Tracking The Latest On The Big Ten's Re-Vote

There is a new chapter in the Big Ten's roller coaster decision regarding whether or not to play football this year.

Jonathan Knight

Over the weekend, it appeared that the Big Ten's path towards a fall football season would be coming to a head. The conference's Return To Competition Task Force held a positive meeting on Saturday that outlined the safety precautions and testing regulations that need to be put in place to successfully hold a football season this year. From there, Big Ten presidents and chancellors were expected to hold a vote "as soon as Sunday" to decide on whether to reinstate the fall 2020 football season.

That vote did not happen on Sunday.

However, those criticizing Michigan's role in the Big Ten's decision to postpone the football season initially have additional information to consider. Wolverine Digest's Brandon Brown reported on Sunday that when the Big Ten does reconvene to vote on the season, Michigan President Mark Schlissel will weigh in favorably and should vote yes on playing football this year. 

In recent weeks, Schlissel has undergone copious fire as he has been depicted as a key force working against the Big Ten's effort to conduct a fall football season, but the tide has apparently shifted. One of Schlissel's primary concerns was the conference's ability to test student-athletes in a fashion that provided quick, accurate results. Along that line, the White House has reached out to the Big Ten and is offering to aid the conference in testing capabilities, which include having more access to a rapid saliva test from Abbott Laboratories. This was a big development that swung the pendulum back towards playing football.

However, the Big Ten still needs to gather its chief administrators in order to make that decision official. If the Big Ten is to play football this fall, at least nine of the conference's presidents need to vote in favor of reinstating the season, and a plethora of recent reports indicate that there are at least nine votes in favor of playing football.

Corroborating that thought process is ESPN's Brett McMurphy, who is hearing that when a vote happens, all 14 schools will unanimously vote to begin the football season in mid-October. 

If Big Ten presidents/chancellors vote to play football in the fall, then all B1G schools will play, sources told @Stadium. Earlier reports indicated if presidents voted to play, some B1G schools might opt not to play, but that will not be the case, source said

— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) September 14, 2020

But one remaining question still exists: why is the vote taking so long?

According to Sports Illustrated's Ahmed Ghafir, the Big Ten was slated to meet "as early as Sunday," which means that although a re-vote did not occur last night, it is still on schedule from a larger perspective. The prevailing notion is that a vote will occur either today or early this week, meaning that details on a potential Big Ten football season should surface sooner rather than later. 

Now that football has begun in earnest for two Power Five conferences (with the SEC chomping at the bit to begin its season shortly) and high school football games kicking off across the country, several leagues and states are proving that football can be conducted safely. And as it pertains to the University of Michigan, students are back on campus and participating in typical scholastic engagements, so the school seems to be of the belief that COVID-19 is under control on an immediate level at the Ann Arbor campus. 

After a rough stretch that recently painted Schlissel as a villain, Michigan's president voting to play football this season could depict him in a whole different light, potentially as the savior of the Big Ten's football hopes in 2020. 

All that's left is for the votes to be cast.

What do you think is going to ultimately happen in this situation? Is the Big Ten on the verge of returning to the football field? Let us know!