Ohio State football: Big Ten votes to cancel 2020 season
By Ryan Stano
According to the Detroit Free Press, the Big Ten has officially voted to cancel the 2020 football season.
Rumors have been swirling around all weekend that the Big Ten could officially cancel the 2020 football season. Ohio State had been one of the few vocal teams, at least in terms of players, that wanted to go out and compete in a 2020 season.
Unfortunately, this doesn’t look like it’s going to happen. According to the Detroit Free Press, Big Ten presidents have voted to cancel the 2020 season. According to their sources, only Nebraska and Iowa voted to keep the season intact. Even Ohio State’s new president voted no.
This is a massive blow to college football fans all across the country. Not only does football season end before it even gets started, but the rest of the Fall sports might soon follow. The pandemic was clearly a factor when this decision was made, but it certainly wasn’t the only one.
The decision by incoming president Kristina Johnson to vote on canceling the season already has sealed her fate in terms of popularity among the students and student body. She will never be accepted and students will be calling for her to leave from day one.
Ohio State’s athletic department is one of the few that will likely still be able to keep all of their sports. Gene Smith has already said that there will likely not be cutting of sports programs even if the football season is canceled. That is at least some good news.
This decision has opened the door for some many more questions than answers. Will players be able to retain their eligibility? Will they be able to stay on scholarship? If they are able to retain eligibility for another year, how will the roster numbers be effected with incoming freshmen?
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The failure of leadership from Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren is why this decision was ultimately made. He was not willing to listen to player voices to keep them on the playing field. This will have a lasting effect on not just the Big Ten, but college football everywhere.