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Northwestern president believes all 14 B1G teams will play football this fall

Dustin Schutte

By Dustin Schutte

Published:

One B1G president is optimistic that all fourteen programs within the conference will be participating in the upcoming football season, according to a recent report.

Friday, ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg reported that Northwestern University President Morton Schapiro expects all 14 teams in the B1G to be able to play during the upcoming football season. He also stated that he’d be surprised if the league moves forward if not all schools can play.

“I’d be surprised if we play and it’s not all 14 of us,” Schapiro said.

The Northwestern president is the chairman of the Big Ten Council of Presidents and Chancellors. That group is scheduled to meet on June 7, a date Rittenberg believes will be key in making decisions about the fall semester, including on-campus classes and the return of NCAA athletics.

Some B1G schools (Purdue, Nebraska and Iowa) have already stated that they plan the re-open campuses for on-site instruction come the fall. That’s a positive sign for the return of sports, at least for those specific schools. Michigan State is one of a handful of others that are waiting to make a decision.

While there are still a lot of uncertainties about the fall semester and the college football season, the chance of playing the 2020 campaign seems to be gaining momentum.

Dustin Schutte

Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB