A Football Post...: Salvaging the Rivalry/Trophy Games -

[76-1]

Here's an idea to somewhat salvage at least the Rivalry/Trophy Games between Big Ten teams while keeping Spring Practice and next season (Fall of 2021) on schedule without undue wear and tear on the players-

Mandate a 2021 Spring Practice start date of March 1st for all Big Ten teams, finishing on March 23, with a maximum of 20 four hour practices, no limitations on pads or live tackling...

Then----

Beginning on Thursday March 25th and ending on Saturday March 27th schedule and play all the normal Trophy Games that would normally have been played at the end of this Fall's season (2020)... *

Or you could add a week of walk throughs only and play the games the following Th-S if the original time frame is too much of an overlap with any basketball still being played...

In my mind at least, this allows the most important game(s) to be saved without going through some BS, asterisk, abbreviated..., abortion of a spring Big Ten season...

Wraps things up prior to the NFL draft and perhaps even one time agent waivers could be declared for those opting to go pro...

What can I say...?

I Really Want that [ I ] on the Bucket!!!

A little thing like a global pandemic should never be allowed to stand in the way of kicking purdues ass... (and I believe we'll have a viable vaccine rolled out by the end of February)...

 

[76-1]

Here's an idea to somewhat salvage at least the Trophy Games between Big Ten teams while keeping Spring Practice and next season (Fall of 2021) on schedule without undue wear and tear on the players-

Mandate a 2021 Spring Practice start date of March 1st for all Big Ten teams, finishing on March 23, with a maximum of 20 four hour practices, no limitations on pads or live tackling...

Then----

Beginning on Thursday March 25th and ending on Saturday March 27th schedule and play all the normal Trophy Games that would normally have been played at the end of this Fall's season (2020)... *

Or you could add a week of walk throughs only and play the games the following Th-S if the original time frame is too much of an overlap with any basketball still being played...

In my mind at least, this allows the most important game(s) to be saved without going through some BS, asterisk, abbreviated..., abortion of a spring Big Ten season...

Wraps things up prior to the NFL draft and perhaps even one time agent waivers could be declared for those opting to go pro...

What can I say...?

I Really Want that [ I ] on the Bucket!!!

A little thing like a global pandemic should never be allowed to stand in the way of kicking purdues ass... (and I believe we'll have a viable vaccine rolled out by the end of February)...

Addendum:

Obviously several schools have more than just one Trophy Game so it would be up to them to decide which one was most important to their fan base.

Here's a list of the games (which may or may not be complete): https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Big_Ten_Conference_football_rivalry_games

What I had in mind was The Bucket Game...; Michigan vs "the" Ohio $tate (although technically I don't think there's any actual Trophy aside from Michigans manhood involved there)...,
NW vs Ill; MN vs IA; with the remaining to be decided by the respective Athletic Departments...

 

[76-1]

Addendum:

Obviously several schools have more than just one Trophy Game so it would be up to them to decide which one was most important to their fan base.

Here's a list of the games (which may or may not be complete): https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Big_Ten_Conference_football_rivalry_games

What I had in mind was The Bucket Game...; Michigan vs "the" Ohio $tate (although technically I don't think there's any actual Trophy aside from Michigans manhood involved there)...,
NW vs Ill; MN vs IA; with the remaining to be decided by the respective Athletic Departments...

If I were in charge the matchups would look like this (with or without an actual trophy):

1. INDIANA vs purdue
2. Ohio $tate vs Michigan
3. Northwestern vs Illinois
4. Iowa vs Minnesota
5. Wisconsin vs Nebraska
6. Penn $tate vs Michigan $tate
7. Maryland vs Rutger (their s is the trophy)

 

[76-1]

If I were in charge the matchups would look like this (with or without an actual trophy):

1. INDIANA vs purdue
2. Ohio $tate vs Michigan
3. Northwestern vs Illinois
4. Iowa vs Minnesota
5. Wisconsin vs Nebraska
6. Penn $tate vs Michigan $tate
7. Maryland vs Rutger (their s is the trophy)

#7 game and #3 game play on Thursday evening/night.

#4 game and # 5 game play on Friday evening/night

The Bucket Game, P$U-M$U and Ohio $tate-Michigan play Saturday afternoon 1-4pm, evening 4:30-7:30pm and night 8-11pm...

More cumulative viewers than the Super Bowl (I'm joking, sort of...)

 

[76-1]

#7 game and #3 game play on Thursday evening/night.

