Big Ten Football

The Washtenaw County Health Department issued a stay-at-home order for University of Michigan students with COVID-19 cases increasing, according to Tom VanHaaren of ESPN, though the rule will not apply for the Wolverines football team or any other athletics. 

Per that report, the medical staff must be present at all activities and have a staff member that "actively supervises the team's COVID-19 mitigation activities during the practice, has the authority to suspend the practice if he or she believes COVID-19 mitigation practices require that result, and testing is conducted per governing athletic organizations' (i.e. Big 10) policies." 

Since the beginning of the fall semester, Michigan has reportedly had over 1,000 new cases of the coronavirus at its Ann Arbor campus. Washtenaw County in total has had 4,229 cases of COVID-19. 

As for Michigan's athletes, 1,559 tests returned 11 positive cases between Oct. 10 to Oct. 16. In total, 11,889 tests have returned 104 positive cases. 

The news comes as No. 18 Michigan is set to begin its football season at No. 21 Minnesota on Saturday, Oct. 24. 

Michigan President Mark Schlissel, provost Susan Collins and vice president for student life Martino Harmon said in a letter to the school that "there has not been documented transmission of COVID-19 among student-athletes in our athletics facilities," per Aaron McMann of MLive.com. 

Football head coach Jim Harbaugh also said that no players will be held out of Saturday's game for COVID-related reasons. And he's ready for the season, with a group of players he said have shown a lot of "competitiveness and oneness."

"It's been that kind of group," he told reporters Monday. "(We have) really good leaders, a lot of guys that are really invested, and a lot of guys that really like each other. A lot of guys that really like football."

One of the best players in the entire Big Ten may miss the upcoming 2020 football season because of a medical condition.

"Journey Brown is being treated for a medical condition discovered during the offseason and will potentially miss the 2020 football season," Penn State said in a statement, per Mark Brennan of 247Sports.

Brown is the star running back for the Nittany Lions and was largely expected to carry on the proud tradition of the position for the program that recently produced Saquon Barkley and Miles Sanders.

Brown was a nonfactor in 2018 but tallied 1,024 yards from scrimmage and 13 touchdowns during the 2019 campaign.

He was especially impressive down the stretch when he established himself as the clear-cut top option out of the backfield:

• Nov. 9 at Minnesota: 14 carries for 124 yards and two touchdowns
• Nov. 16 vs. Indiana: 21 carries for 100 yards and one touchdown
• Nov. 23 at Ohio State: 11 carries for 64 yards and one touchdown
• Nov. 30 vs. Rutgers: 16 carries for 103 yards and three touchdowns
• Dec. 28 vs. Memphis: 16 carries for 202 yards and two touchdowns

His performance in the Cotton Bowl victory over Memphis seemingly set him up to pick up right where he left off as a primary option during the 2020 campaign. Instead, the Nittany Lions may be forced to compete with the likes of Ohio State, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin and others for a Big Ten Championship without their star running back.

Penn State does have other options in the backfield with Noah Cain, Devyn Ford, Caziah Holmes and Keyvone Lee, but Brown adds an explosive element to the offense that can take the pressure off quarterback Sean Clifford.

The Nittany Lions face Indiana in Saturday's season opener.

Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith told reporters Monday that the Big Ten currently is not planning to fine head coaches who don't wear masks or don't keep a mask on for the entirety of games, saying such decisions were being left up to individual universities at the moment.  

"I think we're going to be fine," he said. "We're going to be sensitive to the moment. There are going to be times when Ryan Day is in the middle of a call and his mask is down, and we have someone to remind him to put it back up. Kind of like that get-back coach, right? That's where we like it at this point in time. I hope we don't get to a point where we have to fine people."

Given the number of postponements and positive cases seen around college football during the COVID-19 pandemic—and given that the Big Ten currently won't be allowing any fans to attend games—it's a little surprising the conference won't fine coaches who aren't masked, though clearly, the expectation is that those coaches will mask up regardless and their universities will enforce their own rules. 

The coronavirus pandemic, and how schools and conferences are responding to it, remains the lingering storyline hanging over the 2020 season. 

