College Football Should Not Schedule Games on Friday Nights
Source: https://www.facebook.com/americanspectator/. "College Football’s Friday Night Heist | The American Spectator | USA News and Politics." October 2, 2026. spectator.org
The Gist
The author argues that college football should stop playing games on Friday nights because that time has traditionally belonged to high school football, which builds community identity and keeps kids as the stars. He points out that college football already owns almost every other day and time slot, and that these Friday college games are poorly attended anyway, existing only to generate broadcast revenue while hurting the high school tradition that defines small-town America.
Conclusion
College football programs should stop scheduling games on Friday nights and leave that time slot exclusively to high school football.
Premises
- Friday nights have been a longstanding American tradition reserved for high school football since the mid-20th century, serving as a cultural cornerstone for towns and communities.
- College football already dominates nearly every other time slot (Saturdays, Thursday nights, Sunday season openers, bowl season, playoffs, recruiting season) and does not need to expand further into Friday nights.
- When major college programs schedule Friday games, they force fans to choose between supporting local high school teams and college teams, diverting attention, crowds, and revenue away from high school football.
- The college games now played on Friday nights are often poorly attended (e.g., Army-Temple game with 54,100 empty seats), suggesting they are driven by broadcast/streaming revenue interests rather than genuine fan demand.
- High school football is described as the 'purest' version of the sport, free from commercial pressures like NIL deals and broadcast contracts, making it worthy of special protection.
- The erosion of traditions happens gradually through small exceptions, and once Friday night is lost to high school football, it will not be reclaimed.
Assumptions
- Traditional scheduling norms (Friday=high school, Saturday=college, Sunday/Monday=pro) have inherent value that should be preserved regardless of market demand.
- Fan attention and local support are zero-sum: college games on Friday necessarily and significantly reduce high school game attendance/support.
- Broadcast and streaming revenue motives are illegitimate or less valid reasons for scheduling than tradition or community impact.
- High school football's value is tied to its exclusivity of the Friday night time slot rather than merely its quality or local character.
- The negative effects of a few high-profile Friday college games generalize to a broader threat to high school football nationally, rather than being isolated incidents.