#4 game and # 5 game play on Friday evening/night

The Bucket Game, P$U-M$U and Ohio $tate-Michigan play Saturday afternoon 1-4pm, evening 4:30-7:30pm and night 8-11pm...

More cumulative viewers than the Super Bowl (I'm joking, sort of...)

Or... you could open with a Maryland vs Rutger (s) game on W evening. [the only way you'll get anyone to watch them is to make them the only thing on ];
then have NW play Illinois from 4:30-7:30pm Thursday evening along with Iowa vs MN from 8-11:30pm Thursday night;
then P$U vs M$U could play on Friday evening 5:30-7:30 and Nebraska vs Wisconsin 8-11pm;
and finally INDIANA plays p u for The Bucket on Saturday either at 1pm ... or...7pm if "The" ohio $tate and Michigan decide to play on Sunday (which would be appropriate since they're loaded with highly paid pros already)... The extra bonus here is the possibility of both teams and fan bases being struck by lightning ...

 

[jsglenn4]

If I were in charge the matchups would look like this (with or without an actual trophy):

1. INDIANA vs purdue
2. Ohio $tate vs Michigan
3. Northwestern vs Illinois
4. Iowa vs Minnesota
5. Wisconsin vs Nebraska
6. Penn $tate vs Michigan $tate
7. Maryland vs Rutger (their s is the trophy)

I would probably amend numbers 4 and 5:

Wisconsin v Minnesota
Nebraska v Iowa

You're dropping Floyd, but replacing it with the Axe.
Having lived in Omaha for a couple of years in the mid-90's, I can tell you there is no love lost between Iowa and Nebraska when it comes to football... or much else for that matter =)

 

[TMFT]

There's no way the B1G would do it, but I kind of also wish that they'd have put the kids through fall camp in enough of a bubble to ensure no infections going into a game and just play the big rivalry for everyone & call it a wrap. Throw the kids a bone for all the work they put in. Let the senior backups who want one more chance to suit up without having to commit to another year of college.

But I understand that my feeling is pie in the sky and isn't going to be on the table.

The idea of turning the OOB into the Spring Game is a lot better idea, IMO, and might have enough legs to actually happen, depending on how things develop.

 

[vesuvius13]

According to some schools they weren't voting so who made the decision?

 

[76-1]

I would probably amend numbers 4 and 5:

Wisconsin v Minnesota
Nebraska v Iowa

You're dropping Floyd, but replacing it with the Axe.
Having lived in Omaha for a couple of years in the mid-90's, I can tell you there is no love lost between Iowa and Nebraska when it comes to football... or much else for that matter =)

I'm all for your matchup: NE vs IA..., but I originally just figured that "Floyd the Pig" (MN vs IA) was sacrosanct..., much like The Bucket is...

 

[76-1]

There's no way the B1G would do it, but I kind of also wish that they'd have put the kids through fall camp in enough of a bubble to ensure no infections going into a game and just play the big rivalry for everyone & call it a wrap. Throw the kids a bone for all the work they put in. Let the senior backups who want one more chance to suit up without having to commit to another year of college.

But I understand that my feeling is pie in the sky and isn't going to be on the table.

The idea of turning the OOB into the Spring Game is a lot better idea, IMO, and might have enough legs to actually happen, depending on how things develop.

I'm figuring that most of these teams have Spring Games anyway, so why not utilize them as a defining moment to emphasize the turning of the corner on dealing with this Communist Chinese virus... An "end to the beginning"* of sorts ...

*Winston Churchill

 

[76-1]

Oh Well...

As with many of my ideas it looks like only 3 people in the country agree with me...

Sigh...

I do believe that this is a good idea and it's an opportunity not to be wasted by the Big Ten..., which means of course, that it most likely will be...

I love the concept of a one-time, single game, Mano on Mano, winner take all, End of Spring..., Ultra Rivalry Game that would allow the Big Ten to move past this disaster..., recalibrate..., showcase their players to the NFL live, and kick start recruiting for 2021..., without having to play some bizarre, hybrid, abbreviated schedule that ultimately means absolutely nothing, even for the winners...

 

[TMFT]

Oh Well...

As with many of my ideas it looks like only 3 people in the country agree with me...

Sigh...

I do believe that this is a good idea and it's an opportunity not to be wasted by the Big Ten..., which means of course, that it most likely will be...

I love the concept of a one-time, single game, Mano on Mano, winner take all, End of Spring..., Ultra Rivalry Game that would allow the Big Ten to move past this disaster..., recalibrate..., showcase their players to the NFL live, and kick start recruiting for 2021..., without having to play some bizarre, hybrid, abbreviated season that ultimately means absolutely nothing, even for the winners...

