Tag: Big Ten football

The Big Ten and Pac-12 have made it almost impossible for other conferences to play this year

The “decision was guided by science and a deep commitment to the health and welfare of student-athletes.”

The Big Ten continues to lead the way, and the Pac-12 is right there with it. But whether the other three Power 5 conferences will follow suit this time is a different story.

Following days of rumors and speculation, the Big Ten did Tuesday what many people anticipated: It postponed the 2020-21 fall sports season, which includes college football, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, despite obliviously passionate arguments from coaches and politicians.

The Pac-12 did the same later Tuesday afternoon, postponing all athletic competitions through the end of the year. The Big Ten is hoping for the possibility of spring football, while the Pac-12 said its focused on getting to 2021.

They’re decisions that would have been unthinkable a year ago, but a look around the United States as it’s ravaged by the novel coronavirus makes them obvious ones. And with two Power 5 conferences out for the fall, the remaining three can’t justify carrying on with football right now.

[lawrence-related id=940206]

The Big Ten was the first Power 5 conference to bow out of its fall schedule, which it previously amended and planned to begin September 5. In July, it also was the first major conference to switch to an all-conference football schedule, and it didn’t take long for the Pac-12 and the SEC to do the same. Currently, the ACC and Big 12 plan on playing a conference-only-plus-one schedule.

But the Big Ten postponing the season is more than just any domino in this scramble to make a plan weeks before trying to play. It’s a huge falling domino from the most profitable conference in the country, which brought in $780 million in revenue in 2019, USA TODAY Sports reported.

Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren talks in March about the cancellation of the Men’s Big Ten Tournament. (Thomas J. Russo-USA TODAY Sports)

If the Big Ten and Pac-12 decided that football and other fall sports can’t take place as scheduled after relying on the medical advice of the Big Ten Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases, the Big Ten Sports Medicine Committee and the Pac-12 COVID-19 Medical Advisory Committee, how could any other conference come to a different conclusion?

From a health standpoint, they probably can’t. From a competitive standpoint, they really can’t justify crowning a champion with, at a minimum, three major conferences while Group of Five conferences, including the MAC and Mountain West, are bailing on the fall too.

And that’s devastating for all involved, particularly the unpaid players, some of whom surely hoped they could use an elite performance this fall as a springboard toward higher NFL Draft stock. There are serious and real-world ramifications of postponement — or ultimately canceling the season if we reach that point.

[lawrence-related id=940201]

Death is obviously the most severe result of having COVID-19, but the longterm effects of the virus remain unknown and, as ESPN reported Monday, could include a heart condition linked to the virus. We have no idea how damaging this could be in the long run, and unpaid athletes’ health and well-being simply isn’t worth the now-increased risk for fatter paychecks and fans’ entertainment. And players in the Big Ten and Pac-12 said as much.

Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren recognized how significantly athletes’ futures will be impacted because of the postponement. But he also said in the conference’s statement:

“Although that knowledge made this a painstaking decision, it did not make it difficult.”

Oregon president Michael H. Schill said the “decision was guided by science and a deep commitment to the health and welfare of student-athletes.” More from the Pac-12 statement:

“Unlike professional sports, college sports cannot operate in a bubble,” Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott said. “Our athletic programs are a part of broader campuses in communities where in many cases the prevalence of COVID-19 is significant.”

We’re in the middle of a global pandemic, and the United States has more than five million cases and 162,000 deaths. The numbers are tragic and heartbreaking, and they continue to rise partly because some people are carrying on with their lives as if everything is fine.

And it sure seems like leaders in college football figured they could do the same.

Leaders in college football had months to craft a transparent plan for keeping players healthy and safe and providing them with as many options as possible for their futures. Clearly, that was asking far too much.

But now they have another cushion.

Maybe they can learn from the time they squandered and utilize the next several months to come up with a tangible idea for spring football. And if not, we’ll be in the same spot again just a few months later.

[lawrence-related id=940243,939822,939865,939700]

[jwplayer cygDE8Mp-q2aasYxh]

[vertical-gallery id=938881]

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 tag=421393249]

If Pac 12 postpones season as well, we could see a spring Rose Bowl

With both the Big Ten and the Pac 12 postponing their college football seasons, it opens up some possibilities to replace what is lost.

