Scrolling through Twitter is enough to make the head of a Big Ten football fan spin in search of information on the possible start of a season ... any season.
“There is so much stuff out there right now,” a Big Ten head coach told GoldandBlack.com. “Half of it’s accurate. Half of it is not even close. It’s crazy times. A whole lot of conversations are going on and everyone has an opinion.”
And they share it on social media. President Donald Trump even got involved on Wednesday, tweeting he “had a very productive conversation with Kevin Warren, Commissioner of the Big Ten Conference, about immediately starting up Big Ten football.”
“You shake your head,” said the head coach about Trump's tweet. “It’s like, ‘Wow.’ The whole thing never ceases to amaze me. You don’t want it to be political. You want it to be about what’s best for the players. It has been a wild ride.”
It sure has been. And it's not over.
These uncertain times also are making it tough for coaches to keep players motivated.
“It think it’s a challenge,” said the head coach. “There is no end date to it. There is no start date. There are so many unknowns. I think it plays a lot of mental games with the kids and it’s tough for them. I feel for them.
“Practices are what they are. The games are what’s fun. As an athlete, that’s what you live for, the competition. That is what has made this whole process tough from the beginning. The dates are always moving. It makes it hard to motivate. You do the best you can, but it’s tough. It is definitely stressing our ability to lead and motivate.”
When will the Big Ten pick a model?
“I don’t know,” said the coach. “I really don’t.”
Ideas for starts in November, January and February have been reported. A way-out-there idea of an early October start also has been broached.
But know this: The decision of if/when to play sits in the laps of the Big Ten presidents. Not the coaches. Not the ADs. Not commissioner Kevin Warren. Do the coaches have input?
“We talk,” said the head coach. “We gave our opinions. But we aren’t doctors. We don’t have all the information. That isn’t our area of expertise.”
And that brings us to the latest report: On Wednesday night, word started to spread about a possible re-vote by the Big Ten presidents this week that could reverse the league's Aug. 11 postponement.
“I don’t know about that,” said the head coach. “The conference is trying to look at everything. Everyone wants to play. But is it safe to play? That’s the bottom line. (The presidents) are the ones who made the decision to postpone it. And they will have to be the ones who make the decision when it’s safe to play again. That is where we are at. We are trying to do what’s in the best interest of player safety and getting it right. Lots of stuff being said right now.”
In the end, an early January start seems most logical. The Big Ten would have a difficult time starting in 2020. In fact, Warren said in a statement last month that the league’s Aug. 11 decision to postpone “would not be revisited.”
An early January start would allow for eight games, a league title game and perhaps some bowls, with everything finishing up by early March. That would afford players time to prep for the NFL draft. And most vital: It would allow for about a six-month buffer before the start of the fall 2021 season, which the Big Ten wants to be a normal 12-game schedule. So, is a January beginning the most logical?
“I think so,” said the head coach. “Just being able to focus on your team when the students aren’t on campus after Thanksgiving. It makes a lot of sense. Things don’t seem to be getting any better (on campuses). That’s probably what makes the most sense. From a big picture perspective, that seems to be most logical.”
For now, Big Ten teams continue to practice.
“Focused on a lot of technique work,” said the head coach. “Fundamentals with the restricted time we have. Emphasizing the development of our players and maximizing the time they give us, weight room, conditioning and from a technique perspective. And you sprinkle in some group work. There is no contact at all. It definitely has a different feeling than anything you have done before.”
MORE:
• November? January? February? When will B1G begin? Even Trump wants to know
• The Big Ten's terrible, horrible, no good, very bad August
• B1G source: Two winter football season options being discussed
• Winter football, domes, bulging rosters and a March Rose Bowl?
• Leading sports doctor on Big Ten postponement: 'I don't understand'
• B1G coaches rankled by fall practice model, but it could change in October
• B1G source: Winter season is 'all about preserving the '21 (fall) season'
• Healing begins in Big Ten, but discord still simmers amid postponement
• Big Ten letter explains reasons for postponement
• Bobinski hopeful for spring season
• Some Big Ten football parents push back on postponement
• Brohm discusses his plan to play in spring and fall of 2021
• Brohm: "Our team is disappointed"
• With football on hold, Purdue athletic department challenged
• Big Ten postpones season, could possibly play in spring
• Cancel or delay? Decision looms as Purdue and league teams practice today
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