The Big Ten gathers for the first time in Las Vegas, where the conference will hold its annual Big Ten Football Media Days this week. All 18 teams will be represented over three days at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino.
Why Las Vegas? Indianpolis’ Lucas Oil Stadium, where the event has been held the past few years, is booked this week, leading to an alternate destination. The Big Ten could have returned to Chicago but instead chose Las Vegas, perhaps as Year 2 welcome to its West Coast members.
The three-day event kicks off with Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti’s state-of-the-conference address at 2 p.m. ET Tuesday. Then six teams will be featured on each of the three days. Penn State fans will want to tune in Wednesday, when Nittany Lions coach James Franklin joins quarterback Drew Allar, center Nick Singleton and safety Zakee Wheatley for their media sessions.
Need to get up to speed? Here’s what to watch at Big Ten Football Media Days.
RELATED: What coaching at Penn State means to James Franklin
Big Ten Football Media Day Story Lines
Petitti will kick off the event with some conference cheerleading before facing questions about the business stuff, notably the Big Ten-SEC split on the next iteration of the College Football Playoff. Petitti also likely will get asked about this ESPN story regarding a letter he sent to the NCAA suggesting that Michigan has been sufficiently penalized for the 2023 sign-stealing saga.
From a Penn State perspective, the questions will surround expectations. Having come within a few plays of reaching the College Football Playoff championship game last season, the Nittany Lions are preseason conference favorites, according to the Cleveland.com preseason media poll. Franklin, not known for leaning into expectations, nevertheless will have an opportunity to make a modest pitch for his team.
“… We’re on the right path and doing some really, really good things, but obviously there’s still room for growth, and there’s still room for corrections, and there’s still two more steps that we need to be able to take,” Franklin said in a recent interview.
Big Ten Football Media Days Schedule
The event begins at 2 p.m. ET Tuesday with Petitti’s press conference. Coaches will do 15-minute press conferences before hosting 45-minute podium sessions later in the afternoon. Three players from each team will hold 30-minute podium sessions as well.
Here’s the daily schedule of press conferences from Las Vegas:
Tuesday, July 22
Wednesday, July 23
Thursday, July 24
How to Watch Big Ten Football Media Days
Big Ten Network will carry every press conference live beginning with Petitti at 11 a.m. Tuesday. BTN’s Rick Pizzo and Jake Butt will anchor the coverage Tuesday and Thursday, with Mike Hall and Yogi Roth hosting Wednesday’s coverage.
BTN also will broadcast live studio coverage each day from 4-8 p.m. ET with Dave Revsine, Howard Griffith and Gerry DiNardo. Players are scheduled to appear on the BTN set from Las Vegas. Here’s the complete list of players attending.
