Making Sense of 2020 Michigan Football

鈥楾he Game鈥 will happen in October 鈥 and other quirks of the Big Ten鈥檚 revamped schedule
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michigan football
Michigan Stadium photo: IStock

It鈥檚 on between Michigan and Michigan State! Maybe. But the two in-state rivals won鈥檛 be playing each other Oct. 10 in East Lansing; instead, it鈥檒l be Oct. 3 in Ann Arbor. We hope.

Oh, and forget about the 鈥淭he Game鈥 falling around Thanksgiving. Instead, U-M鈥檚 annual hatefest with Ohio State was moved for Oct. 24, so you can hold on to your gameday facemask for Halloween.

Those are just two of many quirks revealed as part of a coronavirus-converted Big Ten Conference football schedule released Wednesday, which pares down each school鈥檚 original 12-game slate containing nine conference foes to a 10-game season entirely within the Big Ten.

It鈥檚 a plan so shaky that within Big Ten offices it was nicknamed 鈥淛enga 41,鈥 as it鈥檚 the 41st schedule iteration that鈥檚 been done and redone in recent weeks,听. But hold on to your receipts and write nothing down in permanent marker, because the Big Ten Conference is making no promises.

鈥淚n making this announcement, the Conference acknowledges that there is much work to be done on our campuses, in our communities, and across the country to gain control of a virus that continues to spread at an alarming rate,鈥 the Big Ten said in a prepared statement. 鈥淲hile the Conference remains hopeful for a September 2020 start in all fall sports, including football, issuing a schedule does not guarantee that competition will occur.鈥

The examples trickling out of the worlds of sports and academia have provided ample reason to hedge bets. Major League Baseball has had multiple teams abandon games and enter quarantine after being hit by coronavirus outbreaks since its July restart.

And in East Lansing, a coronavirus outbreak this summer linked to Harper鈥檚 鈥 a popular watering hole near MSU 鈥 that infected nearly 200 people has college administrators wondering what will happen when students resume full-time partying this fall.

Still unclear this week is who will be allowed to attend games, and how many people will be let in. Both U-M and MSU have indicated stadium capacities are likely to be severely restricted if stadiums are open at all.听

Regardless of who鈥檚 there to watch, both U-M and MSU aim to start their seasons at their respective home stadiums on Sept. 5, with the Wolverines hosting Purdue and the Spartans welcoming Minnesota. Check with an epidemiologist for updates.