Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy will no longer appear on Fox’s “Big Noon Kickoff” college football pregame show, The Associated Press reported, citing a person familiar with the situation who spoke on condition of anonymity because the decision had not been announced. The Athletic first reported the move.
Fox Sports declined to comment, the AP said, and the network has given no public reason.
Portnoy offered his own explanation on social media, blaming Ohio State and coach Ryan Day.
“Huge dollars at stake and you have Cryin Ryan throwing temper tantrums,” he wrote, adding that the “juice wasn’t worth the squeeze.”
That account is Portnoy’s alone; Ohio State referred all questions to Fox Sports, according to the AP.
The friction has a history. Ohio State previously kept Portnoy out of Ohio Stadium before a game against Texas, and in planning meetings with Fox, the school stipulated that only the show’s main desk crew would get stadium access, the AP reported.
Portnoy, a Michigan graduate, began appearing on the show last fall after Barstool and Fox Sports announced a partnership.
That relationship is not ending entirely: Barstool still has a live two-hour weekday morning show on FS1.
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