Ohio State vs. Oregon football not being primetime matchup is a crime

We’re at the point of the offseason in which TV schedules and times are starting to roll in for big non-conference games and fortunately, Oregon football is included in one of them.

The Ducks are set to face Ohio State for both teams’ first big non-conference bout in two years. Last season was obviously affected by COVID-19 and both the Big Ten and Pac-12 decided to go with conference-only schedules.

For Ohio State and Oregon, this is an early chance to prove they belong in the playoff conversation at the beginning of the season. It’s a good opportunity also to see just where they stack up against the nation’s elite teams.

Unfortunately, half of Eugene will just be waking up when the two teams kick off on Sept. 11 as it’s been slotted for the “Big Noon Kickoff” on FOX.

It might make sense for FOX to do this with East Coast teams, but having Ohio State as the only fanbase to be actually playing at noon Eastern is kind of ridiculous.

This is the type of game that should be occupying the primetime slot and the fact that the game will be over at around noon on the West Coast is a tragedy.

Oregon football robbed of primetime matchup

How the heck did Oregon vs. Ohio State not get the primetime matchup on FOX? There might be some other big games that are featured there, but are they the caliber of this top-10 battle?

Some other potential primetime games on Sept. 11:

• Iowa vs. Iowa State
• Washington vs. Michigan
• Stanford vs. USC
• Utah vs. BYU

There aren’t a ton of options, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see the network go with a game like Washington vs. Michigan to round out their schedule for Sept. 11.

Either way, not having Ohio State vs. Oregon as the primetime matchup is a crime and it could cost FOX in major viewership.