RUMOR: B1G Looking at Football Bubble Locations (for spring)
Hopefully this doesn't get deleted and come true 30 minutes later like the last one.
Anyway, the B1G is looking bubble situations for Football in the spring. That way they can start earlier (and avoid the NFL draft) and they're not worried about weather and field conditions.
Will it happen? I don't believe anything anymore.
But preliminary discussions have been had with Lucas Oil. Just "would this even be possible?" type discussions.
Other locations could include Ford Field, U.S. Bank and possibly Miller Park (Brewers) and The Dome at America's Center. Not many domes on the east coast and the Carrier Dome is obviously "messy" - especially not knowing ACC football and they'll have basketball. Sucks for Maryland and Rutgers (and PSU).
The idea is every team would have a home neutral stadium. Michigan State @ Michigan at Ford Field, Michigan @ OSU at Lucas Oil. Similar to the NBA, home locker room, branding, etc.
Thought is, get them to the home site Thursday night, most classes will be remote anyway, independent testing on Thursday night, walkthroughs and another rapid test Friday night to be cleared for Saturday.
Pie in the sky, but something to talk about on a random Tuesday.
For what it's worth, I just looked at a calendar and you can get a 10 game season with 2 bye weeks AND a week off before the championship game and still be able to do CFP and 2 weekends of bowls.
If they are going to try this, announce it soon and put all your time into planning and pulling it off. Don't wait until Thanksgiving when your back is against the wall to make this call. Do it now and figure out a schedule, eligibility, all of the hard stuff.
If this happened, is this even something you all would want to see? Mid-Jan to Mid-April.
August 18th, 2020 at 8:52 PM ^
I think everyone would love to see this. But it's not going to happen. Anyone wanna join my pessimist group? That glass is half empty, college football ain't happening. Anyway, we meet whenever because it doesn't matter.
August 18th, 2020 at 8:55 PM ^
Look, unless every player does the Joe Burrow online experience that allows them to forgo their pretense for going to their respective colleges but still allows them to earn a degree, then it isn’t going to work out.
Where I would likely disagree with Schlissel is that if they can do the extra testing and bubbles for athletes, they should do it if all schools can and students still do their online schooling. If Burrow can do his LSU work online and win a Heisman during non-pandemic time, why can’t student athletes in a pandemic be fully online and still be seen as college students?
I am okay with no football, though, since the ending of the pandemic and student safety matters more. I’m just stating that actual bubbles with daily testing and with online learning fully embraced is the only way it would be feasibly safe. Campus outbreaks are too likely to happen, as proven by the daily stories from around the nation.
August 18th, 2020 at 9:02 PM ^
At this point I'm resigning myself to two weeks of ESS EEE CEE then the void.
August 18th, 2020 at 9:10 PM ^
Because no weeks of CFL, eh?
August 18th, 2020 at 9:11 PM ^
At this point I’m assuming the next time we see Michigan play football will be fall of 2021?♂️
August 18th, 2020 at 9:27 PM ^
Those "bubbles" will burst faster than my hopes and dreams.
August 18th, 2020 at 9:28 PM ^
You seem to e conflating 2 things - a bubble, whereby everyone participating is in an area sealed off from outside contact; and a dome, which is just an indoor field.
A bubble does not require a dome. It requires being able to keep all players, coaches, and related staff in an area with no outside interaction. It does not require an indoor playing facility. So unless the fields your naming can house 14 teams for several weeks I don't see how their related to creating a bubble.
August 18th, 2020 at 10:01 PM ^
A its a pseudo-bubble. Only Thursday-Saturday.
With rapid testing and passing 2 tests (Thursday and Friday) before playing Saturday. Controlled environment once you show up.
But pseudo because you could show up with COVID and get sent back home before entering the pseudo-bubble.
Dome is weather related. You can't play outdoors (reliably) in Janaury and February.
This isn't the NFL, they don't have heated fields and fresh sod to play on.
August 18th, 2020 at 10:15 PM ^
So you fly or take a bus with how many other people every week? And you show up on Thursday and get a positive test? How many others test positive?
That’s not even a pseudo-bubble. That’s literally showing up the game site a day earlier than you might otherwise.
August 18th, 2020 at 9:36 PM ^
Not really news - been in the works for 3 weeks now. It was already the worst case scenario - unless you consider the worst case scenario waiting until next fall. Sorry, don't know how to link a prior comment.
