After news broke that WWE’s SmackDown on Friday nights would be returning to USA Network next year, FOX seems poised to fill the void in that time slot with college sports.
The writing appeared to be on the wall for FOX earlier this year that WWE would be seeking a new partner for SmackDown. FOX CEO Lachlan Murdoch said in the spring that the network hadn’t engaged in rights talks with WWE. But that was at a time when WWE was in the middle of working on its recently completed merger with Endeavor.
Big Ten football and Big East basketball look to be the products that FOX will put on its airwaves in primetime on Fridays.
Given the way things currently work, with WWE on the big network on Friday nights, any college football or basketball scheduled would air on either FS1 or FS2. That will change starting October 2024.
