The Penn State Nittany Lions at Michigan State Spartans football game in 2023 has been moved to Black Friday and will be played in Detroit, it was announced on Wednesday.
Penn State and Michigan State will square off at Ford Field in Detroit, Mich., on Friday, Nov. 24, 2023 (Week 13). The game will be televised live by NBC and streamed by Peacock at 7:30pm ET.
“This is a unique opportunity, for both our football program and our fan base, to play a Black Friday game at Ford Field,” said MSU Vice President and Director of Athletics Alan Haller. “Southeast Michigan is home to 100,000 alums, nearly 50 percent of our student body and countless more Spartan fans. Our men’s basketball team has experienced tremendous support in Detroit, both at Ford Field and Little Caesars Arena, and we’re excited to bring Spartan Football to our fans in the Motor City. The city is important to our mission not only as an athletic department, but our entire University. We anticipate that the experience will be so much more than a football game for our Spartan faithful.
“The decision to move a home game out of Spartan Stadium was given careful consideration, as we understand the impact it will have on some fans. As a community partner, we recognize home football brings benefits to the entire Mid-Michigan area. The fact that this game falls on a holiday weekend Friday increased our willingness make the move. I believe our season ticket holders still have a strong collection of home games highlighted by Michigan and a premier non-conference game against Washington, with a total of six home games just as we had in 2021.”
The game was originally scheduled to be played at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Mich., on Saturday, Nov. 25. Tickets for the rescheduled contest in Detroit will be sold as a stand-alone event in the near future.
“This is an exciting opportunity for our program to play in prime time on a holiday weekend,” said MSU head football coach Mel Tucker. “Our players will be able to compete in an NFL environment while being showcased in the national spotlight. I’m looking forward to our fans creating a loud atmosphere and giving us a home-field advantage at Ford Field.”
Penn State and Michigan State first met on the gridiron in 1914 and have played 37 times. The Nittany Lions won the most recent contest last season, 35-16, which tied the overall series between the two schools, 18-18-1.
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