North Cook News

After canceling its season in August, the Big Ten, the country’s oldest college football conference, will go ahead with a season of play starting Oct. 23, with stringent restrictions in place to prevent transmission of the COVID-19 virus.

“Everyone associated with the Big Ten should be very proud of the groundbreaking steps that are now being taken to better protect the health and safety of the student-athletes and surrounding communities,” Dr. Jim Borchers, head team physician for Ohio State University and co-chair of the Return to Competition Task Force medical subcommittee said on the website bigten.org.

The Big Ten Council of Presidents and Counselors (COPC) have adopted requirements including daily testing for the virus, cardiac screening and enhanced data gathering, the Big Ten report said.

The Big 10 conference will start playing games again on Friday, Oct. 23. | Shutterstock

Daily testing will be administered to student football players, coaches, trainers and individuals on the field for games or practices. Test results will be recorded prior to any game or practice and each college will designate a chief infection officer to oversee the collection and reporting of gathered data.

There are 14 colleges and universities in the Big Ten.       

Officials of the conference canceled the season in August. Officials changed their mind and decided to play a portion of the season starting in October because of new rapid-response COVID-19 testing technology not available earlier in the pandemic.

“We’re in a better place, regardless of how we got here or how painful it was during the time we waited to get this moment," Ohio State Athletic Director Gene Smith told the Register-Guard. "That’s all behind us. What’s beautiful is that we have a process and protocols in place that’s based on science and based on lessons learned since Aug. 11.”

Players or individuals who test positive for COVID-19 must undergo cardiac testing including lab work and biomarkers (measurement of potential infection), cardiogram and MRI (imaging scan).

Players testing positive must receive clearance from campus health officials and will not be able to return to the field for three weeks, the Big Ten report said.

“Our focus with the task force over the last six weeks was to ensure the health and safety of our student-athletes,” Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren said. “Our goal has always been to return to competition so all student-athletes can realize their dream of competing in the sports they love. We are incredibly grateful for the collaborative work that our Return to Competition Task Force has accomplished to ensure the health, safety and wellness of student-athletes, coaches and administrators.”