Big 12 football: Which games will move to Thursday?
Thursday night football has become a Stillwater staple. In each of the previous three seasons, OSU has hosted an ESPN Thursday night game: Colorado in 2009, Texas A&M in 2010 and Arizona in 2011.
Anyone for Texas in 2012? Don’t laugh, it could happen. At least, it could be floated by ESPN.
The Big 12 schedule that was released Tuesday is not necessarily the finished product. Some games still could be moved, including some games to Thursday or Friday nights, where several Big 12 games have been played in recent years.
And four conference games could be moved to Thursday, without affecting any other games or without giving those teams short weeks of preparation:
Sept. 29: Texas at OSU
Sept. 29: Texas Tech at Iowa State
Oct. 6: Kansas at Kansas State
Dec. 1: Texas at Kansas State
In each of those games, both teams have the previous Saturday off, which means neither team would be faced with a short week. Limited preparation time from the norm is the bane of coaches.
Now, ESPN could shuffle the schedule around and move dang near any game. But doing so would require all kinds of domino falling. Not so with those four games.
Interestingly, four Pac-12 games already have been scheduled for Thursday nights: Stanford at Washington on Sept. 27, Southern Cal at Utah on Oct. 4, Arizona State at Colorado on Oct. 11 and Oregon at Arizona State on Oct. 18.
ESPN and Fox Sports have partnered on the Pac-12 television contract. No network has been designated for those four Pac-12 games. It’s possible, I suppose, ESPN will show Stanford-Washington on Sept. 27. But I also assume that any Thursday night when Fox Sports shows a quality game – and all those Pac-12 games are quality, on some level – ESPN will want to counter with the best game it can produce. ESPN and Fox Sports are partners with the Pac-12, but make no mistake. They are spirited competitors in the broad sense of college football.
Here are the pros and cons of each of the possible Big 12 games:
OSU-Texas would be an alluring matchup. Both figure to be undefeated and ranked in the top 20 in late September. But OSU has paid its dues on hosting Thursday games, which create massive logistic problems on campus. Texas also might be OSU’s designated marquee game, the one unavailable for single-ticket purchase. The Cowboys could go with West Virginia, though.
Texas Tech-Iowa State doesn’t hold the national appeal, but Tech will be undefeated in late September (the Red Raiders play nobody). Iowa State has a rugged game at Iowa on Sept. 8. ESPN returning to Jack Trice Stadium, site of the Cyclones’ big Friday night upset of OSU last November, would generate a lot of excitement in Ames.
Kansas-Kansas State would hold appeal as a coaching matchup. Bill Snyder vs. Charlie Weis. But the game is going to be a dud.
Texas-Kansas State. Could be a great game if moved to late November. But the whole idea of putting games on Dec. 1 is to make the Big 12 relevant on Championship Saturday. With the drug bust at TCU, the OU-TCU game might not be the firecracker we first thought. Texas-KSU might be that day’s best game. Doubtful it would move.
-------------Berry Tramel can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including AM-640 and FM-98.1. You can e-mail him here and follow him on Twitter @BerryTramel. Visit Berry's website here.
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Comments
The one for sure that will be moved is the TCU-Texas game. It will move from Nov 24th to either Friday the 23rd or Thursday the 22nd (Thanksgiving). Also, notice the teams that don’t play Dec 1st, the last game of the year; Iowa State and Texas Tech. Obviously ESPN has picked these two teams to finish last in the conference. Also, WVU has a really tuff last two games of the year; Iowa State and Kansas. Of course ESPN may be looking at getting WVU used to playing these teams late as they may be in the same division soon. WVU Baylor could be possible move in late Sep. Since ESPN rules the Big XII it will be up to them. I wish OU and OSU would pull the lights out of the stadiums and say the only games played will be played on Saturday afternoon and forget ESPN, but money rules.
I agree with Greg Davis. Ou should do a Thursday night game. When I saw the schedule, I thought…Dang why do we have two bye weeks almost 2 weeks apart from each other. I think it would help OU’s momentum and give some national attention if we played on a Thursday night. It gives recruits a game to watch on a night when no one else is playing. Plus, it’s an away game and Tech seems like a place that would be a good college atmosphere for a Thursday night game.
Actually, the live atmosphere at Lubbock is one of the things I think a lot of OU fans would like to avoid. You have to play the game and that place is just a deportment hellhole even with the older Tech fans…if OU evers leaves the BXII, one of the great plusses will be no more Texas Tech games, Lubbock, TX, and their fans.
I don’t think OU or UT will ever play a Thursday night or a Friday night game. OU has had a couple of Friday night games, but don’t look for it to happen again for a long while. Bob Is about rhythm. UT only plays on Thanksgiving Thursday. The PAC 12 plays on Thursday night because they can play early and get a national audience. location, location, location…OU and UT has great real estate and reputation….no Thursdays.
After last season if OU wants to be on TV they might have to go to a Thursday game. You get to avoid Thursday night games if you have proven yourself on the field. From ranked #1 in the country to playing in a third rate bowl game is a huge disappointment. But, the decision to play on Thursday will be made by ESPN and NOT OU. When someone pays that much money they get to make the decisions. Look at how many on campus Saturday afternoon games OU had last year. That once was what college football was about.
WVU has been playing Thursday night games for the last (oh, 8 years) and I was surprised to see no Thursday night games thie year. With that being said, I’d like to see a Thursday night game but not sure who it would be with? Otherwise, I’m psyched for ALL the Big 12 games WVU has this year and look forward to them all.
OU @ Texas Tech should be another possiblity. OU would be coming off a bye weekend on 9/29, and this would provide a little longer preparation for Texas and would spread some of the long time between games in September which I think, should be perceived as a potential problem. Tech is not a highly attended OU game for OU fans anyway. Out in the middle of nowhere, a less than generous amount of hotel rooms to begin with, and most of all, all the prep time for RRR would be more attractive. The wild card is what Tech would do, but TV money rules everything. Perhaps one time, it could work to OU’s advantage.