Jesse Marks, Northwestern University’s deputy director of athletics for development, had one question on his mind earlier this year. Where would Northwestern’s football team play in 2024 and 2025?

The Wildcats’ home stadium – Ryan Field – was set to undergo a massive rebuilding project. It would start with a demolition in the early months of 2024 and end with the new-and-improved field’s grand opening in 2026. It was up to Marks to figure out where the football team would have its temporary home for the two years in between.

Given Northwestern’s proximity to Chicago, there were more than a few options for Marks to choose from. Wrigley Field and Soldier Field – the historic home fields of MLB’s Chicago Cubs and the NFL’s Chicago Bears, respectively, were two of those options. So was SeatGeek Stadium – the former home of the MLS’s Chicago Fire – in Bridgeview, Illinois, located five miles southwest of Chicago Midway Airport.

A new solution emerges

There was one overarching problem with all these options. As Northwestern officials, including Marks, traveled to each of these potential options to take tours, the length of the commutes became an apparent issue.

“You either have to drive through or around Chicago to get there, and that takes some time,” Marks said in an interview with USA TODAY. “We know the majority of our fans are in the North Shore area that comes to the games … having that type of drive for the majority of our games wasn’t good for anything.”

It would not have been a good experience for the athletes, either.

“It’s probably a three-hour gap from when the game would end to when they’re back on campus, tailgating or hanging with their parents.”

That’s when a new idea emerged. For the last eight years, Northwestern’s women’s lacrosse and soccer teams have played on an on-campus field right across the street from the school’s recently opened athletic facility. What if the football team played there too?

On April 10, Northwestern announced its plans to have the football team play at the on-campus field with the help of some “temporary enhancements.”

Northwestern football head coach David Braun praised the decision in a press conference the day after the announcement. He emphasized how the decision to remain on-campus will make the next two years a good experience for not only the players on the team, but the rest of the student body.

“I’m just really, really excited and really grateful for the decision that’s been made in the best interest of our student-athletes,” he said. “And I think it really creates a unique opportunity for us as a university to create an atmosphere and an environment on campus that will be remembered for a long, long time.”

An ‘unsung hero’ helps prepare for the season

With the new idea approved and the season fewer than five months away, preparation had to begin in earnest.

The university’s chief operating officer, Luke Figora, helped Marks and the athletics program bring everything together quickly.

“I call him the unsung hero of this project for getting all the different units that sometimes don’t work with athletics on a daily basis to come together and help us pull off such a venture,” Marks said. “And you’re talking about the different units, everything from risk management, to parking, to security to police, to IT, facilities maintenance and management, athletics, of course. It’s a complete, university-wide effort.”

In all, the process from conceptualization and design to the start of the build was 60 days, or roughly two months.

“That doesn’t happen without creating good alignment on campus,” Marks said.

BOWL PROJECTIONS: Preseason picks for the entire postseason

EXPANSION: The story of how the playoff went from four teams to 12

The most unique gameday experience at the smallest stadium in the Power Four

Northwestern’s football team has been preparing for what gamedays will look like at the new field, which the school has dubbed “Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium.”

Braun told reporters Monday that the coaches and players completed a “mock game” on Friday to work through the logistics of making their way from the locker rooms to the field.

But what will the experience be like for the fans?

At the end of the construction project, the capacity of the on-campus field stands at 12,000. That makes the stadium by far the smallest by capacity of any school in the Power Four conferences – the SEC, ACC, Big Ten and Big 12. It’s also about 25% of the size of Ryan Field, which was already the smallest stadium in the Big Ten.

Within that diminutive 12,000-person cap, there is a variety of seating options.

Those willing to pay top dollar could choose to take in the game from within one of the 16 open-air suites that make up the two levels of premium, all-inclusive club seating on the south side of the field. According to a Northwestern official, reserving a suite costs between $7,700 total for 11 people and up to $9,500 for a 14-person reservation.

They might also choose to take a table in the field-level seating area. Those tables can seat four people and cost $1,499 to book.

The rest of the seating at Martin Stadium is mostly made up of bleachers. There are 5,000 bleacher seats on the north end of the field. On the east side, directly next to the lake, are 1,200 more bleacher seats behind the visiting teams’ bench. Finally, the west side features the home sideline and 2,500 more bench seats. Further up on that sideline, there’s what Marks called a “loft level” with 200 barstools and chair-backed seats.

As of Wednesday, the get-in price for Northwestern’s season opener against Miami (Ohio) is $55 before fees. Those that prefer to have a backed seat at the game can get one on the south end of the field – between the field-level loge seating and luxury viewing suites – for $68 pre-fees.

