Not too long ago, The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand released an article claiming that Dave Portnoy and his sports and pop culture blog, Barstool Sports, won’t appear on FOX Sports’ Big Noon Kickoff anymore. To make things certain, Marchand claimed to have reached out to Portnoy by phone. But that stirred up a bigger storm.
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“Just was told @AndrewMarchand is about to release an article saying I’ve been put on ice for @BNKonFOX,” Portnoy wrote on X. “I havent seen the article yet and he didnt call me for a quote but i can sum it up this way. Ohio State and Ryan Day bi—d and moaned to the Big 10 and threatened FOX till they had no choice. Juice wasnt worth the squeeze amd frankly I dont blame them. Huge dollars at stake and you have Cryin Ryan throwing temper tantrums amd making threats every few days on something I said. I always knew Ryan Day was soft but holy shit even I didnt realize he was this soft 😂 #Goblue.
“The Barstool College Football will continue on. Maybe we’ll even see you in Columbus where contrary to popular belief most fans love the rivalry and aren’t p—es like Cryin Ryan.”
Soon after Portnoy shared his words, a college football fan took to the comments section and slammed the founder of Barstool. The user on X asked Portnoy to “take some accountability” without trying to blame the coach for everything. And the founder had to clear the air.
“Wrong! I do not blame Ryan Day for me getting fired from WEEI, ESPN, or banned from the NFL,” Portnoy replied to the comment on X. “However, he very certainly got me fired from @BNKonFOX #notorious.”
FOX Sports and Barstool Sports signed a partnership back in July 2025. That put Portnoy on the Big Noon Kickoff desk. It also helped him launch his weekday show, Wake Up Barstool on FS1.
Eric Shanks, the CEO of FOX Sports, even praised Barstool for engaging in “authentic, bold, and original” content, which brings in loyal fans. It made Portnoy and his team a “natural fit” for FOX’s “evolving multiplatform content strategy.”
However, that narrative changed, and FOX now reportedly wanted more traditional programming. Given the network’s association with the Big Ten, Barstool’s edgy persona didn’t work for too long.
To make things worse, reports suggested that Ohio Stadium even banned Portnoy. And that’s likely the reason why he slammed the Ohio State head coach Ryan Day in the X post. However, the university denied the ban.
But Barstool’s shows aren’t the only ones that FS1 removed. Earlier this week, the network also canceled three of its five daily programs, including The Facility, Speak, and Breakfast Ball.
For now, only time can tell what the future holds for Barstool Sports without FOX’s backing.