Last week, for instance, Florida head coach Dan Mullen said after a loss to Texas A&M that he wanted to see a full stadium of fans for this weekend's scheduled matchup vs. LSU. But after an outbreak of the coronavirus in the Gators football program—which included Mullen testing positive for COVID-19—that game was postponed. 

Alabama head coach Nick Saban also tested positive last week. In total, six FBS coaches have tested positive for the coronavirus, while a number of programs have seen multiple games postponed. The SEC is fining schools $100,000 for first offenses of coaches not masking on the sidelines, with the potential for follow-up fines of $200,000, $300,000 and $400,000. 

There's also the deeper question of whether it's responsible at all to have unpaid amateur athletes play football during a pandemic, especially given some of the unknowns regarding the long-term risks on the body in those individuals who contract the coronavirus. Regardless, most FBS programs and a large portion of the player base have chosen to go ahead with the season. 

Adrian Martinez will start at quarterback when Nebraska opens its season against No. 5 Ohio State on Saturday, according to ESPN's Adam Rittenberg.

Martinez beat out redshirt freshman Luke McCaffrey, the brother of Carolina Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey, for the starting job.

Nebraska head coach Scott Frost said Monday that Martinez's experience—5,817 yards through 21 games—was the factor that made the ultimate decision, and that he feels as though the team has "two first-string quarterbacks." 

"If Luke had already been playing and we had the same camp, it probably would have been Luke," Frost said, per Rittenberg. "We feel we have the luxury of two starters."

After just two seasons, Martinez holds school records in 11 different statistical categories, including career 400-yard offense games (4), and freshman total offensive yards (3,246), passing yards (2,617), passing touchdowns (17) and total touchdowns (25). He also set records for single-season 300- and 400-yard games, with seven and three as a freshman in 2018. The California native was named a team captain for the second consecutive season on Monday.

After a standout freshman year, Martinez's production dipped ever so slightly in his sophomore campaign, with 149-of-251 passing, 10 touchdowns and nine interceptions for 1,956 yards compared to 224-of-347 passing with 17 scores, eight picks and 2,617 yards in his debut season.

Nebraska and the rest of the Big Ten open their season this weekend, months after voting to postpone fall seasons as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic back in August. Ohio State and Nebraska joined Iowa in initially voting to play, and Ohio State's team doctor, Dr. Jim Borchers, was a co-chair on the medical subcommittee of the league's return task force, per ESPN. 

Michigan will move forward without star receiver Nico Collins, as head coach Jim Harbaugh explained Monday.

"Nico is not participating in football right now," Harbaugh said, per Heather Dinich of ESPN. "I don't have a crystal ball as to if his mind would change on that. I know he's not currently on the team."

According to Bruce Feldman of The Athletic, Collins declared for the NFL draft and signed with an agent while there was still uncertainty about the Big Ten season. He has not returned to the team.

Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated reported in September that the receiver had signed with agent Drew Rosenhaus.

The Big Ten season was initially postponed for the fall season, but the league announced it will return with a shortened schedule. Michigan will open its season Saturday against Minnesota.

Losing Collins for the season is significant considering the player's impact on the field.

The 6'4" wideout had 13 receiving touchdowns over the last two seasons and finished second on the team with 37 catches and 729 receiving yards in 2019. He became more of a go-to option last season than sixth-round NFL draft pick Donovan Peoples-Jones.

Bleacher Report's Matt Miller projected Collins to be a third-round pick in the 2021 draft.

Michigan offensive coordinator Josh Gattis recently praised Collins while noting the challenges with making a decision, via Zach Shaw of 247Sports:

"Nico's got a bright future in football. Obviously, he's going to play football for a very long time moving forward. A lot of our guys are faced with tough decisions they need to make for themselves, and it's really uncertain times right now. The season got canceled, got it back, there's a lot of different scenarios that are playing out. ... I think individually a lot of our guys are faced with making tough decisions, and we're here to support whatever decision they make."

Ronnie Bell will likely take on an even bigger role in the passing attack for the Wolverines, while Cornelius Johnson and Mike Sainristil must step up after seeing limited action last season.

