Most of the major television deals in sports are locked up well into the next decade. Just a few lucrative properties remain open for bidding over the next couple years. One is the NBA, and another is the Big Ten. With the boom of sports rights still exploding, the Big Ten is in for a huge payday in their next television deal, whether they look to continue with Fox and ESPN or go in a new direction.
With negotiations approaching, it seems that the Big Ten is sending out feelers that they may be interested in doing something different in their next television contract. A report from Madison.com brings to light Jim Delany exploring the possibility with both the networks and his constituents about putting Big Ten games on Friday nights…
"Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany is trying to get feedback to be used in negotiating the next series of TV deals for the league. The current contracts run through 2016 (with Fox for the conference football championship game) and ’17 (with ESPN and ABC for regular-season games).
If the networks want Big Ten games on Friday nights — a slot traditionally reserved for high schools — Delany wants to know where his constituents stand and an idea of what a commitment like that would be worth.
Same goes for Big Ten outdoor night games in late November, something the Badgers have never done at Camp Randall Stadium or on the road, though they did play five November night games vs. Minnesota indoors at the Metrodome.
We all know the world of college athletics revolves around TV revenue and exposure, but Delany and Co. would be wise to think hard about the concept of adding Friday to their Saturday and occasional Thursday windows for football.
It’s my understanding Friday games might be once every three or four years — again, we’re looking at least four seasons down the road before this would kick in — but there are a lot of toes being stepped on here."
This is an interesting development on several fronts. Football is taking over every night of the week during the fall. It used to be that college football owned Saturdays and the NFL on Sundays and Mondays. Not anymore. Now, you can see a nationally televised football game every night during the week.
Monday – Monday Night Football (ESPN)
Tuesday – College football (ESPN)
Wednesday – College football (ESPN)
Thursday – NFL (NFL Network & CBS), College football (ESPN & Fox Sports 1)
Friday – College football (ESPN)
Saturday – College football (ESPN, ABC, most every other sports network)
Sunday – NFL (NBC)
The expansion of football across the week is really quite extraordinary, especially in college football. Just take a look at the first week in November as an example – ESPN aired MAC games on Tuesday and Wednesday, a Top 5 showdown from the Pac 12 on Thursday, and a game from the AAC on Friday. In fact, many teams view those weekday primetime games as great opportunities for additional exposure. ESPN's support has been the key reason behind the entire #MACtion phenomenon.
But a major BCS conference has not taken the leap to consistently placing games outside Saturday or Thursday night. There are some positives to the potential of Big Ten Friday Night Football. At the moment Friday nights are vacant during the fall when it comes to nationally televised sports aside from the odd college football game from a non-BCS conference. If the Big Ten owned Friday nights, it would represent a unique opportunity where they would be the only game in town. An exclusive Friday night window on ESPN or even a broadcast network could be a useful tool for the conference.
However, Friday night also represents a big risk for two major reasons.
First of all, Fridays are traditionally the worst night of television throughout the week ratings-wise. There's a reason why most sports leagues, television networks, and pretty much everyone avoids putting premier content on Friday nights. It's the night of the week that people are least likely to stay at home and watch television. In fact, the term "Friday Night Death Slot" is actually a thing for network television series.
Second, and perhaps more importantly, Friday nights belong to high school football. In places like Ohio, Pennsylvania, and throughout the midwest high school football reigns supreme and stadiums are packed everywhere. It's hard to imagine Ohio State playing a home Friday night game at the Horseshoe and drawing attention away from the local high school games all around Ohio. Were the Big Ten to air games on Friday nights, they'd be asking high school football fans, families, players, and even potential recruits to have to choose between the two. That doesn't seem like a winning proposition.
So while Friday Night Football may sound like an interesting idea for the Big Ten, there may be less pros than cons to that kind of move. But who knows, with the dollars associated with live sports these days, the money involved may more than make up for any perceived risk for the conference.
Comments are closed.