Wisconsin football: Barry Alvarez issues statement on Friday night Big Ten football

There was quite the commotion on Wednesday afternoon.

The Big Ten Conference will start playing games on Friday night, commissioner Jim Delany told the Chicago Tribune on Wednesday. The Big Ten Network also announced the move, which will have six primetime games on Fridays to be shown on ESPN, Fox or FS1 (none on BTN, for that matter).

Many have come out against it, from sports writers to high school football associations and even Big Ten programs like Michigan and Penn State announcing they would not host a Friday night game.

Inside the state, the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association also issued a statement:

Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez addressed the news, saying UW is open to hosting games at Camp Randall Stadium on the Friday night prior to Labor Day weekend, but has not committed at any other point. Here’s his full statement:

“There has been a lot of dialogue within our conference about the feasibility of playing a very limited number of Friday night games. As a former high school and college coach, I have great respect for the tradition and importance of Friday night high school football in the state of Wisconsin and throughout the Midwest. As a conference, we felt it was the right time to explore additional opportunities for exposure on Friday nights on a limited basis.

“At Wisconsin, we are open to hosting games at Camp Randall on the Friday night prior to Labor Day weekend in selected years but have not committed to hosting Friday night games at any other time.”