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Fox, Big Ten Boost 2026 Friday Night Football to 11

5/9/2026

Summary

Fox Announces Schedule

Fox and the Big Ten announced the 2026 Friday night football schedule, expanding to 11 games and adding Big Ten, Big 12 and Mountain West matchups, up from ten games in 2025.
Indiana will host Northwestern on Sept. 25 at 8 p.m. ET, while Northwestern’s $862 million Ryan Field opens Oct. 2 with a Penn State game at 8 p.m. ET.
Fox’s Friday night games averaged 2.3 million viewers, higher than Saturday (2.1 million) and primetime (1.9 million) broadcasts.

Summary

Nebraska Friday Games

Iowa’s Washington game moved to Friday, creating a three-game stretch that includes trips to Michigan and a home game versus Ohio State.
Matt Rhule begins his fourth season at Nebraska with a 1-2 record in non-Black Friday games.
Nebraska is 4-2 in Friday games over the past decade against teams other than Iowa.
USC, Washington, Oregon and UCLA each have a Friday night game scheduled for 2026.

Summary

Campbell Challenges Friday

Texas Tech chair Cody Campbell disputed Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark over moving the season opener to Friday.
Campbell warned on April 1 that the Friday move gave rest and conflicted with football, and on April 2 told ESPN commissioner must serve presidents, not act as a dictator.
Yormark replied that Board and athletic directors approved a 12-game Friday slate to boost viewership.
Houston-Texas Tech game remained on FOX for September 18 at 8:00 PM ET.

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Fox Announces Schedule

Fox and the Big Ten announced the 2026 Friday night football schedule, expanding to 11 games and adding Big Ten, Big 12 and Mountain West matchups, up from ten games in 2025.
Indiana will host Northwestern on Sept. 25 at 8 p.m. ET, while Northwestern’s $862 million Ryan Field opens Oct. 2 with a Penn State game at 8 p.m. ET.
Fox’s Friday night games averaged 2.3 million viewers, higher than Saturday (2.1 million) and primetime (1.9 million) broadcasts.

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