Latest news with #BigNoon
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
REPORT: Texas blocked Ohio State's attempt to move opener to prime time
When Fox Sports announced it had secured the rights to broadcast the Texas Longhorns 2025 season opener at Ohio State, there was one piece of information missing -- the time. Speculation swirled that, instead of the usual "Big Noon Saturday" time slot Fox uses for its top weekly game, the matchup would be moved to prime time. A new report suggests it was the Longhorns that blocked moving the game's start time. A few days after the original announcement, It was leaked that the game on Fox Sports would indeed be a Big Noon Saturday game. Ohio State fans have grown frustrated with Fox broadcasting the majority of their games at Noon. Many feel the early start diminishes the game-day atmosphere and excitement, especially for Ohio State fans accustomed to late afternoon or evening games that allow for a long tailgate. But the apparent reason Fox left the time off of the original graphic was because the Buckeyes' athletic department was lobbying for the Cotton Bowl rematch against Texas be moved to prime time on Sunday, either in the late afternoon or evening. Advertisement According to a new report by Chip Brown at Horns247, it was the Longhorns athletic department that rejected that proposal. Apparently, the feeling was Texas would have a better chance winning a Big Noon game on Saturday than a night game on Sunday. It's also possible Texas didn't want to disrupt travel or preparation for the next week's game against San Jose State. Obviously, those things could have been overcome if Texas actually wanted to facilitate the move. If the game could have been moved to prime time on Saturday night, Texas would have very little say in the matter. But the fact Ohio State wanted to move the game to another date (the next day) meant they had to get Texas' sign off. UT apparently did not sign off on the move. Saturday, August 30 has a slew of season openers, including LSU-Clemson in prime time on ABC. Sunday's only game is Notre Dame-Miami, also on ABC. Ohio State wanted the game to be played either in the late afternoon or at night on Sunday. Texas said no. Advertisement It's just one more storyline added to what will be an epic opener. This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Texas blocked Ohio State's attempt to move opener to prime time
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Chris Del Conte responds as Texas blocks prime-time move for 2025 opener at Ohio State
The Texas Longhorns will open their 2025 football season against the Ohio State Buckeyes in Columbus — and it will remain a Big Noon Saturday kickoff despite efforts to move the game to Sunday night. According to multiple reports, including one from Horns247, it was the Texas athletic department that declined a proposal from Ohio State and Fox Sports to shift the highly anticipated matchup into a Sunday prime-time slot. Advertisement Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte didn't mince words when asked about the decision. 'Why would I want to move the game to Sunday night and have a short week? I've got to go to church,' Del Conte said Wednesday, citing concerns over recovery time and personal priorities. When Fox Sports initially announced it had secured the rights to the game, the kickoff time was noticeably absent, prompting speculation the network was eyeing a marquee evening slot. Ohio State's athletic department reportedly lobbied for the move in hopes of avoiding yet another noon kickoff — a time slot that many Buckeyes fans believe stifles the game-day experience and tailgating atmosphere in Columbus. But that effort hit a wall. Since a Sunday move would alter the scheduled date of the game, Texas had to sign off on the change — something it was unwilling to do. Sources indicate that Texas believed its chances of winning would be stronger with a noon start and preferred not to compromise its preparation for the following week's game against San Jose State. Advertisement Fox has faced criticism from Ohio State fans in recent seasons for placing the Buckeyes in the Big Noon Saturday window for several high-profile games, diminishing the typical energy associated with late afternoon or evening kickoffs at Ohio Stadium. Had the game remained on Saturday but simply moved into a later time slot, Texas would have had no jurisdiction. But the proposed shift to Sunday required mutual agreement, and UT made its position clear. Texas and Ohio State are set to rematch after the Cotton Bowl win that advanced Ohio State to the National Championship, and then to win it all. This will also be the first game Texas has Arch Manning at the helm of the team. The 2025 showdown is expected to be one of the premier non-conference games of the season, drawing national attention — regardless of the time slot. This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Chris Del Conte shares thoughts on Ohio State game scheduling
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Fox announces game time for Texas at Ohio State, and fans won't be happy