Michigan State football players Luke Fulton and Charles Willekes have both been suspended indefinitely from all team activities after getting arrested in September, according to Matt Wentzel of MLive.com.

Fulton was charged with aggravated assault related to a criminal complaint on Sept. 8 in East Lansing, but later accepted a plea for misdemeanor assault and battery. Willekes was arrested regarding the same complaint but his records have been sealed. 

Both players will have their records sealed as long as they complete the conditions of their sentence under the Holmes Youthful Trainee Act. Fulton and Willekes will also avoid any jail time provided they complete the conditions of their plea agreements.

Fulton's lawyer Mike Nichols explained the situation involving his client.

"In order to avoid any misleading information, even though that record is supposed to be sealed at this point in the case, the charge was reduced to assault and battery, which is not an unusual resolution where the person really wasn't really hurt badly," Nichols said.

The Spartans are scheduled to begin their season Saturday against Rutgers after the entire Big Ten conference season was delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Both players were looking to see more action in 2020 after redshirting during their first season last year.

Willekes is a walk-on who followed in the path of his brother, Kenny Willekes, who was a star last season for Michigan State after totaling 10 sacks and 78 tackles. The younger of the two appeared in one game last year on special teams.

Fulton was a 3-star recruit out of Ohio but is yet to see regular-season action.

Eight former University of Iowa football players have demanded $20 million in compensation and the firing of athletic director Gary Barta, head coach Kirk Ferentz and assistant coach Brian Ferentz.

In a letter sent to the university Oct. 5, the former Hawkeyes players say that Barta and the Ferentzes were responsible for "intentional racial discrimination" during their tenures, according to Chad Leistikow of the Des Moines Register.

The players, who worked with civil rights attorney Damario Solomon-Simmons to send the letter, are running back Akrum Wadley, wide receiver Kevonte Martin-Manley, defensive back Maurice Fleming, wide receiver Andre Harris, running back Marcel Joly, linebacker Aaron Mends, running back Jonathan Parker and linebacker Reggie Spearman.

All of the former players who sent the letter are Black.

Other demands outlined by the former players in the letter include the addition of a "Black male senior administrator position" as part of Iowa athletics, anti-racist training for athletics staff, a board of advisers that includes Black players and tuition waivers for any Black athlete who did not graduate during Ferentz's time as head coach.

In response to the letter, University of Iowa general counsel Carroll Reasoner said that while the school has made attempts to satisfy some of the demands already, "We respectfully decline your monetary and personnel demands."

Ferentz issued a statement in response to the letter, noting he is "deeply committed" to helping everyone who joins the Iowa football program reach their full potential, both on and off the field:

The Iowa football program parted ways with strength coach Chris Doyle in June after he spent 21 years in that position. The decision was made after dozens of former players said that he was among those within the program who mistreated Black players.

All of the eight former players who sent the letter have made specific allegations regarding how Black players and personnel have been treated unfairly at the University of Iowa.

Wadley said he had his meal-card privileges revoked at one point, and Martin-Manley tweeted about what he felt was the unfair forcing out of former wide receivers coach Erik Campbell in 2012:

The 65-year-old Kirk Ferentz is about to start his 22nd season as head coach of the Hawkeyes and owns a career record of 162-104.

Ferentz guided Iowa to Big Ten titles in 2002 and 2004, and the Hawkeyes have played in 17 bowl games during his tenure.

In June, Ferentz admitted that he had a "blind spot" in terms of not seeing the mistreatment of Black players in the Iowa football program.

As part of the letter, it was stated that the eight former players are prepared to pursue a lawsuit against the school if their demands are not met by Oct. 19.

Purdue announced football head coach Jeff Brohm has tested positive for COVID-19, according to The Athletic's Nicole Auerbach. 

Brohm is isolating at home while awaiting the results of a PCR test for confirmation. The Boilermakers open up the season against Iowa on Saturday. 

