Big Ten Network's 'B1G Tailgate' to Broadcast Live from Illinois' Memorial Stadium

BTN's flagship game-day show visits Grange Grove as the Illini take on Michigan in an historic game

Sep 2, 2023; Champaign, Illinois, USA; The Illinois Fighting Illini take the field before a game against the Toledo Rockets at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images | Ron Johnson-Imagn Images

No. 22 Illinois is set to welcome No. 24 Michigan to Memorial Stadium on Saturday (2:30 p.m. CT on CBS), and it’s hard to imagine more pomp or grander circumstances around a mid-October college football game in Champaign.

A game to honor all those who built this program. #Illini // #HTTO // #famILLy pic.twitter.com/jul2ntP9vW

— Illinois Football (@IlliniFootball) October 14, 2024

As the 5-1 Illini celebrate the 100th-year anniversary of Memorial Stadium with a sold-out Rededication Game against the reigning (but now-vulnerable) national champions, the Big Ten Network’s “B1G Tailgate” will be on site to cover the lead-up to the event.

Hosted by Mike Hall and Tyvis Powell, “B1G Tailgate” will kick off at 9 a.m. CT (doors open to the public at 8) and run through 11 a.m., into the first conference games of the day. Former Illini quarterback Juice Williams and receiver Brandon Lloyd will be guests on set, in the southwest corner of Grange Grove, where the first 50 early arrivals will be rewarded with a free Big Ten Network bucket hat.

The occasion of the rededication, beyond honoring the original ribbon-cutting for Memorial Stadium, is the acknowledgment of another notable century mark set that same day: the 100 years that have passed since Red Grange ran roughshod over the Wolverines.

"That place should be rocking. That place should be going crazy."

Bret Bielema wants @IlliniFootball fans to bring it for Saturday's ranked matchup vs. No. 24 Michigan 🔊#B1GFootball pic.twitter.com/YBwOzsDiFK

— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) October 15, 2024

On Oct. 18, 1924, “The Galloping Ghost” put up an historic performance in the Memorial Stadium Dedication Game, tearing off a 97-yard touchdown return on the opening kickoff and piling up 402 total yards, five rushing TDs and tacking on a scoring pass to knock off a Michigan team that entered the matchup on a two-year unbeaten streak.

Illinois coach Bret Bielema would likely be tickled with that kind of production from his entire offense against the Wolverines on Saturday.

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