Texas AD Chris Del Conte explains decision to block Ohio State request to delay Week 1 game

Earlier this week, Front Office Sports revealed it was Texas that ultimately rejected a request from Ohio State to move their 2025 season-opening showdown from noon ET on Saturday, Aug. 30 to the following Sunday night in front of a primetime audience. FOX executive Michael Mulvihill confirmed the Longhorns’ rejection to Front Office Sports reporter Ryan Glasspiegel.

Now, Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte explained his reasoning for denying that request.

“Why would I want to move the game to Sunday night and have a short week?” Del Conte told ESPN’s Pete Thamel about the decision. “I’ve got to go to church (on Sunday).”

Chris Del Conte said they were reached out to about moving the game at Ohio State. “Why would I want to move the game to Sunday night and have a short week?” He said he said no to Sunday game. “I’ve got to go to church.”

— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) May 28, 2025

2025’s Week 1 showdown between Texas and Ohio State in Columbus has long been billed as the premier game of college football’s opening weekend. For one, it’s an immediate rematch of last season’s Cotton Bowl College Football Playoff national semifinal in which the Buckeyes doubled up the Longhorns, 28-14, from Arlington, Texas.

Report: Texas blocked Ohio State’s request to move Week 1 game out of noon slot

Fresh off its 2024 CFP national championship run, Ohio State will look a lot different next season, especially after having 14 players selected in the 2025 NFL Draft. Still, the Buckeyes won’t be without big-name talent with junior safety Caleb Downs and sophomore receiver Jeremiah Smith still in Columbus.

Texas, meanwhile, will counter with redshirt sophomore quarterback Arch Manning, the former 2023 No. 1 overall recruit who will make his official debut as the Longhorns’ QB1 in Week 1 from Columbus.

All that helps add to the anticipation ahead of the Week 1 showdown on FOX. The Buckeyes have become a staple of the Noon ET window on FOX, which traditionally airs the Big Ten’s biggest game of the week as a key piece of the conference’s media rights agreement with the network. During the 2024 season, the Buckeyes were the second-most watched team in college football, averaging 6.8 million viewers on the year. That came with seven noon windows, including The Game rivalry series against Michigan.

Not everyone is on board with the shee volume of Noon kickoffs for Ohio State, though. Ohio state Rep. Tex Fischer recently filed a bill to prevent Buckeyes games from kicking off at that time after so many early games last year. Under the Big Ten’s current media rights deal, FOX broadcasts a game at Noon ET – which is a huge ratings draw – while CBS gets a 3:30 p.m. ET game and NBC has a primetime matchup each week.

— On3’s Nick Schultz contributed to this report.