Ohio State is a national TV brand. Most of its games air on Fox, CBS, or NBC, with the Big Ten Network and Peacock filling in the gaps, and Fox’s pregame show Big Noon Kickoff sets up outside the Horseshoe whenever the Buckeyes host a marquee game. So when Dave Portnoy’s time on that show suddenly ended, it was always going to become an Ohio State story.
The problem is that the story has been told almost entirely from one side. Portnoy has said plainly that Ryan Day and Ohio State are the reason he’s gone. Ohio State, Fox, and the Big Ten have mostly said nothing. That gap is where this blog lives: what do we actually know, and what is just one person’s account?
What Actually Happened
Late on Friday, October 2, Portnoy posted on X that The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand was about to report he had been put on ice at Big Noon Kickoff. Marchand’s story followed. According to sources briefed on the decision, Portnoy and Barstool Sports would no longer appear on the show, effective immediately.
Portnoy had been part of the program for a little over a year, ever since Fox and Barstool announced a wide-ranging partnership last July. He made his debut on the Week 1 2025 show in Columbus and appeared in all four episodes this season before the split. He will continue to appear on FS1’s Wake Up Barstool.
What Marchand’s Reporting Says (The Confirmed Part)
This is the part worth reading carefully, because it’s more modest than the viral version.
Marchand’s sources said there was no single smoking gun behind the timing. The core issue, according to them, was that the constant challenge of uniting Fox’s traditional show with Barstool’s persona had become unsustainable. The report also said Portnoy ran into problems connected to his presence at Ohio State home games. Ohio State officials referred all questions to Fox Sports, and Fox declined comment.
In other words, the reporting supports “Ohio State game days were part of the friction.” It does not say, in so many words, that Ryan Day demanded the removal.
What Portnoy Says (The Claimed Part)
Portnoy’s version is much more specific and much more pointed. In his post, he said Ohio State and Day complained to the Big Ten and pressured Fox until the network had no choice. He added that the “juice wasn’t worth the squeeze” for Fox given the money at stake, and he used a series of insults aimed at Day.
In a follow-up interview with Front Office Sports, he went further:
- He said Ohio State objected to the Barstool deal instantly, and that Fox executives were shown a long highlight reel of him criticizing Ohio State and Day.
- He said he was sidelined for three or four Big Noon Kickoff shows over two years, or moved to different locations, because of complaints.
- He said that two weeks before the Illinois game, he was told to stay home from Columbus because Ohio State would not cooperate with the show if he were there.
- He said he’s never personally spoken with Ohio State or Big Ten officials, and that from what he gathers, Day believes Portnoy “doxxed” him.
Those are serious claims. But note the key detail Portnoy himself acknowledged: he never spoke directly with either Ohio State or the Big Ten. His account is secondhand, built on what he says Fox told him.
What Ohio State, Fox, and the Big Ten Have Said
So far, not much. The Big Ten declined to comment. Ohio State and Fox did not respond to Front Office Sports and declined further comment to The Athletic. Because of that, Portnoy’s claims that Ohio State pressured the Big Ten and Fox remain unconfirmed.
There’s also history worth remembering. Ahead of the 2025 opener against Texas, reports said Portnoy had been banned from Ohio Stadium. Ohio State athletic director Ross Bjork denied that, and Ohio State disputed some of Portnoy’s earlier claims about Big Noon Kickoff as well. That doesn’t prove anything about this week, but it does explain why many people are treating his latest account cautiously.
Why This Story Is Bigger Than One Pregame Show
Strip away the personalities, and this is really about brands.
Fox needs Big Noon Kickoff to compete with ESPN’s College GameDay, and it also needs good relationships with the biggest draws in the Big Ten, Ohio State among them. Barstool brings a loud, polarizing audience that can drive attention and also drive complaints. Ohio State, meanwhile, is one of the most-watched programs in the country and has every incentive to control how its games are framed on the networks that carry them.
Portnoy is a Michigan alum and an outspoken Wolverines supporter who has criticized Day and Ohio State for years. Whether his presence at Big Noon Kickoff was “bias” or just modern, personality-driven sports media depends on who you ask. What’s harder to dispute is that a rivalry-flavored personality sitting at a desk outside Ohio Stadium created a recurring tension for everyone involved.
Why the Timing Is Interesting
Ohio State is about to enter the most important stretch of its season: at Indiana on October 17, at USC on October 31, and home against Oregon on November 7. Those games will be some of the most-watched on the Big Ten schedule, and the same networks that carry them will be paying close attention to how everyone behaves around them. If you’re a network, a conference, or a program, nobody wants a sideshow competing with the football.
So, What Do We Actually Know?
Putting it all together:
- Confirmed: Portnoy and Barstool are off Big Noon Kickoff, and Marchand’s sources said the show-style mismatch and problems tied to Ohio State home games were involved.
- Claimed by Portnoy, not confirmed: Ryan Day and Ohio State personally lobbied the Big Ten and pressured Fox to force him out.
- Not said by anyone on the record: Ohio State, Fox, and the Big Ten have not publicly confirmed or denied the specifics.
That last point matters. Until one of those three groups speaks, any headline that says “Ryan Day got Dave Portnoy fired” is saying more than the evidence can support.
The Takeaway for Fans
Whichever side you’re on, the story adds one more layer to an already bitter rivalry, and it reminds us how much of modern college football is business: broadcast partners, brand protection, and personalities who bring both attention and risk. The most honest read right now is this: there was real friction, Ohio State was part of it, and the full story hasn’t been told by the people who could actually tell it.
