Big Ten football returning in October
CINCINNATI — After months of discussion, it turns out the Big Ten is going to play football this fall.
The Big Ten made the announcement on Wednesday morning.
The season will begin on the weekend of Oct. 24. The league will have daily rapid testing for COVID-19 to keep players safe during the pandemic.
“Our focus with the Task Force over the last six weeks was to ensure the health and safety of our student-athletes. Our goal has always been to return to competition so all student-athletes can realize their dream of competing in the sports they love,” said Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren. “We are incredibly grateful for the collaborative work that our Return to Competition Task Force have accomplished to ensure the health, safety and wellness of student-athletes, coaches and administrators.”
This is great news for college athletes that were hoping to play football during the pandemic.
Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields started a petition last month that has over 300,000 signatures. He's just one of the many hoping for the Big Ten to have a season.
"My biggest message to them would just be to get them to realize how bad our players want to play and just the guys that are coming back for their fifth year, coming back off of injury, I think that we owe it to those guys the most," Fields said last month on ESPN Radio. "I've just seen behind the scenes all the work that they've put in and how much they really care about it. And I honestly believe all the coaches and all the parents, players want us to play, and they all feel safe with the guidelines Ohio State has set."
The Big Ten is expected to play games on campus without fans. They plan on playing eight games in eight weeks, with a conference title game on Dec. 19 according to Yahoo Sports.
For more on this story, check out BuckeyesNow.com.
