Anyone know how game times are selected?
Im pretty sure its based on how big the game is. Bigger games (Michigan vs Ohio State) are usually played at 3:30 where as games against MAC teams usuall fall in the Noon time slot.
Your statement is true for the most part. However, with UM vs. OSU, the game is usually played at 12 or 1 because it is the marquee game of the day on a typically slow weekend for college football before championship week. Also, it is usually cold during this game and the Big Ten doesn't like games going into the night during the later months. As far as other games though, they do reserve the regional and national games for 3:30 times because this will draw the most viewers. Big Ten network games, which the Bowling Green game will most likely be, are typically at 12 with their game of the week at 3:30 or 7ish.
They schedule them to make the most $$ IIRC, ESPN/ABC gets the first pick. So the 8pm and 3:30pm games go to the biggest draws of the week. Then they pick a noon game or two. ESPN 2 picks next, and at some point down the road the BTN gets the leftovers and then schedules game times. (I might be off on the orders but this is the gist, the networks pick which games they want and then put them in a time slot)
Typically the "bigger" games are scheduled later in the day. I'd expect BGSU to be a noon game, probably on the BTN. 3:30 games in AA are usually the big games, and BGSU isn't one of those
However, I'm almost positive that the BTN get's one or two weeks where they get first pick after ESPN/ABC pick their games. I think this is how UM/MSU ended up on the BTN last year.
Do they get first pick, I thought they just pay more for the rights to it? Which is why they get what they want.
August 2nd, 2010 at 10:00 PM ^
I'm pretty sure it's built into the conference rights who picks when. As in the Big Ten has a contract with ESPN/ABC that says "ABC gets first pick..." etc.
I think at least, i could be wrong
Folded up pieces of paper and a baseball hat
Noon is the default starting time for a game at Michigan Stadium; other schools have different default starting times. On top of that, it can move if the networks want a later time slot for TV. For some games, that's not decided till later in the season, when it becomes clearer how important the matchup will be.
This is no longer true. The TV networks do not like to broadcast big games at noon Eastern anymore. There has been a clear shift away from noon games over the past few years. Noon games are now considered filler while the good ones are reserved for 3:30, with a few marquee games aired at 8:00. So basically any good home game nowadays will be at 3:30, with the possible exception of OSU due to concerns about weather/sunlight that late in the season.
Well below is every Big Ten team's game that week that doesn't already have a designated time. One of these games will be a 3:30p game on ABC and the rest will be Noon games on either ESPN/ESPN2/BTN - Looking at it there are no clear 3:30 games out of the bunch. I would think either the Penn St./Temple Game or Ball St./Iowa Game but the Michigan/BGSU game could be there as well depending on what happens against UCONN & ND.
| TBA | Central Michigan at Northwestern | Tickets | ||
| TBA | Northern Colorado at Michigan State | Tickets | ||
| TBA | Bowling Green at Michigan | Tickets | ||
| TBA | Eastern Michigan at Ohio State | Tickets | ||
| TBA | Temple at Penn State | Tickets | ||
| TBA | Austin Peay at Wisconsin | Tickets | ||
| TBA | Ball State at Iowa | Tickets | ||
| TBA | Toledo at Purdue |