About an hour after the Big Ten Conference voted to postpone the Fall 2020 college football season, the Pac 12 is reported to have followed suit.

While I strongly disagree with the Big Ten’s decision, and with the Pac 12’s as well, the fact that they’re still in this together does give options for college football fans.

No one knows what the winter will bring. We have no idea if it will be safe enough to play football this fall and winter. It’s definitely possible that it won’t be, though the decision to cancel now is clearly premature. Either way, with two major conferences pushing off football, we can perhaps get a coordinated semi-season in the late winter/early spring. (And, since the MAC and Mountain West have both postponed as well, we could possibly even see some nonconference games.)

The Big Ten and Pac 12 have never been shy about going things alone when the rest of college football was doing something else. The Rose Bowl never joined the original Bowl Alliance, and was the last and strongest holdout before the formation of the BCS. The game, while also contractually connected to the Playoff now, is very much connected to the Big Ten and Pac 12.

We don’t know what the SEC, Big 12, and ACC will do. Maybe they’ll push off their seasons, or maybe they’ll play in full. Maybe they’ll have to start and stop. What those conferences do remains to be seen. And it will certainly be weird to see a fall college football season with those conferences, followed by a spring one with the Big Ten and Pac 12.

But that could very well be what we get. It would not be an entirely bad outcome for college football fans, though the logistics of playing a spring season and then playing again in Fall 2021 have to be dealt with. Still, if the Big Ten and Pac 12 can manage to coordinate a season starting in January, February, or March, we can definitely expect that the conferences will look for a way to cap it off with a game in Pasadena.

All in all, that would not be the worst-case scenario in a sports world that seems to have been nothing but worst-case scenarios for quite a while now.

Will the Big Ten take a nosedive after shutting down fall football?

Interesting question

Now that the Big Ten has become the first Power Five conference to postpone college football and not play in the fall of 2020, everyone in the college sports community will begin to sift through the wreckage and assess the damage.

One of the more interesting and provocative questions which is being asked — and will continue to be asked — across the country is this one: Is the Big Ten going to suffer enormous long-term damage as a result of being the first conference to shut down fall football?

Hmmmm.

As I keep saying, it is good to admit one doesn’t know the answer to a question if — in fact — one doesn’t have a good or well-formed understanding of the subject.

So, I can’t tell you I know what the answer is going to be. I have my own leanings or inclinations, but not knowledge. I lack certainty on this.

Let’s wrestle with this question: Has the Big Ten truly undercut its national image and done something which will linger with the conference for a very long time?

As with so many other aspects of the coronavirus, this debate will be fierce and contentious. It won’t lead to easy and unanimous agreement. In the short run, there won’t be a broad national consensus on this point. We will have to wait to see how this all shakes out, specifically in relationship to the other Power Five conferences.

The Pac-12 might soon pull the plug on fall football, but it seems the ACC and SEC are digging in and waiting as long as possible.

Let’s throw some scenarios onto the table:

What if the ACC and SEC play football while no other conferences play?

What if the ACC and SEC abruptly turn from their current paths and shut things down later this week, due to the Big Ten and Pac-12 leaving them with very little recourse?

What if the ACC and SEC get into late September or early October, still trying to play, but then decide they can’t?

These are the great unknowns in front of us; we have to let them play out.

However:

Let’s say that the ACC and SEC do manage to play football this fall, even if no one else is. That’s the really interesting hypothetical here. Would ACC and SEC schools become even more desirable to football recruits? Almost certainly, yes. That’s not the hard question to answer in all of this.

The REAL question is: Would SEC and ACC programs become so much more desirable that Ohio State and Penn State would take a significant hit?

That’s the real question which might undercut the Big Ten’s football prominence. (I can’t really include Michigan in the same breath because the Wolverines are so obviously a few notches below the Buckeyes and Nittany Lions. Wisconsin is its own unique case study; the Badgers are able to recruit within their own footprint and maintain themselves with a different strategy.)

Will the Big Ten suffer long-term effects from its decision?

I don’t know… but it’s a question worth thinking about in the coming months.

Opinion: Big Ten jumps gun by canceling the season, displays lack of leadership

The Big Ten’s decision to abruptly cancel the fall football season was premature and displayed a shocking lack of leadership.

The Big Ten is capping a tumultuous start to the week by announcing the fall sports season is postponed, with the chance of play in the spring.

