The Lisa Byington Award is presented annually to one of the top broadcasters in the Big Ten Network StudentU program, honoring Lisa Byington's trailblazing career as a play-by-play announcer.

The winner receives an immersive experience in Chicago where they will receive 1-on-1 mentorship with Lisa and collaborate with BTN producers, on-air talent, and digital creators to record segments at BTN’s studios and develop a professional demo reel.

The application for the 2026 Lisa Byington Award is now open. Applicants must be a junior or senior in the StudentU Program on a Big Ten campus to apply. Reach out to your StudentU supervisor or click HERE to apply! Application closes Sunday March 29.

Byington, a 1997 Northwestern graduate, was a two-sport student-athlete for the Wildcats in basketball and soccer. She has been at Big Ten Network since the network's inception in 2007 and has broadcast numerous Big Ten sports for BTN in that time. Byington also became the first female play-by-play broadcaster for Big Ten football in 2017 and the first female play-by-play voice for an NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament game in 2021. In September 2021, she was chosen as the first female play-by-play television broadcaster for an NBA franchise, having joined the broadcast team for the NBA world champion Milwaukee Bucks.