Hawkeye Football: Iowa vs. Michigan State Game Time, TV Update

At the outset of the season, the Iowa Hawkeyes had more than half their games marked as TBD in terms of both game time and TV channel. One game that has remained in that TBD realm was the home matchup with Michigan State in week five. However, NBC had the rights to the game and all indications were the matchup would be broadcast on Peacock with a 2:30pm CT kick. That meant Hawkeye fans were set to need a Peacock subscription for the next 30 days.

On Monday, that all changed as news dropped that the kickoff was being formally announced as 6:30pm CT - our first night game in Kinnick for 2023. Notably, the channel was also formally announced and rather than being relegated to streaming on Peacock, the game will be broadcast nationally on NBC.

That’s great news from an exposure standpoint, but also great news for Hawkeye fans looking to save a few bucks and still see their team.

As we noted in our preseason look at which channels and streaming services Hawkeye fans need this season, this matchup was expected to be one of two games this year exclusively streaming on Peacock, but it was worth waiting to subscribe until the last minute. Hopefully you heeded our warning.

Peacock has this one for now, but it’s possible another network could flex that week 5 game within the 7-day window. So, unless you have another reason to add Peacock, might be best to hold off signing up until we get closer to game day. Peacock offers it’s basic (which they brand as premium) package for $5.99 per month. That will get you access to the live sports stuff so no real need to upgrade to the Premium Plus if all you care about is the Hawkeyes.

The other game that has been reported as an NBC game which will stream on Peacock is Iowa’s November 4th trip to Wrigley Field to face off with the Northwestern Wildcats. Originally, that was going to mean two separate months of subscribing for $5.99. With Monday’s announcement, Hawkeye fans appear to only be on the hook for one month.

Again, unless you have another desire for Peacock, it’s probably best to wait until we hit that window ahead of game week to see if this one gets flexed into another time slot or channel.

Of note for Hawkeye fans, Iowa’s homecoming matchup with the Purdue Boilermakers in week six was expected to be a night game. Given the September 30th night game against Michigan State, a second straight night game might be in jeopardy.

The 3-0 Hawkeyes come into the week ranked #24 in the AP. They travel to Happy Valley in week four for a showdown against #7 Penn State. Saturday’s kickoff is also slated for 6:30pm and will be broadcast on CBS.