I don’t want to get too much into why they are doing this. The statement speaks for itself, as do the general issues of liability concerns. I am just befuddled, though, why the conference chose the equivalent of the nuclear option here. We went straight from schedule release to full postponement in under a week.

There are so many other options available. We have seen the players want to play. We know that the coaches want to play. And, potentially more importantly, we have every indication that the players and coaches don’t mind an extended season to make things work. So why not make things work?

The Big Ten could have announced, for example, an indefinite delay to the start of the season. Say that cases are too high right now in too many Big Ten states to be confident in safely playing right now. Though, as an aside, cases are relatively low in eight of the Big Ten’s 11 states, and only three have positivity rates above 6%. Set standards and baselines for what is required for play to start. And then, when those are met, indicate you can start play.

It doesn’t matter when play would or should be set to start. Forget the bowls and the playoff. Just have a season. If play would stretch from October to February, that’s fine. If there needs to be a break in the middle, that’s also fine. If play can’t start until January and we go through to March, there’s nothing wrong with that. We can delay for a week or two at a time to get things right. Why take the nuclear option now? And, more importantly, what do you lose by keeping all the middle options on the table for now?

Is the issue television money? Highly unlikely. Contracts might be difficult, but ultimately the partners at both ESPN and FOX would jump at a chance to air Big Ten games, whenever they may be. Also, we can’t forget the Big Ten Network. BTN would be able to air a game (or a double-header) every Friday, with a quadruple-header every Saturday. It would be a ratings boon for the conference, and could turn an awful situation into a, well, slightly-less-awful one. Instead, the conference gets nothing.

Ultimately, this shows a clear and stunning lack of leadership in the Big Ten. No one is willing to take responsibility for having a season, and no one is willing to have to make the decision when play would need to start and stop. No one wants to have to make tough calls, and no one in the conference is relying on anyone else to agree to the tough calls.

So the conference member schools took the easy way out. We don’t know which presidents and/or chancellors voted which way. We likely never will. What we do know, though, is that everyone loses out with this decision. The players lose, the schools lose, the fans lose, and, ultimately, the entire institution of college athletics loses.

If the conference really tried and it turned out there is no way to safely have a season, it would be unfortunate. But at least it would have tried. No one loses by keeping players ready, and consistently tested. Instead, the conference–which branded itself as “leaders” a decade ago–decided not to lead at all. It decided not to try, and now everyone loses.

 

Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes and opinion.

We have a forum and message board now. Get in on the conversation about Ohio State athletics by joining the Buckeyes Wire Forum.

Ohio State releases statement on postponement of Big Ten 2020 fall football season

Ohio State has released a statement on the postponement of the Big Ten’s 2020 fall football schedule. We have it in its entirety here.

By now you probably know the news that the Big Ten college football season has been shelved, with an eye toward trying to play in the spring of 2021. Shortly after that, Ohio State released a statement confirming the move and providing feedback.

It’s now about moving forward and keeping the student-athletes healthy as things progress, coming up with a plan to try and get them back on the field, and, most importantly, working together across the 14 schools from top to bottom to use prudence, logic and data.

We are attaching the complete statement from Ohio State that includes quotes from President-elect Kristina M. Johnson and athletic director Gene Smith. It also includes medical protocols that will remain in place as life moves forward at the university.

[lawrence-related id=35076]

[lawrence-related id=35072]

Next … Ohio State statement on postponement of the season

Pages: Page 1, Page 2

Big Ten postpones football and fall sports, 2020 CFB looking unlikely

The Big Ten announced its decision to cancel fall sports according to their official website

Georgia’s 2020 college football season may end before it even begins. With the possible upcoming season cancellation or postponement (into spring of 2021).

The Big Ten announced its decision to cancel fall sports according to their official website. The Big Ten is the first Power Five conference to do so.

The Big Ten Conference announced the postponement of the 2020-21 fall sports season, including all regular-season contests and Big Ten Championships and Tournaments, due to ongoing health and safety concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Vast amounts of students are returning to campus and COVID cases remain high in the United States. College football would be excessively difficult and expensive to put in a bubble, so the risk for athletes and coaches would be too high for the Big Ten to justify a season.

The news came out yesterday, but it wasn’t official. Numerous notable players and coaches are protesting the decision.

