Big Ten football will return this fall

The league confirmed it shortly after, citing “significant medical protocols including daily antigen testing, enhanced cardiac screening and an enhanced data-driven approach when making decisions about practice/competition” that led to a unanimous vote by the league’s chancellors and presidents.

Starting in October is expected to allow Big Ten teams time to play enough games to be considered for the College Football Playoff.

While the Pac-12 remains sidelined, ACC teams are set to play 11 games this season while the Big 12 and SEC have 10-game slates.

In Ohio, the high school football season began last month, and the University of Cincinnati is set to begin play Saturday at home against Austin Peay.

The CFP announced Aug. 24 it will not select the playoff participants until Dec. 20, two weeks later than originally planned, but the semifinals (Rose and Sugar Bowls) are still scheduled for Jan. 1 with the championship game to be played Jan. 11 in Miami.

Ohio State began preseason practice Aug. 6, but the conference postponed the season five days later.

Warren cited “uncertainty” created by the coronavirus pandemic for that decision, which was met with questions from players and parents wanting more information.

Eight days later, the commissioner released an open letter that cited among other things a lack of availability of rapid COVID-19 testing, difficulties with contact tracing and “unacceptable risk” of players developing a heart condition known as cardiomyopathy.

At that time, Warren said the decision would not be revisited, but parent groups from multiple schools continued to push for answers and a group of Nebraska players filed a lawsuit against the conference.

In late August, reports indicated the league was considering a return to the field as soon as Thanksgiving weekend, and new Ohio State president Kristina Johnson told a Columbus TV station Sept. 2 she could see a pathway to playing this fall.

President Donald Trump also got involved when he spoke to Warren by phone and reportedly offered to help the conference procure rapid tests.

Trump declared the conference’s return was “on the 1-yard line,” but a week later reports indicated there was still a lack of consensus among league leaders about when or if the league would take the field in October.

Day released a statement Friday asking why his team was sidelined while other teams, including Midwest neighbor Notre Dame, were allowed to play and his was not, and a day later came reports the league’s leaders had met and discussed a possible return in October after all.

With the decision final, how many games are actually played remains to be seen.

Ralph Russo of the Associated Press noted on Twitter a baker’s dozen of games had been postponed because of COVID-19 since the season started Aug. 26.

That includes two games involving Virginia Tech (vs. N.C. State and Virginia)

Some of those games have been or will be rescheduled or replaced on the schedule, actualities the Big Ten was planning for when it originally redid its schedule to consist of 10 games beginning the first weekend of September.

Now that flexibility is greatly reduced, but the availability of rapid testing could lower the need.

In the wait for a decision to be announced, two Ohio State players who were set to be captains announced they will enter the NFL Draft early.