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B1G Thoughts: Ranking FOX’s Friday night football lineup
JordanW330 via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
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Photo by Tom Hauck/Getty Images
Starting in 2024, FOX will be showcasing Big Ten football on Friday nights. Let’s rank the 2024 games.
Every week after the Big Ten games, I will bring you some B1G thoughts on everything that happened! This will include analysis, stats, key players, moments, and more. Check out the I-80 Football Show for more in-depth analysis and to preview the next week of B1G games.
As a part of the new multi-billion dollar contract the Big Ten signed with FOX, NBC, and CBS, the Big Ten has agreed to play football games on Friday nights. All told, there are rumored to be 16 total games on Fridays, including nine games on FOX and a Black Friday doubleheader including Nebraska vs. Iowa and an unannounced game.
FOX is trying to separate itself in the college football media space first by abandoning the prototypical Saturday primetime slot to put their No. 1 game at Noon on Saturday, following a new pre-game show called Big Noon Kickoff, a direct rival to College Gameday. After seeing success with Big Noon Kickoff, FOX is continuing to try and separate itself by going all in on Friday nights.
Time will tell how successful this endeavor will be, considering that the biggest brands in the Big Ten have fought to stay off Friday nights and FOX’s No. 1 game will always be Saturday at Noon. But lucky for FOX, the four newcomers are big brands and do not have the power to say no to this lineup.
With all that said, let’s look at the nine games and rank them from worst to best...
Have you started Christmas shopping yet? Do you have your groceries for Thanksgiving? I promise you that there are better things to do than to watch this game. Check the score at halftime, and if it’s a good game turn it on in the second half.
Don’t watch this game. Iowa is Iowa, and UCLA has a new coach and lost a lot of its talent. Nov. 8 is past the halfway point of the season, and we have to get ready for the first 12-team playoff. It’s not worth it.
Outside of this being Washington’s first trip to New Jersey I can find many reasons to watch this one. Rutgers will be trying to prove itself and avoid the cellar of the Big Ten. In the long term, I’d expect Washington to be much better than the Scarlet Knights, but in 2024, Rutgers may have a chance for the upset as the Huskies get used to their new conference and travel schedule.
This is the only Friday night matchup between two former Pac-12 schools, but the last time they played it was a 40-32 high-scoring affair. UCLA and Washington both have new coaches and remade rosters, but this could still be a fun game.
I do not think Rutgers nor USC will be good in 2024, but this game could showcase the difference between the Big Ten and the Pac-12. USC should be significantly better than Rutgers, but last season we saw the Scarlet Knights dominate Ohio State on the line of scrimmage in an upset bid. If USC’s defense isn’t fixed and Rutgers gets better quarterback play, this could be a sneaky upset game on a Friday night in October.
Northwestern overachieved last season in the first year of David Braun’s tenure. It is unlikely they will reach those heights again, but winning a primetime game against Maryland could prove Northwestern is here to stay and won’t be returning to the pit of the conference after a resurgent 2023 campaign.
Illinois was a late-season collapse away from winning the Big Ten West in 2022. They struggled last year, but Bret Bielema is one of the best coaches in the conference. Matt Rhule has engineered successful turnarounds at Temple and Baylor, and recently landed five-star quarterback Dylan Raiola. In the early season window, this will be one of our first chances to see Raiola play, and it’s likely to be a good game as well.
This is my No. 2 game because Oregon is primed to make a run at a national championship, and nobody likes ruining national championship hopes more than Purdue. Oregon may want to reach out to Ohio State to gain insight into avoiding the Spoilermakers.
This is my top game largely due to helmets. Oregon is set up to be one of the best teams in the conference from day one, and for my money they’re the only ones ready to make the jump. Similarly, I think Michigan State has the best chance to be successful out of the teams with first and second-year coaches. Michigan State has good access to talent, Jonathan Smith is a great coach and he brought his quarterback with him. If there is any game that will prove to be significant in this lineup, I’d put my money on this one.
Truthfully, this is not a great slate of games. FOX may be spending over a billion dollars on the Big Ten’s tier-one rights, but they were not able to get the big dogs to play ball on Friday night. Unless something surprising happens, none of these games should have any real implications on the Big Ten title race or the 12-team College Football Playoff.
I won’t be skipping date night for any of these games, but if I’m home I’ll tune in.
Follow The I-80 Football Show on YouTube: @JordanW330
Subscribe to the podcast: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
Connect with me on Twitter: @JordanW330
Follow I-80 Football Show on Instagram: @I80FootballShow
Continue reading...
JordanW330 via our friends at Land-Grant Holy Land
Visit their fantastic blog and read the full article (and so much more) here
Photo by Tom Hauck/Getty Images
Starting in 2024, FOX will be showcasing Big Ten football on Friday nights. Let’s rank the 2024 games.
Every week after the Big Ten games, I will bring you some B1G thoughts on everything that happened! This will include analysis, stats, key players, moments, and more. Check out the I-80 Football Show for more in-depth analysis and to preview the next week of B1G games.