It’s a depressing day for college football fans across the nation. Fans should anticipate other Power Five conferences joining in. The Pac-12 should be the next domino to fall.

The SEC is expected to be most resistant to cancelling or postponing the season. Without the Big Ten, it is tough to imagine that there will be a football season this year.

[lawrence-auto-related count=1]

Apr 13, 2019; Columbus, OH, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Justin Fields and coach Corey Dennis during the first half of the Spring Game at Ohio Stadium. Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports

Official Big Ten statement on postponement of 2020 fall football season

The Big Ten has officially announced the decision to shelve college football for fall 2020 and to try and move it to the spring of 2021.

In case you haven’t heard, after several reports and back and forth debating apparently, the Big Ten has officially made the decision to shelve the 2020 fall college football season for Ohio State and its 13 other member programs.

And while that’s not the news most of wanted to hear, there is a pandemic still gripping the country, and the abundance of caution can’t be overstated in these sorts of things.

The news was swift after a president’s meeting Tuesday morning. Shortly after, early this afternoon, the Big Ten release its official notice that we have for you here. We’ll have more on this throughout the next couple of days, but for now, it’s important to also understand that the conference is going to try its best to move the season to the spring.

We shall see.

Next … The complete Big Ten statement on the fall season

Pages: Page 1, Page 2

Big Ten to postpone 2020 college football season

The Big Ten Conference is postponing their 2020 college football season amid the COVID-19 pandemic

If there’s gonna be a Big Ten football season, it’ll have to wait until the Spring of 2021.

That appears to be the plan for at least one Power 5 conference, as the Big Ten schools have voted to postpone the 2020 college football season, with hopes of playing in the Spring, the conference announced Tuesday:

The move comes after smaller FBS conferences such as the MAC and Mountain West have already cancelled their fall sports for 2020, and as the rest of the Power 5 weigh similar decisions amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

It remains to be seen what impact this could have on the 2021 NFL Draft, or the potential transfer of Big Ten prospects to schools in other conferences that may still try to play in 2020.

[vertical-gallery id=622311]

Big Ten Cancels Fall College Football Season, Might Play In Spring

The Big Ten will cancel its fall season – according to reports – and attempt to play this spring.

The Big Ten will cancel its fall season – according to reports – and attempt to play this spring.

The Big Ten is going cancel the fall season and move on to the spring.

[jwplayer CKtYFVZx]

After hinting about it over the last several weeks, and after it was leaked on Monday that the Big Ten presidents were 12-2 against playing in the fall, the league has decided to cancel the 2020 fall season and will try playing this spring.

More coming in a few moments …

[protected-iframe id=”361699434b6d70baf15f631ed2408ac1-97672683-92922408″ info=”https://www.googletagservices.com/tag/js/gpt.js” ]

Breaking: Big Ten decides to cancel fall football, try for spring

It becomes the first Power Five conference to cancel football for the fall.

Major news out of the Big Ten as the conference has decided to cancel fall football season and instead try to play this spring.

From the Big Ten statement:

Our primary responsibility is to make the best possible decisions in the interest of our students, faculty and staff,” said Morton Schapiro, Chair of the Big Ten Council of Presidents/Chancellors and Northwestern University President.

“The mental and physical health and welfare of our student-athletes has been at the center of every decision we have made regarding the ability to proceed forward,” said Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren. “As time progressed and after hours of discussion with our Big Ten Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases and the Big Ten Sports Medicine Committee, it became abundantly clear that there was too much uncertainty regarding potential medical risks to allow our student-athletes to compete this fall.

“We know how significant the student-athlete experience can be in shaping the future of the talented young women and men who compete in the Big Ten Conference. Although that knowledge made this a painstaking decision, it did not make it difficult. While I know our decision today will be disappointing in many ways for our thousands of student-athletes and their families, I am heartened and inspired by their resilience, their insightful and discerning thoughts, and their participation through our conversations to this point. Everyone associated with the Big Ten Conference and its member institutions is committed to getting everyone back to competition as soon as it is safe to do so.”

This is not shocking news as the conference was reported to be leaning this way but it is a big step toward almost all of college football going that route this fall, becoming the first Power Five conference to cancel.

The SEC, meanwhile, has stayed firm to its message that it will wait out until the very last minute on whether or not to play this fall with many star players including Auburn quarterback Bo Nix speaking out saying that they want to play.