Behind all of the premium seating options is the main bank of concessions, which includes a beer garden in the center, accessible for all ticketed guests.

The beer garden is an especially notable inclusion for the temporary field because alcohol sales are a new amenity to Wildcats football games. The old version of Ryan Field, where Northwestern had played home games for decades, never offered alcohol for purchase.

Northwestern’s other home venue

The Wildcats will play the first five of their seven home games this season by the lake at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium. After the opener against Miami (Ohio), there will be visits from Duke, Eastern Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin.

For the remaining two home games – against Ohio State on Nov. 16 and Illinois on Nov. 30 – Northwestern will play at Wrigley Field. Those matchups come after the Cubs conclude their season and also are expected to be two of the biggest draws on the schedule.

Wrigley has hosted Northwestern several times in its history. Last year, the Wildcats took on Iowa at the Cubs’ stadium. The Hawkeyes won that game, 10-7. Northwestern’s most recent game at Wrigley Field before that was a 32-14 loss to Purdue in 2021.

Tailgating options abound at Northwestern football games in 2024

There are more gameday viewing options as well for those who don’t purchase a ticket to the game.

Northwestern is offering a variety of tailgating packages across several, tiered price levels for the 2024 season, all part of what it is calling the “Lakeside Gameday Experience.” Each one provides access to the main experience area, featuring various amenities like live music, purchasable food and beverage, a giant video board to watch the games and various games like cornhole.

Higher-tiered options include the ability to reserve a designated space to take in the game, from 10-person tented areas to two-story chalets that fit 50. These options allow fans to order catered food or other food and beverages ahead of time and receive service in their designated areas.

“You don’t have to lug gear or tents across campus. You just show up and everything’s there for you,” Marks said.

Regardless of how fans choose to experience it, the one certainty is that the home game experience at Northwestern this year will be one of the most unique atmospheres in all of college football. From its small capacity to its potential for wildly wind-affected plays with its proximity to Lake Michigan, there will be plenty to keep an eye on in Evanston.

“We want all of our faculty, staff, students, alumni – everybody that comes to campus – around Northwestern football [to] celebrate the purple on every game day and come together as one campus,” Marks said. “It really became very clear what we had to do, and this was the best option for our program for a two-year period.”

On Thursday, Tennessee announced White’s raise and contract extension, which went into effect Aug. 1.

It’s a significant raise from his previous base salary of $2.425 million, and he’ll continue to receive the same 5% annual increase from his original contract.

White can also earn as much as $600,000 in bonuses annually if the Volunteers hits academic and athletic benchmarks, which it has routinely done during his tenure. His deal has a six-year rolling term, and among his perks is the use of a university plane for 10 one-way flights.

Consider this commission pay for the skyrocketing revenue that Tennessee has generated under White’s watch.

The Tennessee Fund raised $139.7 million in 2023-24, the best year in Tennessee athletics fundraising history. That mark has increased more than $100 million in the past four years since White was hired.

In 2023, the Volunteers had their highest operating revenue in history at more than $200 million, exceeding the previous record by almost $50 million.

“When Danny says he and his team of exceptional athletics administrators and coaches are working to build the best athletics department in the country, those are not just empty words,” Tennessee Chancellor Donde Plowman said in a university release.

‘Danny is visionary — a leader in our conference and across the country — and is focused every day on creating the very best experiences for our student-athletes, our fans and our athletics department. That focus and commitment are yielding extraordinary results across all sports.’

Tennessee hit record marks in fundraising, winning

White has taken the Vols from disarray to dominance in less than four years.

He was hired in January 2021 after AD Phillip Fulmer retired and football coach Jeremy Pruitt was fired for cause amid an NCAA investigation into alleged recruiting violations.

White hired Heupel, his coach at Central Florida, and that turned around the Volunteers.

In 2023-24, Tennessee finished third in the Learfield Director’s Cup, the highest in school history, and captured its third consecutive SEC All-Sport title. It was one of two schools in a power conference to have every sport reach the NCAA postseason or a bowl game.

In March, Tennessee men’s basketball made the Elite Eight for the second time in program history. In June, Vols baseball won its first national championship at the College World Series.

White’s coaches have been rewarded with raises and contract extensions, including Tony Vitello becoming the highest-paid college baseball coach in the nation. And now it is White’s turn.

How Danny White salary compares to highest-paid ADs

With maxed out bonuses, White could earn $3.35 million in the 2024-25 fiscal year.

That places him atop the lists of highest paid ADs at public universities, based on documents obtained by USA TODAY Network this summer.

Southern California’s Jennifer Cohen, Notre Dame’s Pete Bevacqua, Baylor’s Mack Rhoades and Miami’s Dan Radakovich likely earn around the same or more than White. But their current salaries are not available because they work at private universities.

