The Big 10 conference (yes there really are 14 teams) has voted to cancel fall football. All but two of the University Presidents voted to postpone until hopefully spring. Iowa and Nebraska were the only two that voted to play this fall.
(The B1G is) the first Power Five league to cancel its fall football season, a move that will have far-reaching, long-lasting financial and cultural impacts. According to reporting from various national outlets, other Power Five conferences could follow the Big Ten’s lead in the coming days
While the league had been hoping that improved testing and treatment options might allow them to play this fall, ultimately they chose to do the right thing by their student athletes and cancel the season at this dangerous time.
Honestly, I have no idea how football gets played in a pandemic at all. It’s the least social distancing sport there is requiring regular body to body contact with players often lined up inches from each other’s faces. Unlike basketball or hockey football can only be played once a week making it nearly impossible to put the players in a bubble as some professional sports have been able to successfully do. Of course college sports are also different as the players are students (in theory) first and foremost.
I have friends whose kids are returning to college at present at Penn State and the son is already moved in to his room. I admit I’m moderately surprised colleges are trying to run face to face classes at the moment and I know the parents are concerned, but that’s on a different level than football and other sports.
We’ll know more in coming weeks about the other conferences. It will be interesting to see how the SEC and ACC vote on the subject with so many of their schools in solidly red states (*cough* Nebraska and Iowa *cough*) which mostly remain open for business and do not mandate masks. If they vote to go forward, one can only hope player safety is given a high consideration when the outbreaks come, and they will come because the virus doesn’t play favorites.
For now, as a proud Buckeye who was born in THE Ohio State Hospital in the spring of 1963 all I can say is “well done, B1G! Hope the others follow your example.”