Big Ten TV deal midpoint: Strong schedule, but SEC still leads in ratings

The Big Ten's seven-year media rights deal is at its halfway point, with the league presenting its strongest schedule yet. Eight Big Ten teams are ranked in the preseason AP Top 25. However, regular-season viewership still trails the SEC, which had eight of the top 10 highest-rated games last season.

The league's media structure relies on an annual spring draft in which networks select games for the coming season. Fox holds the first three picks and five of the top eleven overall, using them on marquee matchups like Michigan-Ohio State and Ohio State-Indiana. CBS and NBC each receive three selections, with NBC also choosing games for its Peacock streaming service.

The schedule has been condensed, eliminating a bye week to create deeper weekly matchups. A Week 0 opener features USC hosting San Jose State on NBC. The league's six teams that reached College Football Playoff semifinals in recent seasons all appear in the preseason top 20, giving networks a wider pool of attractive games to distribute across their broadcast windows.