OPINION Like it is

OPINION | WALLY HALL: Big Ten not essential for a football season

From the beginning of this horror story known as the coronavirus, University of Arkansas Chancellor Joe Steinmetz and Athletic Director Hunter Yurachek have been on the same page.

Plan A was to play fall football, but it was not the only plan.

It seems every media person in the world but yours truly has a Big Ten source, and all of them are saying the league is on the verge of pulling the plug on football in 2020.

The Big Ten denies that. For now.

The SEC already has pushed the season back three weeks, delayed the start of practices by a week and removed all teams that aren't in the SEC from schedules.

It even announced the new schedule, which added two conference games to the existing eight.

Playing 10 games this year seemed like an ambitious plan. Now, it looks like it may not be possible.

A few smaller schools and conferences already have said no thank you to this year.

Last week the Mid-American Conference became the first FBS league to fold the 2020 season, then all those Big Ten sources started saying it would be the first Power 5 conference to surrender.

The Big Ten doesn't tell the SEC, ACC, Big 12 or Pac-12 what to do, and those leagues could go forward and have a season or also say no thanks.

That's why all the nonconference games were canceled. Each league controls its own destiny.

All of them are aware of the pros and cons of playing football.

Yes, players all over the country are asking to play, many because it will be their last season before they enter the NFL Draft.

These are talented young men who lack the experience to make such a decision. Many of them have untested theories about life but not the maturity or experience to make this call.

The decision won't be made by SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey or even the athletic directors. Sankey and each AD will be the face of the decision, but it will be made above their pay grade.

In Sunday's paper, Steinmetz explained to our man Tom Murphy how many meetings he's already had with other chancellors and presidents.

It was way more than expected.

The way it works -- or is supposed to work -- is Steinmetz will listen to Yurachek, then he'll go to UA System President Donald Bobbitt.

Bobbitt and Steinmetz will take their decision to the board of trustees, which more than likely will approve their plan.

That is what will happen all over the SEC.

The single biggest consideration right now has to be athletes' health. The fight against this awful virus has not been very effective.

The NCAA Basketball Tournament was canceled long before the virus was as bad as it has been lately.

That doesn't mean football can't be played this fall, but starting in the fourth week of September and playing 10 games seem like pie in the sky right now.

In fact, expect another delay before a final decision is made.

The SEC could play an eight-game schedule and not start until the middle of October. The champions would come from the regular season.

That would buy some necessary time, and should remove Georgia and Florida from Arkansas' schedule.

When that 10-game schedule was announced, it looked like its main intention was to strengthen the top teams' quest for the playoffs.

If the Big The decides not to play, it would hurt the playoffs but not kill them.

As admitted, I don't have any sources in the Big Ten, and the people I know in the SEC are not talking. At least not yet.

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