Report: Big Ten Cancels College Football Season
In an historic decision that several months ago many people thought could never happen, the Big Ten has reportedly canceled their college football season.
Sources tell Chris Solari of the Detroit Free Press that the Big Ten voted Sunday night to cancel the season. The vote was 12-2 in favor of foregoing the season. Nebraska and Iowa reportedly wanted to play this year. Solari's sources say a formal announcement from the league is expected sometime Tuesday.
On Saturday, it was reported that new Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren is in favor of a spring football season. The commissioner is in a unique position as someone who oversees one of the Power Five conferences and is also the father of a Division I college football player. Powers Warren is a tight end for the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the SEC.
There is no official word yet whether the Big Ten would pursue playing a spring season or cancel the 2020 year altogether because of the CoVID-19 pandemic.
The Commissioner reportedly told Big Ten teams to have a light practice on Monday. The Buckeyes were on the practice field Monday morning after having their photo day for the season.
The Big Ten also released a statement this past weekend telling teams they don't have permission to move forward into full-contact practices. The conference said it will “continue to evaluate daily, while relying on our medical experts, to make the best decisions possible for the health, safety and wellness of our student-athletes.”
Reports first came to light publicly on Monday morning on the Dan Patrick Show, during which Patrick said the Big Ten and Pac-12 would cancel their seasons officially on Tuesday.
Technically, if they wanted to, Ohio State legally could play football outside the Big Ten this fall if other leagues don't shut down. The schools are independent contractors within their own conferences and if the league doesn't play this year, each school could look to play games elsewhere. But that seems unlikely for Ohio State, if the report is true that new OSU president Kristina Johnson was among the 12 votes against playing a Big Ten season.
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