A few public-school ADs are in the same ballpark as White.

Texas’ Chris Del Conte will earn $2.525 million in base salary in 2024-25 with bonuses that fall short of what White can receive. Del Conte’s deal is backloaded, increasing to $3.15 million in 2030.

By then, White’s pay will have risen multiple times because of his 5% annual increase. Plus, he’s received substantial raises each of the past two years as Tennessee’s revenue has skyrocketed.

Pay of other notable public-school ADs, either base salary or average annual value, includes:

Texas A&M’s Trev Albert – $2.35 million
Penn State’s Pat Kraft – $2.26 million
Texas Tech’s Kirby Hocutt – $2.24 million
Oklahoma’s Joe Castiglione – $2.2 million
Ohio State’s Ross Bjork – $2 million

Danny White gets bonus pay if Tennessee does this

White’s base salary will climb to over $3.5 million by the 2029-30 fiscal year. With maxed-out bonuses, his total compensation would top $4 million that year.

White’s bonuses previously capped at $300,000 per year. If not for that threshold, he would’ve earned $533,610 in bonuses in 2023-24 after UT had a record-finish in the Learfield Director’s Cup and the baseball team won the national championship.

So his new contract lifts that cap to $600,000 in bonuses. Here are White’s bonuses in his new deal:

Up to 9% of base salary for Learfield Director’s Cup top 10 finish
Up to 5% for Academic Progress Rate high score
4% for Tennessee winning team national championship
2% for Tennessee winning team SEC championship
1% for NCAA tournament appearance by men’s or women’s basketball; 3% for Sweet 16; 4% for Final Four
1% for bowl game; 3% for College Football Playoff appearance; 4% quarterfinal; 5% semifinal; 6% CFP title game.

USA TODAY’s Steve Berkowitz contributed to this report.

This year’s journey to reaching the College Football Playoff will have many ups and downs. Given the expanded postseason field, there are going to be several opportunities for teams to win their way into — or potentially fall out of — the field.

So which games are going to be the ones that matter the most when all is said and done?

Each week will provide at least one critical game that shapes the final picture. Our task here is to identify which one on the schedule ultimately has the biggest impact on the races for the top seeds, the at-large bids and the battle to be the highest-ranked Group of Five champion.

Here’s the 15 games that will decide the College Football Playoff field:

Week 1 – Notre Dame at Texas A&M (Aug. 31)

Lots of attention will be focused on the matchup between Georgia and Clemson, however this is a more pivotal game for the Fighting Irish and Aggies. Notre Dame’s schedule features only three teams in the preseason poll — one of which is Florida State. There aren’t a ton of opportunities for high-quality wins, making this road trip crucial to its playoff hopes. Texas A&M winning would be huge to start Mike Elko’s tenure and would be a big resume builder come December.

BOWL PROJECTIONS: Preseason forecast for the 12-team playoff

TOUGH ROADS: Ranking the 10 toughest college football schedules

Week 2 – Texas at Michigan (Sept. 7)

This game is really about the Wolverines. Are they able to notch a huge non-conference win to continue the momentum from last year’s title, or is this potentially a step-back season? The schedule beyond the Longhorns is much tougher in the expanded Big Ten. Michigan might only be able to afford one more loss if it loses to the Longhorns. For Texas, a win could provide a similar boost like its defeat of Alabama did last season.

Week 3 – Memphis at Florida State (Sept. 14)

The Tigers might have been one of the biggest losers after the Seminoles flopped in Ireland last week. Memphis was hoping this could be a potential playoff-deciding game that would boost it above the rest of the Group of Five. It remains an important outcome and comes the same day Tulane visits Oklahoma, which could help boost the American Athletic profile compared to the rest of the leagues competing to send their champion to the 12-team field.

Week 4 – Utah at Oklahoma State (Sept. 21)

The remaining Big 12 team that played in last year’s conference title game against a new arrival that is the league’s preseason favorite. In what could be the most balanced league among the Power Four, the winner of this one puts down an early marker in the Big 12 race.

Week 5 – Georgia at Alabama (Sept. 28)

The first big test of the Kalen DeBoer era will start to reveal whether the Crimson Tide are SEC title contenders or just playoff contenders. There’s no shame in a loss to the Bulldogs. A win would be huge, giving DeBoer credibility as the heir to the Alabama program after Nick Saban. This is the second huge game in the first third of the season for Georgia (it plays Clemson in Week 1). Two wins would validate the Bulldogs as the No. 1 team. If somehow they lose both, it will be a very thin margin of error the rest of the way.

