The news and soundbites coming out from decision-makers on whether or not we have a college football season in the fall are getting less and less optimistic. We’ve heard from Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith on his less-than-optimistic outlook on where things are headed. We’ve also seen the Ivy League make the tough decision to cancel its fall sports.
And now we can add Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren to that list. He met with the Big Ten Network on Thursday on the heels of an announcement that the Big Ten will play conference only games this fall. That includes Ohio State football, and basically washes out the game scheduled in Eugene, Oregon against the University of Oregon on September 12.
But that might not be all. According to what Warren said to BTN’s Mike Hall during an interview segment on Thursday, it’s a real possibility that there may not be sports at all in the fall, and that the college football season could be shelved.
“This is not a fait accompli that we’re going to have sports in the fall,” said Warren. “We may not have sports in the fall. We may not have a college football season.”
There was much more that was said, but the fact that many are now believing that college football is in real danger for the fall because of the spike in COVID-19 cases is pretty big news — especially when you hear it directly from the mouth of the man running the Big Ten Conference.
Remember, Warren and the Big Ten were one of the leaders in making a decision to cancel the Big Ten Basketball Tournament in March when things began to initially turn south with the coronavirus pandemic. Many followed suit after that. Any decisions Warren and the conference makes in the near future could have a similar ripple effect.
You can listen to the entire interview below thanks to what was shared via BTN’s Twitter profile.
"We made a vow early on that, first and foremost, we would put the health, the safety and the wellness of our student-athletes at the center of all of our decisions."
Kevin Warren talks the timing of the @bigten's decision, and what comes next. pic.twitter.com/D0Y4GXXnAz
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) July 9, 2020
In case you wondered, these are truly remarkable and historic times we are living in, and we won’t forget the year 2020 for many years to come. We’ll stay on top of any further developments as it relates to a new schedule release — or heaven forbid — any further cancellation of sports and activities.
[lawrence-related id=33030]
[lawrence-related id=33024]
[lawrence-related id=32981]