Big Ten To Play Only Conference Football Games For 2020 Season

After the Ivy League opted to forgo all fall sports for the 2020-2021 school year because of the coronavirus pandemic, the first power five conference has made a similar decision, altering the college sports landscape entirely for this season.

The Big Ten announced on Thursday that all fall sports in the conference, including football, will play teams in the Big Ten. This assumes that the season is played at all because of the virus. 

The conference issued a statement yesterday, stating, “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. 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.”

The decision eliminates some highly anticipated non-conference matchups in football for this coming season which included Ohio St. vs. Oregon, Michigan vs. Washington, Iowa vs. Iowa St. and Wisconsin vs. Notre Dame, among others. 

It is not clear as to whether or not how the schedule will be played out for the 2020 season amongst Big Ten teams, but the big question is now will other conferences follow suit.