Week 6 – Clemson at Florida State (Oct. 5)

This game takes on added significance for the Seminoles after their opening loss. They’ll have this matchup and a trip to Notre Dame to boost their profile and make a run at the playoff. But it’s hard to see them having any at-large possibility without beating Clemson at home. For the Tigers, this is a chance to reassert control over the ACC and damage their biggest rivals.

Week 7 – Ohio State at Oregon (Oct. 12)

The benefits of Big Ten expansion include a trip to Eugene for the Buckeyes, four years after a planned visit was wiped out due to COVID-19. These two teams last met in 2021, with the Ducks prevailing by mauling the Buckeyes in Columbus. Now, they’re the two favorites in the same conference and will have massive stakes riding on the result.

Week 8 – Georgia at Texas (Oct. 19)

The second of two challenging road games against preseason top-five teams for the Bulldogs could have serious implications should they stumble against either Clemson or Alabama. The Longhorns will be one week removed from their annual showdown with Oklahoma, so they could either be riding high or dealing with an emotional letdown from a loss. If Texas is able to pull off a double defeat of the Sooners and Bulldogs, it would be hard to see it missing out on the SEC title game.

Week 9 – Missouri at Alabama (Oct. 26)

This might be the best weekend of the season, with five games matching teams in the preseason poll. It’s the biggest game for the Tigers, who will benefit from the easiest schedule among SEC contenders. Beating the Crimson Tide could all but clinch a playoff spot if they handle business in their winnable games. Missouri may not catch Alabama at a better time with this matchup sandwiched between the Crimson Tide’s trips to Tennessee and LSU.

Week 10 – Ohio State at Penn State (Nov. 2)

You might be able to call this ‘elimination weekend’ in the Big Ten between this matchup and Oregon visiting Michigan. The Nittany Lions haven’t been able to get over the hump against the Buckeyes in their past seven meetings and have dropped 11 of their last 12 matchups. This seems like a huge moment for their playoff hopes and the trajectory of James Franklin’s tenure. But can they pull it off and maybe reach the Big Ten title game?

Week 11 – Florida State at Notre Dame (Nov. 9)

As mentioned earlier, the Seminoles are going to need a strong run in the next couple months to put themselves in position to win their way into the field. But if they remain in contention, this road trip north in November provides a chance to impress the committee. The Irish — unless they’ve had an awful first two months — still should be in the playoff mix and could lock up their spot with a victory.

Week 12 – Tennessee at Georgia (Nov. 16)

The Volunteers are another team that could find itself in SEC title contention with a manageable schedule. They stand to be favored in every game to this point except for the matchups with Oklahoma and Alabama. That means this visit to Athens looms as a potential chance to win their way into the conference title game or stake claim to an at-large berth. It’s the last of five games against ranked opponents for the Bulldogs, with the previous four away from home. This is another opportunity to boost their profile.

Week 13 – James Madison at Appalachian State (Nov. 23)

The Dukes and Mountaineers start the season as the two favorites in the Sun Belt and are two of the league’s best bets if it is going to overcome the American Athletic or Mountain West champion for the Group of Five berth. The winner stands to reach the conference title game and could be one victory away from the playoff.

Week 14 – Michigan at Ohio State (Nov. 30)

Could this be a situation where both teams have already clinched spots in the Big Ten title game, making their regular-season clash insignificant? Such a new world we face with playoff expansion. It’s expected both teams will be in some sort of playoff contention at this point. The Buckeyes could be in the enviable position of ending their losing streak to the Wolverines while knocking their biggest rival out of the playoff field.

Week 15 – Big 12 championship game (Dec. 7)

The SEC and Big Ten games will have four teams comfortably in the field, barring some extremely unusual circumstances. The ACC appears destined to have a similar situation. So those three matchups then become about seeding and byes. But the Big 12 matchup seems likeliest to provide a win-or-out scenario, given the lack of elite quality teams in the league. That could change, but if there’s going to be a berth among the Power Four decided on the last day of the season, it’s probably going to happen in Arlington, Texas.

To the uneducated scroller, the official Paralympics TikTok account may seem like a cruel joke.

Footage of para-athletes is played under viral sounds that ‘mock’ the actions on screen.

In one, Australian cyclist Darren Hicks, a right leg amputee, wins time trial gold in Tokyo with the sound of ‘left, left, left’ in the background (4.8 million likes). In another, a pair of wheelchair basketball players maneuver on the court to Jack Harlow’s song ‘What’s Poppin.’ Noises from the kid game ‘Bop It!’ play as blind and vision-impaired swimmers are tapped on the head with foam-tipped poles, which the account explains is how the athletes are notified they’re getting close to the wall.

