University of Nebraska President Ted Carter and Chancellor Ronnie Green released statements on Thursday morning reaffirming the university’s commitment to the Big Ten Conference, quickly quieting a building tension over the institution’s future in the league that stretches 14 schools strong from Lincoln eastward to Rutgers University in New Jersey.
Anger was evident among some factions of the Cornhuskers athletic department, in addition to the devoted statewide fanbase for the university’s fabled football program, after Commissioner Kevin Warren announced a postponement of sports in the Big Ten through January 1, 2021, with the hope of playing football in the spring 2021 semester.
After Nebraska coach Scott Frost continued to indicate that his program would look for playing opportunities outside of the conference footprint, Warren sternly warned that the Cornhuskers could not do that and remain a Big Ten member. NU Athletic Director Bill Moos, on the Husker Sports Network Thursday night, said “We like the Big Ten! We’re going to complete in the Big Ten and be successful in the Big Ten. That was a decision made 10 years ago, the decision stands, and our future plans are to compete and be successful in all of our sports programs in this new conference.” The earlier statement from Carter and Green was more to the point, saying “the University of Nebraska-Lincoln is a fully committed member of the Big Ten Conference. It is an unparalleled athletic and academic alliance”.
With the weekend approaching, the Big Ten and the Pac-12 are the Power 5 conferences to bow out of the upcoming football season, with the Big 12, ACC, and SEC still in, although all three conferences are believed to be in a waiting game, seeing where the pandemic goes through late August and into September, with the season scheduled to open on Saturday, September 26th.
