Buckeye Breakfast: Opening Kickoff Time, Pads Coming Back, Notre Dame Battling CoVID
Rise and shine, Buckeye Nation! Each morning, we get you caught up on the latest news and information regarding Ohio State and the world of college athletics. Here are your headlines for September 29, 2020.
Nebraska vs. Ohio State Set for Noon on Fox
It took over a month to make it happen, but the Big Ten is set to play football this season. It was reported yesterday that the Buckeyes will host the Cornhuskers come October 24 on FOX at 12 p.m.
This is the first time since 1956 that Ohio State and Nebraska will meet in week one of the college football season. The Buckeyes won that matchup at The Shoe, 34-7. The inaugural meeting between these two teams was the season before (1955) — which was also a season opener. OSU came out on top of that one as well, 30-27.
The Buckeyes are 6-1 all-time against the ‘Huskers and have won the last four meetings.
Big Ten in Pads on Wednesday
For the first time in a long while, the Buckeyes will throw on the shoulder pads. Big Ten teams have spent the last several weeks practicing in helmets only, essentially eliminating contact in practices.
Wednesday is a big step for the conference to take ahead of the season kicking off. It won’t be long before teams are fully suited.
As IlliniNow notes, teams will have the “discretion of how to conduct fully-padded practice time under the mandated weekly 20-hour rule that will be determined by individual programs.”
Ohio State hits the field for its first game of the season in 26 days, leaving just over three weeks for the players to become acclimated to "live" football.
Notre Dame Flagged For 18 Positive Cases
The Fighting Irish had to cancel last week’s game against Wake Forest due to a CoVID outbreak. The numbers show why.
In the most recent round of testing, Notre Dame had 18 positive cases of the 273 players tested. ND had previously played the University of South Florida in Tampa.
According to ESPN, “the 18 players are in isolation and, of those 18, seven were already in quarantine as previously identified close contacts.”
Before the spike in cases, Notre Dame had a pre-determined bye week. The next time the Fighting Irish are scheduled to play is October 10 against Florida State.
Stay tuned to BuckeyesNow and all of our social media outlets (@BuckeyesNowSI) on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube for continued coverage!