Dave Portnoy reveals what part Ohio State had in his removal from Fox's 'Big Noon Kickoff'

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Dave Portnoy reveals what part Ohio State had in his removal from Fox's 'Big Noon Kickoff' originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Last week, Fox Sports made a significant shake-up to its lead college football gameday show.

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Dave Portnoy and Barstool Sports will no longer appear on “Big Noon Kickoff,” The Athletic's Andrew Marchand reported on Friday, after the personalities appeared on the show for over a year. And while Marchand's reporting indicated there "wasn’t one specific reason for the decision’s abrupt timing," Portnoy is saying otherwise.

After initially posting to X calling out Ohio State head coach Ryan Day and the Buckeyes for "making threats every few days" and complaining about his role on Fox's show, Portnoy has spoken further about his understanding of Ohio State's role in having him removed from "Big Noon Kickoff."

Here's what Portnoy has revealed about Ohio State's role in his removal from the show.

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Dave Portnoy reveals Ohio State's part in his removal from 'Big Noon Kickoff'

On Friday, Portnoy got out ahead of the news when he posted to X, sharing that he would be removed from "Big Noon Kickoff." In that post, Portnoy — who has faced issues with the Buckeyes in the past and is a supporter, alum and booster for Michigan — wrote that Ohio State and Ryan Day "b----ed and moaned to the Big 10 and threatened Fox till they had no choice" to have him removed from the show.

"Juice wasnt worth the squeeze amd frankly I dont blame them. Huge dollars at stake and you have Cryin Ryan throwing temper tantrums amd making threats every few days on something I said," Portnoy wrote. "I always knew Ryan Day was soft but holy s--- even I didnt realize he was this soft."

Marchand, meanwhile, then reported Friday that Fox's decision to remove Portnoy from "Big Noon Kickoff" did not have a reason for the abrupt timing, but "the constant challenge of trying to unite Fox Sports’ more traditional show with Barstool’s persona proved unsustainable." In The Athletic's story, Ohio State officials "referred all inquiries to Fox Sports."

In 2025, reports had indicated that Portnoy was banned from entering Ohio State's stadium during a Fox broadcast, though Buckeyes AD Ross Bjork refuted those reports.

Now, on Monday, Portnoy has spoken more at length about his point of view on his removal from the show. In an interview with Front Office Sports, Portnoy said he found out about his removal on Thursday, and he was simply told the reason for the decision was "Ohio State."

"When Fox announced the deal [with Barstool Sports], Ohio State objected to it instantly, to the point that Fox executives were in Columbus and were shown a 30- to 45-minute highlight tape of me ripping Ohio State and Ryan Day—all of the stuff that people familiar with me and Barstool have probably seen with the rivalry stuff," Portnoy told Front Office Sports. "So, very upset that I would be added to Big Noon Kickoff."

"Any time anyone—not only me—would criticize Ohio State or Ryan Day, they would complain."

According to Portnoy, Ohio State officials would complain to Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti, and calls would then be made to Fox, who took it up with him. 

"I was put on the sidelines for three or four Big Noon Kickoff shows over the course of two years, or go to a different location, like Mississippi State last year, because the Big Ten complained," Portnoy told Front Office Sports. "It got worse and worse, to the point where I was supposed to be in Columbus two weeks ago. I was getting ready to go out there, and they told me to stay home because Ohio State had basically said, “If Dave’s there, we won’t cooperate in any aspect of the show.”

"So, it just on and on became a more difficult thing for Fox. Kind of like I said, they have a billion-dollar deal with the Big Ten. That contract’s not up today, but it’s not that far off [mid-2030], and they’re trying to do all these things. I think when one of your biggest partners, Ohio State, is saying, 'We’ll make your life hell if you keep working with Dave Portnoy,' it makes things difficult. "

In the story, Portnoy said he never spoke to Big Ten officials or Ohio State — and that Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day thinks Portnoy "doxxed him."

" I’m not 100% sure he knows how the internet works, and I don’t even mean that facetiously. But like during the whole Harbaugh thing [the Connor Stalions investigation], when it was back and forth in the news every day, there was a story at On3 that said [Day’s] brother was running a spy operation against Harbaugh," Portnoy told Front Office Sports. "We talked about it, and I think a) he thinks I made that story up myself—he doesn’t realize it was a huge story already within the Michigan-Ohio State world, but he seems to think I somehow doxxed him with that. That’s the thing I always hear, that it somehow went beyond just Michigan vs. Ohio State, which it never did."

It remains unclear whether Fox will offer any further explanation for Portnoy's removal, but based on the college football personality's words, the Buckeyes were constantly pushing for him to be taken off "Big Noon Kickoff."

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