A court filing disclosed Monday shows that Big Ten Conference presidents voted 11-3 to postpone the football season until spring, bringing some clarity to a key question raised in a lawsuit brought by a group of Nebraska football players.
The vote breakdown was revealed in the Big Ten’s response to the lawsuit.
The court documents did not identify how each school voted, but a person familiar with the outcome told The Associated Press that Iowa, Nebraska and Ohio State voted against postponing the fall football season. The person spoke Monday on condition of anonymity because the Big Ten was not planning on making the specifics of its vote public.
The Big Ten announced Aug. 11 it would move its football season from fall to spring because of health risks associated with the coronavirus pandemic. The Pac-12 and other smaller leagues followed suit. The eight football players are seeking the reinstatement of a fall season.
Their lawsuit contends, among other things, the players are losing a chance for development, exposure for a possible pro career and won’t be able to market themselves to eventually capitalize on name, image and likeness revenue opportunities.
The Big Ten filing was a response in opposition to the players’ motion for expedited discovery. The filing said the 11-3 vote “far exceeded” the 60% threshold the Big Ten requires. The filing also said the Big Ten based its decision on multiple factors, including the medical advice and counsel of the Big Ten Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases and the Big Ten Sports Medicine Committee.
Listed as plaintiffs are Brant and Brig Banks, Alante Brown, Noa Pola-Gates, Jackson Hannah, Garrett Nelson, Ethan Piper and Garrett Snodgrass.
The players’ attorney, Mike Flood, declined immediate comment, saying he needed to read the filing.
The lawsuit says the Big Ten’s decision-making process was “flawed and ambiguous” and called into question whether the league’s Council of Presidents and Chancellors formally voted on the decision. The medical studies used to make the decision, the lawsuit says, were not relevant to the circumstances of college-age athletes and did not take into account school safety measures.
The decision not to play fall football has created a firestorm in Big Ten country, fanned by the fact the ACC, Big Ten and SEC are pushing ahead with plans to start their seasons in September.
Commissioner Kevin Warren has faced sharp criticism for not clearly laying out how the decision was reached. He has sidestepped questions about the vote breakdown, and his explanations of the medical reasons were panned for not being detailed enough.
A group of Nebraska player parents have been most vocal in demanding answers from the commissioner, and parents from other Big Ten schools joined them.
The Big Ten said last week the lawsuit “has no merit and we will defend the decision to protect all student-athletes as we navigate through this global pandemic. We are actively considering options to get back to competition and look forward to doing so when it is safe to play.”
LSU: Record-setting receiver Ja’Marr Chase announced his decision to opt out of the 2020 college season on Monday and turn his attention to next spring’s NFL draft, when he is expected to be among the first several players taken overall.
Chase was a first-team All-American and the Biletnikoff award winner in 2019, when he set single-season Southeastern Conference records for yards receiving with 1,780 and touchdowns with 20.
OHIO STATE: Defensive tackle Haskell Garrett was released from the hospital Monday after being shot in the face over the weekend, a spokesman for the football program said.
Garrett told police he was shot when he intervened in a dispute between a male and a female who were “arguing and being aggressive,” according to a Columbus, Ohio, police report. Garrett said the male then pulled out a gun and fired a shot that police said passed through both of Garrett’s cheeks.
“On behalf of his family and this football program, we would like to thank all those who have been a part of Haskell’s treatment and we are grateful that he will be heading home (Monday),” Coach Ryan Day said in a statement. “We will continue to help him and his family any way we can to expedite his recovery.”
Day didn’t address Garrett’s future with the program or say whether he would be able to play if the Big Ten Conference decides to start a season later in the fall or winter.
Police said the shooting is still being investigated.
Comments are not available on this story.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
