Michigan Football News: AD Warde Manuel: ‘Absolutely not to Friday night football games’

Michigan's athletic director, Warde Manuel, has made it clear: the Wolverines will not be playing any Friday night football games this season.

Athletic director Warde Manuel, during an appearance this week on the school-sponsored “Conqur’ing Heroes” podcast, has said he’s told the conference and TV executives “absolutely not” to Friday night.

“We are not having a Friday night game,” Manuel said . “I’ll just leave it at that.”

As the Big Ten expands its television schedule to include Friday matchups, Michigan remains steadfast in its decision to avoid these games.

The Big Ten will feature 16 games this fall, many broadcast on networks like FOX, FS1, and the Big Ten Network. Recently, teams like Michigan State and Wisconsin played on Friday nights, but Michigan is opting out.

Warde Manuel emphasized that Michigan, along with Ohio State and Penn State, will not participate in Friday night games.

“Absolutely, absolutely not to Friday night,” he said .

He also stated that the university prefers to limit Saturday night home games to just two per season to accommodate fans traveling from far distances, particularly from the Upper Peninsula.

“We do not want more than two Saturday night games, and that’s really because of our fanbase,” Manuel said . “I’ve said it before: Our fanbase travels far and wide. We have a lot of people who drive from the (Upper Peninsula).

"Having gone up there, there’s quite a bit of travel the later you get in time, so we want our fans to have the opportunity, come down, be safe (and have) those kinds of benefits to not playing multiple night games.

“I understand television would like us to do it, I understand primetime gets a lot of coverage, but also ‘Big Noon (Kickoff)’ gets a lot of coverage and we’re happy with that. And when we’re on at 3:30 on CBS, they get a lot of coverage.

"In other words, our fanbase is important to me, important to Sherrone, and to our staff, our student-athletes. We want (to make sure) our fanbase has an opportunity to see us in person.”

The Wolverines kicked off their season with a primetime game against Fresno State, which allows them one more primetime opportunity at home this season.

Future kickoff times for key matchups against Michigan State, Oregon, and Northwestern are still pending.

Overall, Michigan is prioritizing its fan experience while navigating the demands of television scheduling.