For the able-bodied community, this may seem offensive to individuals with disabilities. But Team USA Paralympians gave the content their stamp of approval.

2024 Paris Olympics: Follow USA TODAY’s coverage of the biggest names and stories of the Games.

“I love it. I love it all. I love any type of coverage that sparks discussion, that maybe we can react to and say, ‘Hey this wasn’t OK,’ or maybe to promote some controversial coverage and say ‘No, that’s exactly what I want to say in this moment,’” opening ceremony flag bearer and wheelchair basketball captain Steve Serio said. “We as athletes, Team USA, we want all the smoke both on and off the court.”

Paralympians have a great sense of humor, International Paralympic chief brand and communications officer Craig Spence said.

‘They like to laugh about this stuff, like we all do, and that’s why we’ve tried to be really edgy on the Paralympic TikTok account,’ Spence said.

Those who were offended often aren’t the ones who live with disabilities, Spence said. The person behind the social-media posting, Richard Fox, is a former para-athlete himself.

‘I wanted to showcase people with disabilities doing sport, but in a different way to how it’s been done previously,’ he told AdWeek in 2023, adding that he didn’t want the account to be used for ‘inspiration porn.’ ‘And so by using the viral sounds and by using the trends, that’s how we’re doing that.’

@Paralympics reached 4.6 million viewers by the time the 2024 opening ceremony started.

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast.Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

NEW YORK — Caroline Garcia said she received online abuse after her first-round loss at the U.S. Open and the French player on Wednesday blamed ‘unhealthy betting’ as one of the main reasons players are targeted on social media.

Garcia, a semifinalist at Flushing Meadows in 2022, lost 6-1 6-4 on Tuesday to unseeded Mexican Renata Zarazua, who had reached the second round of a Grand Slam only once before.

Garcia shared snippets of the abuse directed at her and her family on social media. The Frenchwoman also took aim at social media platforms for not doing enough to filter abuse.

‘Social media platforms don’t prevent it, despite AI being in a very advanced position. Tournaments and the sport keeps partnering with betting companies, which keep attracting new people to unhealthy betting,’ she wrote on Instagram.

‘The days of cigarette brands sponsoring sports are long gone. Yet, here we are promoting betting companies, which actively destroy the life of some people. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying they should be banned.

‘But maybe we should not promote them. Also, if someone decided to say these things to me in public, he could have legal issues. So why online we are free to do anything? Shouldn’t we reconsider anonymity online?’

Garcia said the messages hurt players, especially after a tough loss when they were ’emotionally destroyed’, and she was worried about how younger players are affected.

Garcia received support from fellow players including world No. 1 Iga Swiatek and Madison Keys, who thanked her for speaking up.

American Jessica Pegula said: ‘The constant death threats and family threats are normal now, win or lose.’

Defending U.S. Open champion Coco Gauff said there were times she would spend 30 minutes blocking abusive accounts on her social media but people would make new ones.

‘If you are already struggling with your own mental issues and on top of that you have people digging deeper, it is tough,’ she told reporters.

‘You could be having a good day and then somebody will literally tell you, oh, go kill yourself. You’re, like, OK, thanks.

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast.Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

Taylor Heinicke is headed to the West Coast after losing the battle for the Atlanta Falcons’ backup quarterback job to Michael Penix Jr.

Heinicke is being traded to the Los Angeles Chargers, a person with knowledge of the deal told USA TODAY Sports. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the trade.

Heinicke played in five games in 2023, his lone season with the Falcons. He got four starts, going 1-3.

The journeyman quarterback has also spent time with the Houston Texans (2017), Carolina Panthers (2018) and Washington Commanders (2020-2022).

The 31-year-old has started 29 games, 24 of those starts coming with Washington. He tallied a 12-11-1 record in the nation’s capital.

NFL STATS CENTRAL: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.

Heinicke has 6,635 passing yards, 39 touchdowns and 28 interceptions and an 84.2 passer rating in 38 career games.

The Heinicke move is the Chargers’ second trade of the day. Los Angeles acquired cornerback Elijah Molden earlier Wednesday from the Tennessee Titans in exchange of a 2026 seventh-round pick, the team announced.

Why Chargers traded for Taylor Heinicke

The Chargers were in desperate need of a backup quarterback for Justin Herbert.

Career backup Easton Stick underwhelmed in preseason action and went 0-4 in four starts last season for the Chargers.

Heinicke has starting experience and has shown the ability to manage an offense when a team’s primary starter is sidelined.

Herbert has battled a plantar fascia injury during training camp and the preseason. But he’s since returned to practice and is expected to be available Week 1.