CBS Sports is preparing for the new season of college football broadcasts featuring games within the Big Ten Conference in the second season of a seven-year media rights deal. Games throughout the year will air on the CBS Television Network and CBS Sports Network, and the matchups will also be available to stream live on Paramount+. Preceding each matchup will be College Football Today featuring Adam Zucker, Brian Jones, Rick Neuheisel and new addition Aaron Taylor.
All members of the show are also on the weekly edition of Inside College Football in addition to analyst Randy Cross, which will take the air with three season preview shows across Monday, Aug. 19 (8 p.m. EST; 9 p.m. EST) and Tuesday, Aug. 20 (7 p.m. EST). The first in-season episode of the new year airs at 9 p.m. EST on Tuesday, Aug. 27, and subsequent episodes will air on Tuesday nights during the season.
The lead broadcast team of play-by-play announcer Brad Nessler, color commentator Gary Danielson and sideline reporter Jenny Dell will take the air to call weekly marquee matchups within the Big Ten on CBS broadcast property during the 3:30 EST window. Over the last two seasons, the trio has called SEC on CBS games together ahead of the Southeastern Conference beginning a new media rights deal with The Walt Disney Company (ESPN/ABC) this season.
The lead college football broadcast team for CBS Sports will start the season calling a matchup between Akron and Ohio State on Saturday, Aug. 31 on CBS and streaming live on Paramount+. Additionally, the group will call the Big Ten Championship Game on CBS after the pivotal matchup had aired on FOX for 13 consecutive seasons, taking place on Saturday, Dec. 7 at 8 p.m. EST.
Play-by-play announcer Rich Waltz will work with analyst Ross Tucker and sideline reporter Tiffany Blackmon for select Mountain West and service academy games airing on CBS, the first of which features UCLA and Hawaii on Saturday, Aug. 31 at 7:30 p.m. EST. UCLA is one of four new teams joining the Big Ten Conference this year amid realignment in the college football landscape. With the immersion of Oregon, USC and Washington, the Big Ten currently contains 18 teams that will compete to win the league championship at the end of the season.
Tom McCarthy and Jay Feely will continue broadcasting games for the company, working with Blackmon for the Black Friday matchup between Minnesota and Wisconsin at 12 p.m. EST. CBS Sports Network is adding former Rutgers All-American cornerback Logan Ryan as a game analyst and two-time All American former Boston College linebacker Luke Kuechly in the role for select games.
Robert Turbin will serve as an analyst for Saturday lead games on CBS Sports Network and will predominantly work with Waltz and sideline reporter Amanda Guerra. The crew will make its debut on Saturday, Aug. 24 for the Week 0 matchup between SMU and Nevada at 8 p.m. EST on CBS Sports Network. Brent Stover will anchor live Saturday studio coverage on CBS Sports Network with analyst Kevin Carter and a second rotating analyst of either Cardale Jones or Beanie Wells.
In addition to the aforementioned broadcasters, CBS Sports Network has a plethora of returning announcers that will contribute to the overall college football coverage. Play-by-play announcers making a return include Jordan Kent, Dave Ryan, Carter Blackburn, Chris Lewis, Alex Del Barrio, John Sadak and Jason Knapp. Analysts in this category consist of Randy Cross, Taylor McHargue, Adam Breneman, Donte Whitner and Brock Vereen, the latter of which also participates in That Other Pregame Show on Sundays. Reporters making their return for the upcoming season include Tina Cervasio, Keiana Martin, Sheehan Stanwick Burch, Emily Proud and Brandon Baylor.