As a part of the new multi-billion dollar contract the Big Ten signed with FOX, NBC, and CBS, the Big Ten has agreed to play football games on Friday nights. All told, there are rumored to be 16 total games on Fridays, including nine games on FOX and a Black Friday doubleheader including Nebraska vs. Iowa and an unannounced game.
FOX is trying to separate itself in the college football media space first by abandoning the prototypical Saturday primetime slot to put their No. 1 game at Noon on Saturday, following a new pre-game show called Big Noon Kickoff, a direct rival to College Gameday. After seeing success with Big Noon Kickoff, FOX is continuing to try and separate itself by going all in on Friday nights.
Time will tell how successful this endeavor will be, considering that the biggest brands in the Big Ten have fought to stay off Friday nights and FOX’s No. 1 game will always be Saturday at Noon. But lucky for FOX, the four newcomers are big brands and do not have the power to say no to this lineup.
With all that said, let’s look at the nine games and rank them from worst to best...
No. 9: Purdue at Michigan State
Friday, Nov. 22 @ 8:00 p.m.
Have you started Christmas shopping yet? Do you have your groceries for Thanksgiving? I promise you that there are better things to do than to watch this game. Check the score at halftime, and if it’s a good game turn it on in the second half.
No. 8: Iowa at UCLA
Friday, Nov. 8 @ 9:00 p.m.
Don’t watch this game. Iowa is Iowa, and UCLA has a new coach and lost a lot of its talent. Nov. 8 is past the halfway point of the season, and we have to get ready for the first 12-team playoff. It’s not worth it.
No. 7: Washington at Rutgers
Friday, Sept. 27 - @ 8:00 p.m.
Outside of this being Washington’s first trip to New Jersey I can find many reasons to watch this one. Rutgers will be trying to prove itself and avoid the cellar of the Big Ten. In the long term, I’d expect Washington to be much better than the Scarlet Knights, but in 2024, Rutgers may have a chance for the upset as the Huskies get used to their new conference and travel schedule.
No. 6: UCLA at Washington
Friday, Nov. 15 - @ 9:00 p.m.
This is the only Friday night matchup between two former Pac-12 schools, but the last time they played it was a 40-32 high-scoring affair. UCLA and Washington both have new coaches and remade rosters, but this could still be a fun game.
No. 5: Rutgers at USC
Friday, Oct. 25 @ 11:00 p.m.
I do not think Rutgers nor USC will be good in 2024, but this game could showcase the difference between the Big Ten and the Pac-12. USC should be significantly better than Rutgers, but last season we saw the Scarlet Knights dominate Ohio State on the line of scrimmage in an upset bid. If USC’s defense isn’t fixed and Rutgers gets better quarterback play, this could be a sneaky upset game on a Friday night in October.
No. 4: Northwestern at Maryland
Friday, Oct. 11 @ 8:00 p.m.
Northwestern overachieved last season in the first year of David Braun’s tenure. It is unlikely they will reach those heights again, but winning a primetime game against Maryland could prove Northwestern is here to stay and won’t be returning to the pit of the conference after a resurgent 2023 campaign.
No. 3: Illinois at Nebraska
Friday, Sept. 20 @ 8:00 p.m.
Illinois was a late-season collapse away from winning the Big Ten West in 2022. They struggled last year, but Bret Bielema is one of the best coaches in the conference. Matt Rhule has engineered successful turnarounds at Temple and Baylor, and recently landed five-star quarterback Dylan Raiola. In the early season window, this will be one of our first chances to see Raiola play, and it’s likely to be a good game as well.
No. 2: Oregon at Purdue
Friday, Oct. 18 @ 8:00 p.m.
This is my No. 2 game because Oregon is primed to make a run at a national championship, and nobody likes ruining national championship hopes more than Purdue. Oregon may want to reach out to Ohio State to gain insight into avoiding the Spoilermakers.
No. 1: Michigan State at Oregon
Friday, Oct. 4 @ 9:00 p.m.
This is my top game largely due to helmets. Oregon is set up to be one of the best teams in the conference from day one, and for my money they’re the only ones ready to make the jump. Similarly, I think Michigan State has the best chance to be successful out of the teams with first and second-year coaches. Michigan State has good access to talent, Jonathan Smith is a great coach and he brought his quarterback with him. If there is any game that will prove to be significant in this lineup, I’d put my money on this one.
Truthfully, this is not a great slate of games. FOX may be spending over a billion dollars on the Big Ten’s tier-one rights, but they were not able to get the big dogs to play ball on Friday night. Unless something surprising happens, none of these games should have any real implications on the Big Ten title race or the 12-team College Football Playoff.
I won’t be skipping date night for any of these games, but if I’m home I’ll tune in.
Follow The I-80 Football Show on YouTube: @JordanW330
Subscribe to the podcast: RSS | Apple | Spotify | Google Podcasts | iHeart Radio
Connect with me on Twitter: @JordanW330
Follow I-80 Football Show on Instagram: @I80FootballShow
Continue reading...