Friday Night Lights coming to B1G football?

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FireDaveLee said:
There are ways around this. You could plan ahead if you know what week you're hosting a game and the high schools could have their game on the Thursday (or Saturday) of that week. Suddenly you can make this an event that completely involves the high schools.
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You're nuts. Friday nights are made for HS football and high schools are not going to adjust their schedule based on Gopher football.

I think this is another case of the greed and TVs ruining the game. There is absolutely no way this will help attendance, it will most likely hurt attendance. I agree with the poster above who said too many people have kids, grandkids, neighbors, nieces, and nephews, etc that play football and will only play 15-20 games in their life. They are not going to miss one of those games for a Gopher-Purdue Friday night football game.
 

The more I think about this the more I hate it. High school kids are college football fans, too. They can't watch or attend games when they're playing. As Pedoodle observed, a segment of the fanbase will skip college games to attend high school games. And you can bet another conference will make hay out of this, portraying the Big Ten as the conference that doesn't care about kids.

That's the worst of it - apart from the practical considerations, there's the statement it makes, that the Big Ten doesn't care about prep sports or athletes.
 

For the record, here is the Gophers' history on Friday nights:

Date H/V Opponent W/L Score
9/17/1965 Visitor USC T 20-20
10/16/1987 Home Indiana L 17-18
10/25/1991 Home Michigan L 6-52
12/31/1999 Neutral Oregon L 20-24
10/10/2003 Home Michigan L 35-38
12/31/2004 Neutral Alabama W 20-16
12/30/2005 Neutral Virginia L 31-34
12/29/2006 Neutral Texas Tech L 41-44
12/28/2012 Neutral Texas Tech L 31-34
12/27/2013 Neutral Syracuse L 17-21

I was at 4 of those games. The best: Alabama in the Music City Bowl. The worst: 2003 Michigan (the day that delineated "what might have been" from "what is."

sigh.
 

FireDaveLee said:
I'm not as anti this as everyone else.

I remember a Friday night game in 2003.....and the stadium was rocking! Obviously the teams involved had a lot to do with that, but if your team is good, I don't think it really matters what night the game is on; it can be good!

There are ways around this. You could plan ahead if you know what week you're hosting a game and the high schools could have their game on the Thursday (or Saturday) of that week. Suddenly you can make this an event that completely involves the high schools.

I'll live either way, but the main things I don't want to see or hear is 1) "Ohio State/Michigan/Penn State" don't ever have to play them simply because they refuse. This should be a conference thing & all are in or out. And 2) Someone complaining about academics. It's amazing how other sports are able to deal with traveling on any & all days of the week....but somehow, football players have difficulty in this.
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Those were unique circumstances. It was a one-time event caused by a Twins playoff game that made the dome unavailable, and the Gophers were undefeated, playing Michigan, with our first realistic title hopes in a generation.

This will be a regular event within the conference with lower level teams. This will be Minnesota vs. Purdue, Illinois, Indiana or Rutgers. It's an attempt to throw the lower profile teams a bone (nationally televised games) without the conference giving up it's most prized real estate (Saturday games on ESPN/ABC) -- in fact ensuring that OSU, Michigan and PSU will take those time slots. This puts us on par with the Fun Belt.
 

MNfootballfan said:
You're nuts. Friday nights are made for HS football and high schools are not going to adjust their schedule based on Gopher football.
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High schools have already moved games to Thursday night on Labor Day weekend. They have games on the Wednesday of MEA.

The program can either try to make the best out of the change, which really is going to probably be a once every other year thing, or simply b!tch about it.
 


Hates Monikers said:
This puts us on par with the Fun Belt.
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Or Louisville-Syracuse, USC-Utah, TCU-SMU (somehow, they're able to get over the Friday Night Lights thing in Texas), Stanford-Washington, Duke-Louisville (L'Ville again), Mississippi St-BYU (some future opponents), Oregon-Cal, and BC-Florida State (another state somehow able to get over the Friday Night Lights thing).

If OSU/MI/PSU are concerned about hosting Friday night games because their #'s may suffer, fine. But then they should be expected to play them on the road.
 

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Ughh. I just don't like this move at all. I believe this kind of blatantly money-grubbing move absolutely cheapens and tarnishes the Big Ten brand. What are we, the WAC?

There always used to be that traditional deference and balance within football such that the NFL never played games on Saturdays (until December, after the college regular season had wrapped up) so as to protect and not impinge upon the college game, and college football did the same for high school ball, staying away from Friday nights so as to preserve the sanctity and tradition of Friday night football. I loved that, as there is such an obvious symbiosis between those three levels of football, and it used to be the bigger protected the smaller, but that's clearly gotten washed away in the mad rush for cash.

