The Big Ten is pushing ahead on a plan to play college football this spring. Coaches put forward a proposal Thursday morning at a conference call that includes a start date of January, with the traditional ‘fall camp’ training time in December.
Purdue coach Jeff Brohm isolated himself on Lake Freeman on Wednesday and came up with his own nine-page plan to release to the media Thursday morning.
It is not certain where the conference will end with a spring schedule. But as the Big Ten with interest watches as the ACC, SEC and Big 12 try to navigate their way to start a season in the fall, the Big Ten has made its sentiment clear – spring can work.
“I wanted to get some optimism out of it,” Brohm said Thursday morning in a telephone interview. ‘We all want to play. I’m disappointed that all Power Five conferences did not work together and make a decision in combination. To me, you then feel better about where you are. ”
Ohio State Coach Ohio outlined on Monday the schedule of a plan in a Zoom call that includes a training camp in December and a season that begins in early January and continues through March. One of the major tenets would last the entire 2021 season, as the spring season would potentially end early to allow players to recover later in the year and play a full season.
That would allow players to design time to recover from the season and give NFL prospects the incentive not to just sign with agents and explain to the concept. The games could potentially be played in domed stadiums around the Midwest to prevent inclement weather.
The potential date of traditional postseason events such as the NFL Combine (early March) and draft (late April) are going to be gigantic factors for college football going forward.
An NFL spokesman declined to comment on the NFL draft when Yahoo Sports reached out on Thursday. All that’s certain is that there’s a line in the NFL’s Collective Bargaining Agreement that says that draft can be held as late as June 2nd. (It can also be held as early as Feb. 14.) NFL flexibility appears to be available.
In a telephone interview on Thursday morning, Brohm made it clear that he was not trying to explain that he had come up with the definitive plan that the Big Ten should follow. Instead, he wanted to get ideas and ideals on paper to help the Big Ten move forward. “I wanted to get something to give us hope for the future,” Brohm said. ‘The times and dates were not the biggest worries like‘ How? “and back?” “
Get involved with Brohm’s plan and there are many pragmatic ideas about health and safety and how to manage the wear and tear on the bodies of college athletes. Brohm’s plan would include eight games this spring and then 10 games starting in early October 2021.
Brohm wrote in his plan that many teams start workouts and then practice spring shortly after their bowl games each year. He proposes “up to 4.5 months” between the final match this spring and the first football practice in September.
Perhaps most important to Brohm are the ways to protect players from injuries and prevent wear and tear. It includes a proposal for only one padded football practice per week in both spring and autumn, and no traditional spring practice in 2022. Brohm indicates how over a span of two seasons the number of padded practices would be reduced from 144 padded practices up to 64 padded practices. By giving the players the spring of 2022, it would mark a seven-month break from practice.
“Those are the most important things,” Brohm said. “The amount of refurbishment practices, the amount of contact and the amount of wear and tear on the body.”
In isolation at Lake Freeman, where cell service is a rumor, Brohm was unaware that the Big Ten had assembled a subcommittee of coaches and athletic directors to set up a plan for the fall. There were not many conversations among the coaches about what a spring could look like, as they did not even talk about what the fall could look like if there was a postponement until the night before the Big Ten postponed the season.
“That’s why I wanted to bury my head in it,” Brohm said of the scheme. “There was no real discussion about the details of a spring season. I’m excited that the Big Ten has already gone to work. I look forward to working with them. ”
Brohm said the scheme was a nice distraction from the gut disappointment of the fall season that was canceled.
“I was just as crazy as anyone the day before, disappointed and angry,” Brohm said. “Our players felt the same frustration. … I’m 100 percent open to other ideas and suggestions. I wanted to explain what I had in mind. However, we can do it. ‘
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