This is not news to any of the respective school's AD's, coaches or University decision makers. Nobody wanted to be the first to fold, hoping for a miracle, but it looked inevitable starting a month ago.
I don't think they were wrong to put out a schedule and be prepared just in case things went perfectly, but the players, the coaches, and AD employees knew this was the most probable outcome even before summer practices were hitting their stride.
As stated before, the good news for the UM AD is that as of now, they are financially capable of not letting go of any mid-level and lower level employees, and there is no indication that they are planning any layoffs - at least not this fall.
Plans for a spring season alternative began about 2 weeks ago. They have yet to plan how they would handle a complete cancellation until next fall regarding scholarships, seniors, etc. if that indeed does come to pass.
Joined: 08/03/2019
MGoPoints: 4571
3
August 19th, 2020 at 3:11 AM ^
So it's good news that the AD wont' let go of some of their blote?
August 18th, 2020 at 10:13 PM ^
Guess we should've foreseen this need before we blew up the Silverdome.
August 18th, 2020 at 10:36 PM ^
I’d love to see it happen, but if it doesn’t happen, I’ll be fine with it. If for no other reason than OSU has to sit on the sideline for a whole year and watch other teams play.
They’re finally going to know what it feels like to not get absolutely everything they want.
August 18th, 2020 at 11:03 PM ^
So much this. OSU players and fans are so used to receiving special treatment and always getting their way. So much so that because OSU is not getting special treatment now their fans cannot even comprehend it. They have lost all touch with reality.
August 18th, 2020 at 10:59 PM ^
I just think that putting what are supposed to be college students in a bubble makes them professionals. If this is proposed I hope college players across the Big Ten demand to be paid. College basketball coaches are already talking about bubbles because they are desperate. If your college campus isn’t 100% open and operating business as usual then college sports should not be played. It is way past time for a hard reset in college sports.
August 18th, 2020 at 11:02 PM ^
This makes no sense logistically. What you’re talking about aren’t bubbles.
August 18th, 2020 at 11:41 PM ^
Dumb idea.
August 19th, 2020 at 12:21 PM ^
Correct... why doesn't anyone mention the logistics of play football in January/February in the midwest? Honestly who wants to go to, or play football in Michigan in February?
August 19th, 2020 at 1:20 AM ^
If the other conferences cancel, I'd venture to guess that this won't happen.
August 19th, 2020 at 3:09 AM ^
Sounds like wishful thinking you are just pulling out of your ass. Are you wishcasting or do you have some kind of direct connect here?
August 19th, 2020 at 3:36 AM ^
Not in the spring. If the B1G would have been making plans back in April instead of sitting on their hands for 5 months, this may have been a possibility in October but not the spring. Too close to the draft and other college sports.
August 19th, 2020 at 8:15 AM ^
How is this a bubble?
August 19th, 2020 at 9:01 AM ^
I like pie
and flying
pie in the sky is good
August 19th, 2020 at 11:24 AM ^
More likely this approached is applied to MBB which is much easier scale-wise and facility locations to pull it off. I think all efforts should go into saving the MBB season. Football in the winter/spring is just not worth it. Maybe give them an expanded Spring practice season and two scrimmages.
August 19th, 2020 at 11:34 PM ^
Spring won’t work, they cancelled the season under the guise of player safety, they’re not going to play 2 season in a year for multiple reasons.
The product would be severely watered down. They’d have draftable players sitting as well as under classmen not wanting to waste a year of eligibility on an exhibition season. Many wouldn’t want to risk injury that would effect their availability for the fall 21’ when an actual season would resume. A minor injury could linger for multiple months limiting prep for the fall or even keep kids out for a period of time. ACL Tear in a normal season would still have the player back the following year, if that happens in the spring they’re not making it back for any of the fall 21’ season
The NFL won’t change the draft because they’d have zero reason to do so. The timing of the draft fits into the NFLs league year which was collectively bargained with the players union so changing it isn’t as easy as you make it seem.
The recovery period is not nearly long enough for the players. They’d have no offseason. When the season would be finishing they’d immediately transition into pre season S&C programs with “voluntary workouts”. There’d be no down time. Again the cancellation was do to “player safety”, no way they’d ignore the player safety risk of 2 season in a calendar year.