members-only web site from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Our introduction to PG+ gives you all the details.