June 23, 2004
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern University, in conjunction with the Big Ten Conference, has finalized its football television schedule for the season's first five weeks with the Wildcats figuring prominently in the early-season slate of games.
Northwestern will appear on national television -- ESPN or ESPN2 -- four times in the season's first five weeks. Announced previously, the Wildcats will play one of the season's first games, opening at 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 2 at TCU (ESPN2).
The Wildcats then return to Evanston for their home opener against Arizona State, which will now be played at 11 a.m. and televised by ESPN2. The game was previously scheduled as a 1 p.m. start. Northwestern's second home nonconference game -- versus Kansas on Sept. 18 -- remains a 1 p.m. start and is not currently scheduled to be televised.
Northwestern's first two Big Ten Conference games will get prime-time billing: the opener at Minnesota on Sept. 25 will be played at 8 p.m. on ESPN2. The following Saturday (Oct. 2), the Wildcats play their first of four home Big Ten games against Ohio State: that contest will kick off at either 6:45 p.m. (ESPN) or 8 p.m (ESPN2). The game time for the Wildcats-Buckeyes matchup will be announced 12 days prior to kickoff (Sept. 20).
"We're certainly excited about having this exposure for our program," says Randy Walker, NU's head football coach. "I'm excited for our players who have worked so hard the past couple years to get our program back playing in the postseason and hopefully contending for a championship. We need to continue to work hard this summer, because we certainly have a huge challenge in front of us with a demanding early-season schedule."
TCU, Minnesota and Ohio State are ranked in most preseason top 25 polls, while Kansas is coming off a bowl appearance and Arizona State, led by highly touted quarterback Andrew Walter, is expected to contend for a postseason bowl game.
The game time for Northwestern's season-ending contest at Hawaii also has been set -- 10 p.m. CST (6 p.m. Hawaii time) -- with no television plans at the moment.
The start times for Northwestern's final six Big Ten Conference games will be announced during the season, likely 12 days prior to the game date.
A reminder that dates and kickoff times for all Northwestern games are subject to change at any time.
For more information on Northwestern's 2004 football season, or to purchase season tickets or the Wildcats' "three-packs," or get information on the Wildcats' new half-price tickets, visit Northwestern Tickets Online or call 847-491-CATS.