Originally scheduled to kick the 2011 season off on Saturday, Michigan State will instead open the curtain on the new football year a day earlier, the school announced Thursday.
In a release, the Spartans announced their opener against Youngstown State has been moved from Sept. 3 to Friday, Sept. 2. The game will be televised in primetime -- 7:30 ET to be specific -- on the Big Ten Network.
“We’re extremely excited about this special opportunity to kick off the 2011 season with a nationally televised game against Youngstown State,” MSU Athletics Director Mark Hollis said in a statement. “Over the years, fans have expressed increased interest in kicking off our home football schedule with a Friday night game on Labor Day weekend. We believe it will be a positive experience for our entire fan base, including the student body, and we couldn’t pull something like this off without campus-wide cooperation.
“Since Michigan (K-12) schools don’t begin fall classes until after Labor Day, the vast majority of high school teams will play their football games on Thursday that week, making this a great way for our fans to kick off the holiday weekend. By moving the Youngstown State game to Friday night, it’s also our hope that the state tourism industry will receive a positive bump since most fans will now have the opportunity to make plans to enjoy the entire Labor Day weekend.”
The matchup with the Penguins will mark just the 10th night home game in the history of the school.
The Spartans had previously announced that they will open the 2012 season on the Friday before Labor Day against Boise State.