You're just a man before your time on this one. It'd be like the March Madness of football. Dudes getting vasectomies at record rates for an excuse to not get off the couch for a week while 65 football games get played nationwide.

 

[76-1]

You're just a man before your time on this one. It'd be like the March Madness of football. Dudes getting vasectomies at record rates for an excuse to not get off the couch for a week while 65 football games get played nationwide.

Thanks! Still Chuckling...

One can dream the Impossible Dream

 

[76-1]

Go..., great, great, grandson of Hildago go!!!

This horse isn't dead yet!

 

[76-1]

A game like this could even be used as a test bed for the vaccines.

You could require every entry to have a vaccine certificate and have them submit a contact tracing form (drivers license match verified) to be allowed entry (along with a signed liability waiver)..., along with an agreement to self quarantine for 14 days after the game (all that would probably limit the attendance)... Now That would be a "True Fan" litmus test

We'd know if these vaccines were working, or not, 2 weeks later...

You could still cut the fan numbers down to only 50% of capacity, require masks, spacing, no concessions, extra portalets.., etc...if so desired...

 

[76-1]

Can't even get a smart-aleck remark on all this?

Tough crowd!

 

[TMFT]

Can't even get a smart-aleck remark on all this?

Tough crowd!

I seriously do think it's a good idea. And, honestly, the ENTIRETY of college football good negotiate a hell of a financial package if they were going to put on a STRAIGHT week or two of football games being played constantly. And a little revenue sharing could help float the lower revenue teams and might make sense for the big boys to share too to trade for the little guys' right to sue for breaching their cupcake games' contracts.

 

[76-1]

I seriously do think it's a good idea. And, honestly, the ENTIRETY of college football good negotiate a hell of a financial package if they were going to put on a STRAIGHT week or two of football games being played constantly. And a little revenue sharing could help float the lower revenue teams and might make sense for the big boys to share too to trade for the little guys' right to sue for breaching their cupcake games' contracts.

While I basically have tunnel vision in regards to just focusing on the Big Ten rivalry games, I think your idea (TMFT) of expanding this concept to the entire NCAA could salvage some of the TV $$$ lost this Fall if promoted and executed effectively...

Having a onetime 8 to 10 day televised football Spring national rivalry game extravaganza could be just what the doctor ordered to snap the entire country out of its COVID19 funk and redirect it towards some semblance of normalcy... I think you're really on to something...

The NFL might even support it since it would help enhance their scouting in a big way...((as long as it wraps up 10 days prior to the draft))...

Whether it goes national or is just the Big Ten, I believe it's both workable and a $$$ maker...

 

[h20pls]

You're just a man before your time on this one. It'd be like the March Madness of football. Dudes getting vasectomies at record rates for an excuse to not get off the couch for a week while 65 football games get played nationwide.

This is funny...cause it's true.

 

[76-1]

This is funny...cause it's true.

Well this concept seems to have gone down in flames... The AD's appear to be wedded to the idea that there has to be some type of abbreviated season played at a few indoor stadiums sprinkled around the Big Ten...

 

[h20pls]

Well this concept seems to have gone down in flames... The AD's appear to be wedded to the idea that there has to be some type of abbreviated season played at a few indoor stadiums sprinkled around the Big Ten...

From the FWIW file...I thought it was a helluva idea....

 

[76-1]

From the FWIW file...I thought it was a helluva idea....

Thanks!

Unfortunately you and I and maybe 3 other people appear to be the only ones who did (think that it's a good idea)...

All I can say is I tried...

Looks like this is being put out to pasture...

For the record, I strongly believe that this abbreviated season nonsense is a complete waste of time for pretty much everyone not named "the" Ohio $tate...

 

[IU_Hickory]

maybe we can strap players into virtual reality suits and play a virtual game lol

i would love to see some football played. just hope they can figure out a good way to do that and keep people as safe as possible.

 

[h20pls]

Thanks!

Unfortunately you and I and maybe 3 other people appear to be the only ones who did (think that it's a good idea)...

All I can say is I tried...

Looks like this is being put out to pasture...

For the record, I strongly believe that this abbreviated season nonsense is a complete waste of time for pretty much everyone not named "the" Ohio $tate...

Well...I won't lie...I'm hoping for some sort of season. I thought your idea was such that we could see the teams, the conference could see some revenue...and we could just take an approach that mitigated risk (and promoted revenue). I'm in Btown...blessed to have a business that is plodding along with minimal disruption...not all so fortunate.

You're a good citizen...that was a winner of an idea.