Big Ten to play six football games a season on Friday nights

The Big Ten will play six Friday night football games a year starting in 2017 and continuing through at least 2022, the conference announced Wednesday.

Not every school wants to host those games, though.

The Friday games are being added to the conference’s television agreements with ESPN/ABC and Fox, Senior Associate Commissioner Mark Rudner said. No team will play more than one Friday night home game a year.

The Big Ten already has had Friday night games on Labor Day weekend. Those games will continue and be counted among the six each year. Iowa and Nebraska also play each other the day after Thanksgiving.

Penn State announced it wouldn’t play at home on a Friday night, and Commissioner Jim Delany told the Chicago Tribune that Michigan has said no to playing home or away on a Friday night.

“We fully support the Big Ten’s scheduling decisions as well as conference peers who are able to play on Friday nights,” Michigan Athletic Director Warde Manuel said in a statement. “With our large fan base, Michigan fans and alumni travel significant distances to attend games, making Saturdays our preferred day for all football games.”

Ohio State is willing to host once every three years, but only when the Friday falls during fall break on the academic calendar. Iowa and Michigan State don’t want to host except on Labor Day weekend. Nebraska and Indiana have agreed to host once every three years.

“It does create additional opportunities for certain programs that heretofore have not had that kind of national prime-time exposure on Saturday night to maybe have that on Friday night,” Rudner said.

Among those are Illinois and Purdue, which say they’re on board with hosting Friday night games.

“There are traditionalists who say Friday is for high school football, but if we can get our product out there on national television when all eyes are on us, that’s great for Purdue,” Boilermakers spokesman Matthew Rector said.

Penn State spokesman Jeff Nelson, noting the importance of high school football across the state, said his school would agree only to an occasional home day game on the Friday following Thanksgiving.

Minnesota players reach agreement in sexual-assault case

Restraining orders against five Minnesota football players have been dismissed after they reached an agreement with an alleged sexual assault victim. The dismissal came Wednesday during a court hearing.

All five players agreed to stay 20 feet away from the woman, and they must have no contact with her until she graduates.

The woman works at TCF Bank Stadium on game days, and the restraining orders kept Ray Buford, KiAnte Hardin, Tamarion Johnson, Dior Johnson and Carlton Djam from playing in home games. The dismissal clears the way for them to play at the stadium, if the university approves.

None of the players were arrested or charged in connection with the alleged Sept. 2 incident. The Gophers play at home Saturday against Purdue.

Wisconsin to revise fan policy for home games

Wisconsin will revise home football game policies after a fan at a game against Nebraska was asked to remove offensive parts of a costume that appeared to be a President Barack Obama mask and a noose around his neck.

Athletic Director Barry Alvarez said in a statement Wednesday that he was “deeply troubled by the incident and sorry for the harm it caused.”

Alvarez says he is determined that “nothing like it would happen again.”

The school plans to have a revised policy in place in time for Wisconsin’s next game at Camp Randall Stadium on Nov. 12 against Illinois.

Etc.

Wake Forest’s game against Notre Dame in 2020 is moving to Charlotte. Officials from Wake Forest and the Charlotte Sports Foundation announced the site Wednesday, citing a strong fan base there. … Minnesota has scheduled two games against Mississippi State in what will be the first regular-season matchups for the Gophers against an SEC foe in more than 65 years. The Gophers announced Wednesday they’ll host the Bulldogs on Sept. 12, 2026, and travel to Starkville, Miss., for a rematch on Sept. 11, 2027. The two universities have never played before.