Wisconsin's 2020 Football Schedule Released
MADISON, Wis. – The University of Wisconsin football will still open the season against Indiana in one month’s time, but that’s about the only thing that remains the same in the Badgers’ 2020 schedule.
Wisconsin received its new-look schedule Wednesday morning which included its six divisional opponents, the previously scheduled three East Division crossover opponents (vs. Indiana, at Maryland, at Michigan) and the addition of Rutgers as a 10th game.
The changes come after the league made the decision to cancel all nonconference games for the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.
“Issuing a schedule does not guarantee competition this fall will occur in the Big Ten conference,” commissioner Kevin Warren told Yahoo Sports’ Pete Thamel. “We felt collectively that this was the next logical and methodical step forward in our process to be able to, at least, put some planning in place for our fall sports season.”
Having a scheduling model nicknamed “Jenga 41,” referencing the popular game that involves stacking wooden blocks is a fitting one, the schedule was designed to have flexibility to move the season around.
After opening the season against Indiana, the Badgers will have home games against Minnesota (Sept.26), Purdue (Oct.10), Illinois (Oct.24) and Rutgers (Nov.21) and road games at Northwestern (Sept.12), Nebraska (Sept.19), Maryland (Oct.3), Michigan (Oct.31) and Iowa (Nov.14). The Badgers are slated to have bye weeks Oct.17 and Nov.7.
The initial schedule had UW hosting Nebraska and playing at Purdue.
The Big Ten Football Championship Game remains scheduled for Dec. 5 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, though it could be moved as late as Dec. 19.
The Big Ten is now scheduled to be the first major conference to kick off the 2020 football season, but Week 1 and Week 2 could be moved back to one of the two open dates on the schedule, and Week 3 and Week 4 could be folded into bye dates. Cross-division games are currently scheduled for all schools in Week 1 (Sept. 5) and Week 12 (Nov. 21).
Overall, 41 of the 70 games in the league’s conference-only schedule can collapse into one of the two existing bye weeks.
“It was important for us to be nimble, agile and balanced,” Warren told Yahoo. “Those are three critical words. One of the reasons we went to conference-only schedule is that it would allow us to have a flexible schedule and be able to make quick decisions in real time based on current medical advice and the fluid nature of bye weeks.”
The conference instituted the strictest testing protocols in major college sports, as football athletes, coaches and staff in sports with a “high risk of contact” are required to take a minimum of two polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests for the virus each week. Athletes must be tested before accessing athletic facilities upon their initial arrival to campus.
The testing is going to be managed by a third-party laboratory to ensure consistency across the conference. The protocols also allow for the flexibility for more testing, which the league could face as technology changes and instant daily tests become available over the upcoming weeks and months.
Whether the entire schedule will be played may seem like wishful thinking. Currently, three Big Ten teams – Rutgers, Michigan State and Northwestern – are on pause from workouts because of COVID-19 outbreaks, with six overall having taken a pause at some point this summer.
“This is a day-to-day journey together,” Warren said. “That’s the best way I can say it. I feel good today to proceed tomorrow. That’s how we’ll look at this. I have to evaluate every item on a daily basis.”
Teams can begin preseason practices on Friday, or earlier if permitted under NCAA guidelines related to first dates of scheduled competition.