It's disappointing to me that we've joined in that, and it's a shame for football as a whole I think.
 

There will only be 6 of these in a season, and no more than 1 in a given market. This will not hurt HS football.

I think of last years TCU game, and one against Syracuse a few years ago and they were very well received and attended.

I'm all for it.
 



I get not liking this, but the idea that a recruit is going to choose an SEC or Big 12 school because the B1G played 6 games on a Friday is silly. Each team will participate in ~1 game per year, hosting one every other year. Not that big of a deal.
 

Hates Monikers said:
Those were unique circumstances. It was a one-time event caused by a Twins playoff game that made the dome unavailable, and the Gophers were undefeated, playing Michigan, with our first realistic title hopes in a generation.

This will be a regular event within the conference with lower level teams. This will be Minnesota vs. Purdue, Illinois, Indiana or Rutgers. It's an attempt to throw the lower profile teams a bone (nationally televised games) without the conference giving up it's most prized real estate (Saturday games on ESPN/ABC) -- in fact ensuring that OSU, Michigan and PSU will take those time slots. This puts us on par with the Fun Belt.
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It's already that way. MN-Purdue on Friday night on ESPN will get double or more the viewers of the same game being played at 11 AM on ESPNU or BTN.
 

Vandy said:
There will only be 6 of these in a season, and no more than 1 in a given market. This will not hurt HS football.

I think of last years TCU game, and one against Syracuse a few years ago and they were very well received and attended.

I'm all for it.
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My bad... The TCU game was on Thursday... And crap, that Syracuse game was on a Saturday night too.
 

U2Gopher said:
I hear on college sports radio that Michigan, Ohio state and penn state will not be playing on Friday nights. I believe the exact wording used was they would "not be asked" to play on Friday night. Perhaps I heard that wrong but if true it seems odd they would NEVER play on that night.


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Penn State put out a statement that it would not host games, but would agree to play in 1 road game per year. Not sure about OSU/Michigan, but I'm sure the league will bow down to whatever they demand. That's the one thing I don't like about this. If they're going to do it, everyone should have to host a game every other year. It's not that big of a deal.
 




Gophers, Northwestern, Maryland, Rutgers will probably have one Friday game a year because "they're in cities and can handle the extra traffic." I hate the precedent this sets with "big" football schools requesting - and getting - preferential treatment on games. It's one thing for the conference to put popular teams in better time slots, but in my opinion, something different when those popular teams have public requests for special treatment granted.

Also, screw college football on Friday. It's a Saturday thing.

EDIT: Oh, and it will also submarine one of our weekends to bring in recruits. But not PSU, Michigan or OSU .. would never do that to them.

What a gd joke.
 

What a suprise, Delaney reaching for more bags of cash. I don't know how many more money grabs I can handle with this sport.
 

Go Gophers Rah said:
For the record, here is the Gophers' history on Friday nights:

Date H/V Opponent W/L Score
9/17/1965 Visitor USC T 20-20
10/16/1987 Home Indiana L 17-18
10/25/1991 Home Michigan L 6-52
12/31/1999 Neutral Oregon L 20-24
10/10/2003 Home Michigan L 35-38
12/31/2004 Neutral Alabama W 20-16
12/30/2005 Neutral Virginia L 31-34
12/29/2006 Neutral Texas Tech L 41-44
12/28/2012 Neutral Texas Tech L 31-34
12/27/2013 Neutral Syracuse L 17-21

I was at 4 of those games. The best: Alabama in the Music City Bowl. The worst: 2003 Michigan (the day that delineated "what might have been" from "what is."

sigh.
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OK - the '87, '91 and '03 games were moved due to conflicts with Twins playoff games. Any idea why the 1965 game was played on a Friday night in September? They weren't sharing a stadium with the Twins at that time, so why play on a Friday? Anybody know why?
 

Wisconsin and MSU have agreed only to Friday games before Labor Day: https://twitter.com/badgerfootball/status/793954392097562624

http://www.mlive.com/spartans/index.ssf/2016/11/michigan_state_sticking_to_one.html

PSU will not do any home games: https://mobile.twitter.com/GoPSUsports/status/793906457800544257

Michigan will not do any games, period, per Chicago Tribune.