Ohio State fans got another gut punch from the network that seems to love the Buckeyes just a little too much. Fox announced that it will air two OSU games in its Big Noon slot. One is obvious. The Game, featuring Ohio State vs. Michigan, will be a Fox game. While Fox didn't specify that the game would be a noon kickoff, it traditionally has been so in the past. The other game... well, fans are not going to be happy about this one. Fox announced that the matchup between Texas and the Buckeyes will be a Big Noon featured game of the week when the Longhorns come to town on August 30 in what will most likely be a top-five matchup. Advertisement Athletic Director Ross Bjork has been vocal in advocating for Ohio State to get more football games in primetime. The Buckeyes have carried the weight of the conference when it comes to the Fox Big Noon Game of the Week. Since the inception of the show in 2019, Ohio State has been the network's featured game 22 times. Michigan is next on the list with 17 Big Noon games. In 2024 alone, OSU was the network's featured game five times and had a total of seven noon starts. To say fans are getting tired of the early time slot would be an understatement. Especially after the electric atmosphere that was Ohio Stadium when it hosted Tennessee in the first round of the College Football Playoff. We've had a taste and we want more. It's time for Fox to start spreading the Big Noon love with others. This article originally appeared on Buckeyes Wire: Gametime for Ohio State vs Texas has been announced by Fox
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Kickoff times announced for select Oklahoma games in 2025 including Michigan, Texas
Kickoff times announced for select Oklahoma games in 2025 including Michigan, Texas The Oklahoma Sooners revealed start times for four games on the 2025 schedule. The SEC released start times and broadcast information for select games this season. The Oklahoma Sooners will open the season against Illinois State on Saturday, August 30 at 5 p.m. CT on ESPN+. Week 2, the Sooners will welcome the Michigan Wolverines to Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium for a primetime affair on ABC on Sept. 6. OU-Michigan will kickoff at 6:30 p.m. CT, giving the Sooners two primetime kickoffs to start the season. Association with the SEC and ESPN family of networks is paying dividends. Under the agreement with Fox, a game between Oklahoma and Michigan would have been given the Big Noon Kickoff timeslot at 11 a.m. CT. The week three matchup with the Temple Owls received the 11 a.m. timeslot and was placed on ESPN2. The Sooners will go on the road to Philadelphia and play in the home of the Super Bowl champion Sooners Jalen Hurts and Lane Johnson. For the second year in a row, the Red River Rivalry was placed in the prime SEC slot of 2:30 p.m. CT. OU-Texas was played in the 11 a.m. timeslot in 12 of the last 13 seasons before joining the SEC. That game will be broadcast on either ABC or ESPN. The SEC Championship game will take place on Saturday, Dec. 6. with kickoff scheduled for 3 p.m. CT on ABC. The remainder of the kickoff times and broadcast information will be revealed on June 11. Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow John on X @john9williams.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Texas nixed Ohio State's idea of playing Week 1 game on Sunday night
Ohio State was interested in opening the season against Texas in primetime. Fox Sports confirmed to Front Office Sports that there was discussion about moving the Buckeyes' Week 1 game against the Longhorns to Sunday night. The game is currently scheduled for Aug. 30 at noon ET and Ohio State pitched the idea of playing the game on Aug. 31. Per Fox Sports' Michael Mulvihill, the network was willing to push the game back but Texas wasn't too keen on the idea. From FOS: Mulvihill revealed that Ohio State A.D. Ross Bjork approached Fox with the idea. Since 2019, Fox has been putting its top Big Ten or Big 12 game of the week at noon — labeling the window Big Noon — in a strategy to maximize viewership as the games would no longer be competing with the highest-profile matchups on other networks, which traditionally air later in the day. In this case, it would have been possible to move the game to Sunday because the matchup will take place before the NFL season kicks off. Wednesday afternoon, Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte said he didn't want his team to have a short week ahead of the second game of the season. Chris Del Conte said they were reached out to about moving the game at Ohio State. 'Why would I want to move the game to Sunday night and have a short week?' He said he said no to Sunday game. 'I've got to go to church.' — Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) May 28, 2025 It's not news at this point to say there is a segment of Ohio State fans who are sick of their team playing at noon. Fox has relied heavily on the Buckeyes for its early window in recent years and Ohio State played seven of its 12 regular-season games at noon ET on the way to the national title in 2024. Backlash has even gotten political. A member of the Ohio general assembly authored a bill designed to prevent state schools in Ohio from playing at noon outside of rivalry games that have typically kicked off at that time like Ohio State's annual game vs. Michigan. The College Football Playoff rematch between the Buckeyes and Longhorns is the marquee game of Week 1 and is set to start a Saturday that also includes Alabama at Florida State and LSU at Clemson. Had the game been moved to Sunday, the game would be at the same time as Notre Dame's trip to Miami. That game, on ABC, is currently a standalone game after Virginia Tech and South Carolina also play on Sunday. The game is also the second straight year that Texas will play an early-season game against a Big Ten opponent at noon ET on Fox. A year ago, the Longhorns played at Michigan in Week 2 and took down the defending national champions 31-12.
