During his time as a Vikings executive, Kevin Warren became known for honesty and caution. So when Warren, the newish commissioner of the Big Ten, said this week that his conference may not play football this fall, you should have heard alarm bells.
In the past couple of weeks, the Big Ten canceled nonconference games, the Dallas schools superintendent expressed doubt that there will be high school football in Texas, the NFL canceled two weeks of preseason games, Houston Texans star J.J. Watt said he wouldn’t play this season if he has to wear a face shield, Bucs left tackle Donovan Smith said playing “does not seem like a risk worth taking,” the NFL Players Association expressed a preference for canceling the rest of the preseason, the NFL asked for 35% of players’ salaries to be placed in escrow to help manage league costs and the league banned socializing on the field after games.