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Big Ten expected to adopt player availability reports for league games, per report
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The Big Ten is working toward a new league-wide mandate that would require teams to provide player availability reports 2 hours before kickoff of each conference game.
Such a mandate has not yet been officially adopted. The Pioneer Press’ Andy Greder first reported the news, adding that there is an expectation within the B1G that member schools will vote to approve it. The Action Network’s Brett McMurphy corroborated the report, citing an anonymous source who said they’d be “shocked” if the measure did not pass.
Injury reports were a major topic of discussion years ago when the US Supreme Court legalized sports betting. Former B1G commissioner Jim Delany threw his support behind the idea shortly after.
But it’s a topic that has and will continue to get pushback from certain coaches.
Some schools don’t make depth charts available to the public before games. Some coaches refuse to discuss anything injury-related unless the player is dealing with a season-ending injury. Some coaches are more forthcoming with information than others, viewing player availability as a strategic advantage.
A report on gamedays could prove helpful as a starting point, however.
In the NFL, teams are required to submit practice reports for the three days before a game that list whether a player did not participate, was a limited participant, or a full participant. Game reports are due to the NFL by Friday for a Sunday game that list players as “out,” “doubtful,” or “questionable.”
It’s unclear if the B1G would try to adopt something similar. It’s also not immediately clear if the league would require schools to give a reason for why players are listed on a player availability report.
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.