The image of football at Wrigley Field is grainy and in black and white: A Chicago Bear on what appears to be a muddy field, divided by white lines, under overcast skies.
Chicago will get a new, colorful image Nov. 20.
That’s when seas of purple and orange will fill the Friendly Confines for a game between Northwestern and Illinois. Details will be unveiled at an 11 a.m. news conference Friday at Wrigley Field.
The principals in putting the game together — NU athletic director Jim Phillips and Cubs President Crane Kenney — will be there, as will representatives from the Bears, who called Wrigley home from 1921 to ’70.
The television partner will be either ESPN or ESPN2, the Tribune has learned, and kickoff will be at 11 a.m.
ESPN could send its “GameDay” crew to Chicago for the festivities, although that Saturday’s matchups also include Ohio State-Iowa and Army-Notre Dame at Yankee Stadium.
“We generally go to the game with the biggest implications, but we have gone to games with special circumstances,” said ESPN Senior Vice President Burke Magnus, referring to games at Air Force and Florida A&M. “Just the idea of being in Wrigley Field would make it fun and special.”
Phillips and Kenney had to overcome a bevy of obstacles — everything from player safety to alcohol sales to revenue-sharing issues — to make the game a reality.
The result of their efforts is a historic game that promises to capture Chicago’s attention. NU officials hope it will provide a huge marketing boost for a program that is thriving in virtually every category other than home attendance.
“Venues matter,” Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany said Thursday via text message. “And I believe Big Ten and college football fans will respond enthusiastically to this unique presentation at one of America’s great sports venues located in what I believe to be the best sports city in America.”
