A Look At Ohio State’s History On CBS, NBC Following New Big Ten Media Rights Deal

The Buckeyes have not played football on either network in more than 20 years.

The Big Ten announced a seven-year media rights deal with FOX, CBS and NBC on Thursday that will put the conference on three different national networks beginning with the 2023 season.

FOX remains the Big Ten's primary rights holder, just as it has been since 2017, but CBS and NBC now join the fold after focusing on the SEC and Notre Dame, respectively, since the 1990s.

Ohio State hasn't appeared on CBS since the 1998 season opener at West Virginia, which was notably the first college football game ever broadcast in high-definition. The Buckeyes played a total of 15 games on the network from 1982-98 and had a 9-5-1 record in those contests.

*Note: Ohio State's 2014 season-opening win against Navy in Baltimore was shown on CBS Sports Network, a premium cable channel that falls under the CBS umbrella. 

• Sept. 5, 1998 - at No. 11 West Virginia - W, 34-17
• Sept. 26, 1987 - at No. LSU - T, 13-13
• Jan. 1, 1987 - Cotton Bowl vs No. 8 Texas A&M - W, 28-12
• Nov. 22, 1986 - No. 6 Michigan - L, 26-24
• Nov. 15, 1986 - at Wisconsin - W, 30-17
• Sept. 13, 1986 - at No. 17 Washington - L, 40-7
• Nov. 23, 1985 - at No. 6 Michigan - L, 27-17
• Nov. 2, 1985 - No. 1 Iowa - W, 22-13
• Oct. 26, 1985 - at No. 20 Minnesota - W, 23-19
• Oct. 19, 1985 - Purdue - W, 41-27
• Nov. 17, 1984 - Michigan - W, 21-6
• Oct. 27, 1984 - at Wisconsin - L, 16-14
• Oct. 13, 1984 - Illinois - W, 45-38
• Sept. 24, 1983 - at No. 7 Iowa - L, 20-14
• Nov. 20, 1982 - No. 13 Michigan - W, 24-14

It’s also been more than 25 years since Ohio State appeared on NBC, when the team traveled to Notre Dame in 1996. The Buckeyes played a total of 25 games on the network from 1952-96 – most of which were postseason bowl games – and went 14-11 in those contests.

• Sept. 28, 1996 - at No. 5 Notre Dame - W, 29-16
• Jan. 1, 1992 - Hall of Fame Bowl vs No. 16 Syracuse - L, 24-17
• Jan. 1, 1990 - Hall of Fame Bowl vs No. 9 Auburn - L, 31-14
• Dec. 28, 1985 - Citrus Bowl vs No. 9 BYU - W, 10-7
• Jan. 1, 1985 - Rose Bowl vs No. 18 USC - L, 20-17
• Jan. 2, 1984 - Fiesta Bowl vs No. 15 Pittsburgh - W, 28-23
• Dec. 26, 1980 - Fiesta Bowl vs No. 10 Penn State - L, 31-19
• Jan. 1, 1980 - Rose Bowl vs No. 3 USC - L, 17-16
• Jan. 1, 1977 - Orange Bowl vs No. 12 Colorado - W, 27-10
• Jan. 1, 1976 - Rose Bowl vs No. 11 UCLA - L, 23-10
• Jan. 1, 1975 - Rose Bowl vs No. 5 USC - L, 18-17
• Jan. 1, 1974 - Rose Bowl vs No. 7 USC - W, 42-21
• Jan. 1, 1973 - Rose Bowl vs No. 1 USC - L, 42-17
• Jan. 1, 1971 - Rose Bowl vs No. 12 Stanford - L, 27-17
• Jan. 1, 1969 - Rose Bowl vs No. 2 USC - W, 27-16
• Nov. 20, 1965 - at Michigan - W, 9-7
• Oct. 2, 1965 - at Washington - W, 23-21
• Oct. 11, 1958 - at Illinois - W, 19-13
• Jan. 1, 1958 - Rose Bowl vs Oregon - W, 10-7
• Nov. 24, 1956 - No. 9 Michigan - L, 19-0
• Oct. 1, 1955 - at Stanford - L, 6-0
• Jan. 1, 1955 - Rose Bowl vs No. 17 USC - W, 20-7
• Nov. 20, 1954 - No. 12 Michigan - W, 21-7
• Oct. 3, 1953 - at California - W, 33-19
• Nov. 1, 1952 - at Northwestern - W, 24-21

It's unclear when Ohio State will play its next game on either network, only that CBS will air seven Big Ten games in 2023, a number that will expand to 14 or 15 regular-season games from 2024-29, while NBC will air 14 to 16 games each season of the deal.

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