Edit: Iowa will also only do Friday games before Labor Day, except for the traditional Nebraska contest on the Friday after Thanksgiving. http://qctimes.com/sports/football/...cle_3cf22bb6-bae5-50df-b9f1-e009b838c755.html
 

So much overreaction here. P5 schools that have played or will play on Friday night this year:

Clemson
Michigan St.
Stanford (2)
Washington
Baylor (2)
Louisville (2)
USC
Florida St.
Utah
TCU
Kansas St.
Syracuse (2)
Colorado
Maryland
Arizona St.
Boston College (2)
Duke
Mississippi St.
Oregon
Cal

There's a bunch of day after Thanksgiving Friday games which I did not include.

So yes this is already being done by many P5 schools and no it does not appear to effect recruiting.
 

Must be why nearly half the schools in the conference have disavowed or set extreme restrictions on hosting the games.
 

So several B1G teams have said no (Michigan, Penn State) and a few have said they'd only do the Labor Day Friday game.....

Did anyone clear this with the schools before announcing the deal? The schools make it sound like they didn't work it out ahead of time.
 

Did anyone get the okay from Maryland and Rutgers?
 

Wisc, Michigan State, Michigan, Penn St. and Ohio stait said they won't do it while school is in session....... and have publicly said so / informed the B1G.

Did they actually ask anyone?
 

This is great for MN. We can go in with with MEA Friday to host a home Big Ten Game every year. The following Friday only the Class 6A schools play and 1/2 of MN HS teams are done for the season.

That translates to hosting Illinois next year and Indiana in 2018. Maryland in 2019.

Yom Kippur plays a role potentially in 2017. Metro schools will play on Thursday if Jewish observance falls on Friday-Saturday. We could host Maryland on September 29th next year.


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MaxyJR1 said:
This is great for MN. We can go in with with MEA Friday to host a home Big Ten Game every year. The following Friday only the Class 6A schools play and 1/2 of MN HS teams are done for the season.

That translates to hosting Illinois next year and Indiana in 2018. Maryland in 2019.

Yom Kippur plays a role potentially in 2017. Metro schools will play on Thursday if Jewish observance falls on Friday-Saturday. We could host Maryland on September 29th next year.


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I can't wait for MN to market themselves to people who watch TV on Friday nights.
 

Whether we like it or not, this is an opportunity for the schools rarely featured in prime tv slots on Saturdays to get a bit more attention. The schools objecting get those spots regularly--this is being done to try to increase the exposure of the have nots. Oh, and for the money.
 

mnsportsgeek said:
I can't wait for MN to market themselves to people who watch TV on Friday nights.
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Oct. 21-22
Friday: USF vs. Temple 1.3 million ESPN
Friday: Oregon vs. Cal 1.516 million ESPN
Saturday: MN vs. Rutgers 274 K ESPNU

Oct. 14-15
Friday: Duke vs. Louisville 1.881 million ESPN
Friday: BYU vs. Miss. State 1.475 million ESPN
Saturday: MN vs. Maryland 312 K ESPNU

Oct. 7-8
Friday: Clemson vs. BC 1.659 million ESPN
Saturday: MN vs. Iowa 1.048 million ESPN2

Sept. 24-25
Friday TCU vs. SMU 1.357 million ESPN
Friday USC vs. Utah 1.042 million FS1
Saturday: MN vs. Colorado St. 347 K ESPNU
 

Count me among the 80% of fans or so who HATE this plan.

FU Delany.
 

Maximus said:
Oct. 21-22
Friday: USF vs. Temple 1.3 million ESPN
Friday: Oregon vs. Cal 1.516 million ESPN
Saturday: MN vs. Rutgers 274 K ESPNU

Oct. 14-15
Friday: Duke vs. Louisville 1.881 million ESPN
Friday: BYU vs. Miss. State 1.475 million ESPN
Saturday: MN vs. Maryland 312 K ESPNU

Oct. 7-8
Friday: Clemson vs. BC 1.659 million ESPN
Saturday: MN vs. Iowa 1.048 million ESPN2

Sept. 24-25
Friday TCU vs. SMU 1.357 million ESPN
Friday USC vs. Utah 1.042 million FS1
Saturday: MN vs. Colorado St. 347 K ESPNU
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Here is the nail on the head. The Big Ten wants to eliminate the ESPNU and ESPNNews games from the schedule. Game attendance is what it is and won't be affected much by day and time. TV viewers and more $$ is the goal for the conference.

If I'm Minnesota AD, I embrace this and offer to host MEA Friday home game every year from here on out when new schedules are formed.
 

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