The NFC Championship game between the Bears and Packers is being billed as perhaps the biggest sports event in Chicago history.
↵↵That may be a little too much hype, although it's certainly the biggest thing that's happened here since the 2005 World Series.
↵↵It's already proven to be bigger than Sunday's Big Ten college basketball matchup between the Northwestern Wildcats and the No. 17 (in the latest coaches poll) Wisconsin Badgers. That game was originally scheduled to tip off at noon -- not even conflicting with the Bears/Packers matchup, which kicks off at 2 p.m. CST.
↵↵Nevertheless, the Big Ten doesn't want to lose any viewers for the game, which is being televised on the Big Ten Network. So, the starting time for Northwestern and Wisconsin is being moved up thirty minutes, to 11:30 a.m. CST. That way, it's virtually certain to end by kickoff time.
↵↵This is a big game for the Wildcats, who currently stand at 2-4 in the Big Ten and 11-5 overall in a very competitive conference.