The on-again, off-again cycle of Big Ten football is back on. The heads of the 14 member universities voted to resume the fall season beginning in late October. The conference made the announcement Wednesday morning after weeks of wildly vacillating speculation.
The Big Ten will kick off its football season the weekend of Oct. 24. Among the reasons for the change are improved daily testing capabilities for all athletes and athletic personnel and also more confidence in the latest medical information.
A modified, eight-game schedule that only features in-conference games will be released soon. All 14 teams will play eight straight weeks in order to have the conference championship game on Dec. 19th. That’s critical because it allows the champion to get included in the College Football Playoff.
Several notable players from many schools have opted out to prepare for the NFL draft. It remains to be seen if those players will be allowed to return.
