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There’s been significant consternation in regards to the upcoming 2020 college football season in the wake of COVID-19’s summer resurgence.
On Wednesday, Ohio State announced it is pausing all voluntary workouts due to new positive tests across athletics. Michigan continues to be safe in that area, with just two of over 500 cases testing positive — and both were asymptomatic.
Said head football coach Jim Harbaugh on Wednesday:
“Overall, I think the numbers were, the amount tested, every student-athlete that’s come back to campus has been tested. Now it’s our entire football team and I know some of the other sports — men’s basketball, women’s basketball and some others. Heard the numbers the other day: north of 530 that have been tested. The two that came in had tested positive, quarantined, isolated. All the protocols were put into place. There hasn’t been any symptoms since and there has been nobody that’s tested positive since.”
While there have been questions about the viability of the non-conference schedule in 2020 — should a season happen at all — it looks like Michigan won’t be taking a trip to Seattle to take on Washington after all.
The Big Ten announced on Thursday that should a season take place, that its member institutions will play a strict, conference-only schedule in 2020 — across all fall sports.
We are facing uncertain and unprecedented times, and the health, safety and wellness of our student-athletes, coaches, game officials, and others associated with our sports programs and campuses remain our number one priority.
To that end, the Big Ten Conference announced today that if the Conference is able to participate in fall sports (men’s and women’s cross country, field hockey, football, men’s and women’s soccer, and women’s volleyball) based on medical advice, it will move to Conference-only schedules in those sports. Details for these sports will be released at a later date, while decisions on sports not listed above will continue to be evaluated. By limiting competition to other Big Ten institutions, the Conference will have the greatest flexibility to adjust its own operations throughout the season and make quick decisions in real-time based on the most current evolving medical advice and the fluid nature of the pandemic.
This decision was made following many thoughtful conversations over several months between the Big Ten Council of Presidents and Chancellors, Directors of Athletics, Conference Office staff, and medical experts including the Big Ten Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases and the Big Ten Sports Medicine Committee.
In addition, the Conference announced that summer athletic activities will continue to be voluntary in all sports currently permitted to engage in such activities. Furthermore, Big Ten student-athletes who choose not to participate in intercollegiate athletics at any time during the summer and/or the 2020-21 academic year due to concerns about COVID-19 will continue to have their scholarship honored by their institution and will remain in good standing with their team.
While Big Ten member institutions continue to rely on the most up-to-date medical information to establish the best protocols for voluntary workouts on their campuses, in compliance with local and state regulations, the Conference is working with the Big Ten Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases and the Big Ten Sports Medicine Committee to finalize Conference-wide protocols.
As we continue to focus on how to play this season in a safe and responsible way, based on the best advice of medical experts, we are also prepared not to play in order to ensure the health, safety and wellness of our student-athletes should the circumstances so dictate.
For basketball, there’s still time to make a similar decision. But for now, the Wolverines will only play games, if at all, against conference foes in football, thus shedding the Washington, Ball State and Arkansas State games in 2020.