The 49-year-old is the eighth FBS head coach to have a reported positive test for COVID-19, joining Les Miles (Kansas), Kevin Sumlin (Arizona), Chip Kelly (UCLA), Blake Anderson (Arkansas State), Jason Candle (Toledo) and Mike Norvell (Florida State). Alabama's Nick Saban tested positive this week, but he was cleared to return to the field for the Crimson Tide's 41-24 win over Georgia on Saturday following three consecutive negative tests.

Purdue and the rest of the Big Ten are scheduled to begin their football season on Saturday after reversing their Aug. 11 decision to postpone this season because of the coronavirus pandemic. Teams will play eight games in as many weeks, with no bye week before the Big Ten championship is played on Dec. 19. 

In August, the league's presidents and chancellors voted 11-3 to push the season back, prompting commissioner Kevin Warren to create a task force focused on creating guidelines for returning to play that  including daily testing.

The Big Ten has tested its football programs daily since Sept. 30, and players who test positive must wait three weeks before they return in order to undergo "comprehensive cardiac testing," per ESPN. Auerbach reported that coaches who test positive will follow recommendations by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; they should isolate for 10 days and then can return to their team if they are symptom-free for 24 hours afterward. 

If that is the case for Brohm, the fourth-year Boilermakers coach can return to the team for its Oct. 31 game against Illinois. 

Some members of Ohio State's football staff are taking extreme measures as the Buckeyes prepare to begin their 2020 season against Nebraska on Oct. 24.

Head coach Ryan Day explained how some coaches are refraining from staying at their homes.

"Didn't put any guidelines in place or tell somebody how to handle their business at all," Day said, per ESPN's Adam Rittenberg. "We just talked about how having school-aged children who are going to school is a risk. They're at school, they're exposed. Some of the sports leagues are still going on and they're playing. It's an exposure, it's an unknown, so to be aware of it; each guy's handling it their own way."

Day added that coaches haven't completely isolated themselves from their family members and that the 41-year-old is "still trying to figure this part of it out" with his family.

For a number of reasons, setting up any sort of bubble tied to the college football season is impossible. That leaves teams at the mercy of the pandemic.

Virginia Tech, for example, was without 23 players for its 45-24 win over NC State last Saturday. It remains unclear how many of those absences were COVID-19-related.

The Big Ten originally announced in August it was postponing all fall sports because of the pandemic. Day was among those from within the conference who criticized the decision.

Big Ten officials reversed course, announcing on Sept. 16 that it was instituting new COVID-19 health and safety protocols while paving the way for football to return on the weekend of October 23-24. Any athlete who tests positive for COVID-19 is subject to further testing and a 21-day period in isolation.

Ohio State has 120 football players and 50 staffers who get tested daily under the Big Ten's new policy.

Minnesota receiver Rashod Bateman announced Wednesday on Twitter he will opt back into the 2020 season after initially opting out:

Bateman had declared for the draft on Aug. 4 while citing the uncertainty of the upcoming season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Big Ten announced a week later it would be postponing the fall season.

The conference is now set to return on Oct. 24, providing an opportunity for players like Bateman to play.

Head coach P.J. Fleck announced earlier this month Bateman re-enrolled in classes and submitted a waiver to the NCAA to return to play, which was approved Wednesday.

Bateman had reportedly already signed an agent, per Pete Thamel of Yahoo Sports, but was still allowed to return to school based on the unusual circumstances.

Other Big Ten players like Ohio State's Shaun Wade and Wyatt Davis were also allowed to rejoin their teams after opting out.

Bateman already would have been an elite NFL prospect even without participating in the season, projected to go No. 15 overall by Bleacher Report's Matt Miller.

Returning for another season could allow him to move into the top 10 while also helping Minnesota to compete in the Big Ten.

The 6'2" wideout was a key part of the Golden Gophers' success a year ago, finishing with 60 catches for 1,219 yards and 11 touchdowns for a team that finished 11-2 with a win in the Outback Bowl. After playing alongside Tyler Johnson over the past two years, Bateman has a chance for even greater numbers in 2020 as the true No. 1 option in the passing attack.

Minnesota is currently three spots away from the Top 25 in the Associated Press poll, but the latest news could give the team a boost before the start of the season.