The Big Ten is one of the conferences in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision to postpone the college football season so far due to the coronavirus pandemic, and parents of athletes in the conference have once again rallied to protest the decision. On Saturday, about 30 parents from the Ohio State Buckeyes gathered at Ohio Stadium, though unlike the last time there was a parent protest, they were joined by hundreds of fans and even members from the team’s coaching staff.
According to Cleveland.com, the parents were joined by about 200 Buckeyes fans at the rally, which was in response to the Big Ten saying they might be able to return by Thanksgiving weekend. That was not enough, as Randy Wade — father of OSU cornerback Shaun Wade — said at the protest:
I think we all can agree that November, Thanksgiving, is not the time to play football. Somebody in the Big Ten has to have the chance to play in the College Football Playoff. I know it sounds ungrateful. … We want to play in the fall, but give us like three more weeks so we can play in the College Football Playoff.
Randy Wade
The parents and fans weren’t alone on Saturday; according to Eleven Warriors, they were joined by Buckeyes offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson and director of player personnel Mark Pantoni, among other members of the staff. The theme of the protest was “The Easy Way Out,” referring to the Big Ten’s decision to postpone the season early, rather than waiting a few weeks to see if there were any developments that would allow them to play, like the SEC and ACC are planning to.
The Big Ten has not publicly commented on any changes to the schedule so far, with the conference still standing strong on there being no fall football this year. However, there is clearly some pressure to consider a restarted season, even if it comes later than normal, and it would be surprising if Saturday’s parent-led protest was the last one that the Big Ten sees this year.
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