This week has seen a month’s worth of drama after the Big Ten announced they are postponing the fall sports season until the spring. Here is a quick – and by no means complete – timeline of events:
Wednesday, August 5: The Big Ten releases the 2020 conference football schedule, along with a five page “executive summary” of COVID-19 medical protocols. Essentially, this was the conference’s plan to have a Big Ten season starting September 5, as well as the steps the conference’s Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases (chaired by a UNMC doctor) felt were necessary to play as safely as possible.
Friday, August 7: Nebraska starts their fall camp.
Sunday, August 9: ESPN reports the Big Ten presidents met, and were considering cancelling the fall sports season.
Monday, August 10: Scott Frost conducts a 30 minute media session via Zoom. Among the things Frost said:
* “We’re a proud member of the Big Ten. I think it’s the best conference in the country. We want to play a Big Ten schedule.”
* “Our university is committed to playing no matter what. No matter what that looks like. We want to play no matter who it is or where it is. So we’ll see how those chips fall. We certainly hope it’s in the Big Ten, but if it isn’t, we’re prepared to look for other options.”
Tuesday, August 11: This is when everything hit the fan:
* The Big Ten postponed the 2020 fall sports season.
* Nebraska’s leadership (President Ted Carter, Chancellor Ronnie Green, Athletic Director Bill Moos, and Frost) issues a statement saying: “We are very disappointed in the decision by the Big Ten Conference to postpone the fall football season, as we have been and continue to be ready to play. Safety comes first. Based on the conversations with our medical experts, we continue to strongly believe the absolute safest place for our student athletes is within the rigorous safety protocols, testing procedures, and the structure and support provided by Husker Athletics. We will continue to consult with medical experts and evaluate the situation as it emerges. We hope it may be possible for our student athletes to have the opportunity to compete.”
* In a live interview with Dave Revsine of BTN, Commissioner Kevin Warren was asked twice about teams playing games outside of the conference. Warren issued a lengthy non-answer.
* Later, in an interview with Pete Thamel of Yahoo! Sports, Warren issued a more emphatic answer of “No. Not and be a member of the Big Ten Conference.”
Late Tuesday > Wednesday, August 12: Tensions escalated as ESPN personalities (and Big Ten alumni) Michael Wilbon and Desmond Howard gave fiery statements not so politely telling Nebraska to leave the Big Ten. A Big XII official was quoted as saying Nebraska would be welcomed back with “open arms”. Local writers and radio hosts discussed the possibility of leaving Big 10, as well as the perceived hypocrisy of calling out Nebraska for wanting to play this fall when the coach of the league’s flagship team (Ohio State’s Ryan Day) also stated his desire to play this fall. National writers appeared to be in a contest to see who could publish the hottest take on what Frost and Nebraska could do with their perceived ultimatum.
Whew.
Before things spiral even farther out of control, I need everybody – EVERYBODY – to stop, take a deep breath, and have a look in the mirror. Recognize the things you have done and are continuing to do to make this situation bigger than it needs to be.
If you need some help with the necessary introspection, I am happy to help.
Side note: I am intentionally going to avoid diving into the discussion on whether or not it is safe, realistic, or feasible for college football to occur – in any form – in 2020. By now, we all have our thoughts on the pandemic, how it has impacted our lives, and who you blame/credit for where we are today. Dipping a single toe into that water will undoubtedly taint the points I want to make and turn this into a political melee. For the sake of this column, assume my thoughts on COVID-19 match yours.
These are in no particular order, but we will start at the top.
Commissioner Kevin Warren
I understand 2020 is the absolute worst year imaginable to run a sports league, start a stressful new job, or replace a genuine legend. You are doing all three.
I don’t think anybody expect you to be Jim Delany 2.0, but I think I speak for most of the conference when I was hoping you would not be Dan Beebe, Jr.
In “these unprecedented times”, there are no right answers. The decisions you make have real, significant impacts on people – their health and/or livelihood. Therefore, the best course of action for you is to be honest and transparent.
If you feel “postponing” the fall season is best for the safety of the student-athletes, give me detailed information on how and why you reached that decision – ESPECIALLY when it comes six days after you released a ten game schedule. Something clearly changed. Tell us what it was – preferably in a single sentence.
Be open, honest, and direct with us, the fans and alumni of the schools you hope to lead.
Instead, when Dave Revsine asked you a question about schools playing their own schedule you gave a 213 word “answer” that said absolutely nothing. As Steven M. Sipple of the Lincoln Journal-Star noted, your strategy is “seemingly to talk and talk and talk until you’ve forgotten the question.”
This is not leadership.
