from Steve Sipple.............. Lincoln Journal Star
I don't want to get overly dramatic here. That gets old. But it's safe to say the folks who are against college athletes playing football are concerned about survival. They are concerned about the safety of student-athletes. They are concerned about student-athletes spreading COVID-19 into communities where folks with underlying conditions are especially vulnerable.
Then there's the discussion about how many fans should be allowed in stadiums.
In that regard, there was a bit of news in our neck of the woods Friday. While Lancaster County's coronavirus restrictions in outdoor venues still will limit crowds to 75 percent of capacity, the health department is raising the maximum number of people allowed from 10,000 to 30,000. That indicates the University of Nebraska could have up to 30,000 fans at Memorial Stadium if and when it hosts a football game.
I don't think the timing of the change is coincidental.
To wit: The Big Ten Council of Presidents/Chancellors appears headed toward a new vote — perhaps as soon as Sunday — on whether to have a football season. According to multiple reports, the conference could begin play as soon as Oct. 17, thanks largely to the development of daily rapid testing for COVID-19. Rapid testing largely eliminates the inherent headaches of contact tracing. That's the key.
A green light to start the season Oct. 17 probably would assuage Nebraska officials, but only to a certain extent. Remember, the Huskers wanted to be playing this month. NU coach Scott Frost has maintained all along his players were safe because of the aggressive manner in which his program worked to set up guidelines and protocols designed to limit the virus's threat.
https://journalstar.com/sports/huskers/sipple/steven-m-sipple-as-big-ten-mulls-re-vote-nu-fans-can-be-proud-of/article_72c32d17-b72c-52d8-ba6d-5e437602c584.amp.html