Ross Bjork Wants Big Ten’s Next Media Deal to Include Flexibility Enabling More Ohio State Home Games at Night
As the new athletic director of Ohio State, Ross Bjork has wasted no time identifying areas for growth and improvement, both on and off the field. Among the most immediate and pressing issues Bjork wants to address is the restrictive nature of the Big Ten’s current television rights deal—particularly its limitations on home night games at marquee venues like Ohio Stadium.
Bjork, who officially began his tenure in the spring of 2024 after leaving Texas A&M, recently voiced his desire for increased “flexibility” in the Big Ten’s next television contract. The goal? To allow for more prime-time home games at the Horseshoe—something Ohio State fans have long clamored for, and something the current media rights deal has made complicated, if not outright impossible, for much of the season.
“The atmosphere at night in Ohio Stadium is simply different. It’s electric, it’s powerful, and it’s something that benefits everyone—from players and coaches to fans and recruits,” Bjork said during a recent interview. “We need to find ways within our next media agreement to allow for more of that, especially in conference play.”
Currently, the Big Ten’s media agreement with FOX, CBS, and NBC includes rigid windows for kickoff times, as well as specific obligations for each network. For example, FOX typically gets priority for the “Big Noon Saturday” window, which has often placed premier Big Ten matchups—including many Ohio State games—at 12 p.m. ET. While this slot maximizes ratings nationally, it sacrifices the immersive in-stadium experience that evening games provide.
For Ohio State, this has meant that night games in Columbus have been a rarity, particularly in November. Big Ten bylaws and broadcast restrictions have historically prohibited night games after the first weekend in November, citing concerns about weather and travel for fans and student-athletes. But Bjork believes the time has come to modernize those rules.
“Let’s be honest—television dictates a lot, and rightly so. But we also have to recognize the value of the live product,” Bjork said. “A night game at the Horseshoe is more than just a football game. It’s an event. It’s a spectacle. That experience deserves to be leveraged to the fullest.”
Bjork’s comments come at a critical juncture in the evolution of college football’s media landscape. The Big Ten’s current media deal, which went into effect in 2023 and is valued at over $7 billion, runs through the 2029-30 season. However, the rapidly changing dynamics of college athletics—expansion, streaming platforms, and evolving fan consumption habits—could prompt the conference to revisit or renegotiate key aspects of the deal sooner than expected.
The inclusion of USC, UCLA, Oregon, and Washington into the Big Ten beginning in 2024 has already altered the calculus. With teams now stretching from coast to coast, scheduling flexibility will be essential for competitive balance, television viewership, and fan engagement.
Bjork is clearly eyeing these changes as an opportunity to advocate for Ohio State’s best interests.
“We have to think about the future—about how we present our product to the world. That means more prime-time slots, more options to showcase our traditions and game-day energy when the whole country is watching,” he said.
In recent years, night games have served as critical recruiting tools for programs across the country. Prospects often attend games under the lights because the environment is more festive, more intense, and simply more memorable. Recruits routinely cite prime-time atmospheres as a major factor in their decisions.
Former Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer was among the earliest vocal advocates of night games in the Horseshoe, often crediting them with energizing the program’s brand. Current head coach Ryan Day has continued that philosophy, but has frequently been frustrated by the conference’s scheduling limitations. While non-conference home games occasionally land in the evening slot, marquee Big Ten matchups—such as those against Penn State or Michigan State—are typically placed in earlier windows.
In 2023, Ohio State hosted Michigan State in a rare mid-November night game, thanks to an exception negotiated for NBC. The game drew massive television ratings and glowing reviews from fans. Bjork cited that game as evidence of what’s possible when flexibility is granted.
“Look at the data. Look at the feedback. Look at the recruiting bump. These games matter,” he said. “We need more of them, not fewer.”
To that end, Bjork has begun initiating conversations with television executives and conference leadership about what the next phase of the Big Ten’s media future might look like. One of his key proposals centers on removing the November night game restriction, or at least modifying it to allow a limited number of late-season night games at select campuses equipped to handle the logistics.
Ohio State, of course, has one of the most modern and scalable operations in the country. With more than 100,000 fans regularly attending home games, state-of-the-art lighting systems, and robust infrastructure, the Buckeyes are well-positioned to be one of the schools allowed to host such events regularly.
“There are real-world factors like safety, logistics, and television viewership patterns. But none of them are unsolvable,” Bjork said. “We just need the will to innovate.”
Bjork’s proactive approach has earned praise from university leadership and fan circles alike. Many Ohio State supporters view the lack of night games in Columbus as a missed opportunity to engage the next generation of fans and to compete with the SEC, which often dominates the prime-time Saturday window.
“The SEC has owned that 7:30 p.m. Eastern slot for years. We should be there too,” said former Ohio State lineman and Big Ten Network analyst Joshua Perry. “When Ohio State plays under the lights, the whole country tunes in. It’s a win for everybody.”
It’s also a win for television partners, who benefit from the spectacle, the ratings, and the drama of evening football. With streaming platforms like Peacock already part of the Big Ten’s broadcast rotation, there’s potential for even more flexibility in the future—especially as traditional linear TV continues to evolve.
Bjork isn’t advocating for every game to be played at night, but he is clear that the option should exist when it makes sense. “Balance is key,” he said. “We’re not trying to chase novelty. We’re trying to give our athletes, our fans, and our university the stage they deserve when it matters most.”
Ohio State has long been one of the biggest draws in college football. Whether it’s the “dotting of the i,” the tradition of the Buckeye leaves, or the thunderous roar of the student section, the Horseshoe under the lights is a spectacle few stadiums can match. Bjork’s push to institutionalize that magic in future media negotiations could fundamentally reshape not just Ohio State’s visibility but the Big Ten’s national identity.
As conversations surrounding the next evolution of college football’s media rights gain traction, Bjork’s emphasis on flexibility and fan engagement may prove to be prescient.
“This is about more than kickoff times,” Bjork concluded. “It’s about how we define what it means to be elite in this new era of college athletics. And I believe Ohio State should lead that conversation.”
With that bold vision, Ross Bjork has made it clear: the future of Ohio State football will be fought not only on the field but also in the boardrooms where the game’s next great frontiers are negotiated.