Penn State fans were not exactly happy to see the biggest home game of the year, against Ohio State, being played in the early timeslot as part of Fox’s Big Noon Kickoff programming. Perhaps those same fans who threaten to boycott Fox’s coverage will be happy to see the Nittany Lions are going to play in primetime next week.
Penn State announced the kickoff details for next weekend’s home game against new Big Ten member Washington. Penn State will host Washington for a primetime kickoff starting at 8:00 p.m. ET. But the game will not air on traditional television. Instead, the game will stream exclusively on Peacock, NBC’s streaming platform.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DB5AEQCOdPL/
NBC is using its primetime slot next week to air Notre Dame’s home game against Florida State. The Seminoles are 1-8 this season while Notre Dame is a top-10 team. The game will likely be a total mismatch, but NBC announced the primetime slot for Notre Dame’s game with Florida State back in May. At that point in time, the primetime matchup looked attractive with Florida State coming off an ACC championship season and an undefeated regular season. Who knew at the time the Seminoles would be the complete tire fire they have become this season?
Regardless, a Peacock exclusive game is bound to happen for every Big Ten team with multiple media rights deals in place. This is not Penn State’s first Peacock-exclusive game. Penn State hosted Delaware in a Peacock-exclusive game last season. This is Penn State’s first Big Ten game to be a streaming-only broadcast.
Penn State will be looking to rebound from its first loss of the season after coming up short at home against Ohio State in Week 10. Washignton held off USC for a late win at home. This will be the first meeting between Penn State and Washington as Big Ten opponents.
Follow Kevin McGuire on Threads, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.