Who sits atop Dienhart’s spring rankings?

Spring football is over and the offseason is officially here. Let’s all let loose with a collective sigh. Now we have to wait until the night of Thursday, August 29, for the first Big Ten game when UNLV plays at Minnesota. There are lots of barbecues, cannon balls into the swimming pool, croquet, Wiffle Ball and Jarts between now and then.

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Ranking 2013 ACC/Big Ten Challenge games

It’s time to talk the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. The event might be six-plus months away, but the 2013 matchups were released Wednesday afternoon.

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Bardo on BTN: ‘I’m ecstatic to be a part of the team’

Stephen Bardo needs no introduction to Big Ten fans. A key cog to Illinois’ 1989 Final Four team, dubbed the “Flyin’ Illini,” and a respected broadcaster since his retirement, Bardo is about to become even more synonymous with Big Ten hoops. That’s because the Illini product is BTN’s newest hire, and he’ll serve as one of our basketball analysts. Read our Q&A with the Illini product in this post.

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Schedule analysis: Very big year for Illini

This is a big year for Illinois’ Tim Beckman, who shook up his staff after debuting with a 2-10 overall record and going 0-8 in the Big Ten. The schedule is built for a nice start, as six of the first seven contests are home games—including a tilt in Chicago. But it’s November that could make or break the Fighting Illini. Yes, three of the five games are on the road—but three games are winnable: at Indiana; at Purdue; vs. Northwestern. And Illinois needs to cash in if it hopes to play in a bowl.

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BTN unveils 2013 primetime football schedule

BTN will televise 12 primetime games during the 2013 college football season, the most in network history. Five games feature a pre-season top-25 Big Ten team, while three of the 12 matchups feature games versus teams from the SEC, ACC and Pac-12 conferences. Eight Big Ten schools in all will be featured in primetime.

“Primetime games are becoming more and more popular,” said BTN President Mark Silverman. “Featuring compelling matchups in primetime allows BTN to remain front and center in Big Ten and college football fans’ minds throughout the entire day,” he said.

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