Urban Meyer Reacts To Michigan, Ohio State Playing In October
Urban Meyer Reacts To Michigan, Ohio State Playing In October
Urban Meyer Reacts To Michigan, Ohio State Playing In October
Urban Meyer reacted to Michigan and Ohio State playing in October this year with disappointment.
On Wednesday, the Big Ten announced that its biggest rivalry game would no longer happen at the end of the college football season. Instead, the Wolverines and Buckeyes will square off on October 24.
The scheduling change was prompted by the disruption COVID-19 has caused to college football game-planning. Big Ten Conference Commissioner Kevin Warren said this much in a recent statement.
“Developing consistent medical protocols and testing procedures for the health and safety of our student-athletes and our athletic programs is critical,” he indicated.
“Our Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases and local, state, and national experts have provided guidelines throughout our decision-making process with our student athletes’ health and safety as our first and foremost concern.
“At the same time, as we have previously communicated, any student-athletes who do not feel safe proceeding with the upcoming season as a result of the COVID-19 virus should know they have our full support and also know they will retain their scholarships.
“With the knowledge we have today, providing potential options for all of our student-athletes was of the utmost importance to us, all while ensuring there is a process in place to incorporate student-athlete feedback. While a comprehensive plan has been developed, we also know it is essential to continue to be agile as new information and health trends become available and we will adjust accordingly.”
Meyer reacted to the decision to move the Michigan-Ohio State game in a way that echoed the thoughts of many fans.
Urban Meyer doesn’t like the idea of playing Michigan in October, but he’s a realist. pic.twitter.com/sRs1ueVNE0
— Eleven Warriors (@11W) August 5, 2020
“I think the critical factor right now is player safety and trying to this game, trying to play football this fall,” he said.
“It’s heartbreaking to be honest with you. But adaptability, sacrifice are all going to be critical in everyone’s part.”
Ohio State Has Owned This Rivalry For A Decade
Last season, Michigan fell to Ohio State 56-27. It was the Buckeyes’ eighth victory over their hated rivals in as many years.
Current Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh is presently winless against Ohio State. It remains to be seen if that will ultimately change this season, but it is hard to see how it possibly can.
The Buckeyes are currently the favorites to win a National Championship, whereas the Wolverines will face a brutal schedule with an unproven offense that could take them out of College Football Playoff contention before October 24th even arrives.
“The tradition of The Ga❌e is very i❌portant to us. But if it’s the first ga❌e on the schedule, so be it. We just want to beat the brakes off the❌”
– Captain Wyatt Davis, speaking for all of @OhioStateFB 😤 #GoBuckeyes pic.twitter.com/Z6vI1BBGn4
— Ohio State Buckeyes 🌰 (@OhioStAthletics) August 4, 2020
Related: Darren Rovell Clearly Roots For Sports Disruption, But Won’t Admit It
Jennifer Withers Hoey is a former Business Development Manager who transitioned to writing about sports. With valuable connections all over the West Coast, she has used those contacts to break some of the most interesting stories pertaining to the Portland Trail Blazers, Oregon Ducks, LA Lakers, LA Clippers, Seattle Supersonics (RIP), and more.
