BYU, Second Big 12 Team Foot Bill For Southern Illinois Game
Aug 25, 2024, 11:48 PM
PROVO, Utah — Southern Illinois will earn $560,000 for playing BYU football this Saturday night.
It’s another example of the big paydays that Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) schools earn for playing Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) programs.
Southern Illinois’ payout for the BYU game is reportedly the 14th biggest in FCS vs. FBS payouts for the 2024 season.
Southern Illinois will receive a $560k payout from the game against BYU football
The biggest payout a Big 12 team is giving an FCS program this season is Coach Prime’s Colorado Buffaloes, who will pay $700,000 to face FCS powerhouse North Dakota State this Thursday night.
BYU’s payday to the Salukis is interesting as it’s paid out by the Cougars and another Big 12 program, the Kansas Jayhawks.
Southern Illinois, located in Carbondale, Illinois, was initially scheduled to open the 2024 season against Kansas with a $500,000 payday.
Kansas paid a portion of SIU’s payout
However, Kansas canceled the game, allowing BYU to play its first-ever game against SIU.
BYU will pay the Salukis $425,000, while Kansas, as part of the cancelation of the original game, will pay SIU $135,000. The payout was announced in 2022.
Kickoff time and TV info have been announced for #BYU's season opener.
BYU vs. Southern Illinois
📅: August 31, 2024
⏰: 6 p.m. (MT)
📺: Big 12 Now on ESPN+
📻: @kslnewsradio pic.twitter.com/QIX2UeqNvs— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) May 30, 2024
BYU football is 18-0 all-time against FCS opponents. Under head coach Nick Hill, Southern Illinois has a history of knocking off FBS programs.
Last year, SIU collected $375,000 from Northern Illinois after a 14-11 upset win.
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In 2022, Southern Illinois grabbed a $550,000 paycheck and knocked off Northwestern from the Big Ten.
Then, in 2021, the Salukis nearly took down one of the top Big 12 programs, Kansas State, in Manhattan. Kansas State defeated SIU 31-23 in that game.
“Really good team. … They’ve had success playing against FBS teams,” BYU head coach Kalani Sitake said on Southern Illinois. “We need to make sure that we’re ready for it, and part of that is making sure that we’re prepped and have a plan going into it.”
BYU vs. Southern Illinois
Date: Saturday, August 31, 2024
Location: LaVell Edwards Stadium
Kickoff: 6 p.m. (MT)
TV: Big 12 Now on ESPN+
Radio: KSL NewsRadio (102.7 FM, 1160 AM)
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSLsports.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.
