Big Ten Football Returns This Weekend — How to Watch and What to Know
Scott Taetsch/Getty Penn State Football in November 2019
The Big Ten Conference is back!
The league will kick off its college football season this weekend, over a month after the council voted unanimously to reverse its decision to cancel the season amid the coronavirus pandemic.
For the upcoming season, the league is playing an eight-game conference-only schedule followed by Champions Week, which kicks off on Dec. 19 and will feature each school from each division matched with the school that finished with the same standing in the opposite conference.
Here's everything to expect from week one of the Big Ten Conference 2020 season.
Who's playing?
The University of Illinois and the University of Wisconsin will face off on Friday at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin. Kick-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. CST.
On Saturday, an additional seven games will be played, including:
Rutgers University at Michigan State University, 12 p.m. EST on Big Ten Network
University of Nebraska at Ohio State University, 12 p.m. EST on Fox
Penn State University at Indiana University, 3:30 p.m. EST on FS1
University of Iowa at Purdue University, 3:30 p.m. EST on Big Ten Network
University of Michigan at University of Minnesota, 7:30 p.m. EST on ABC
University of Maryland at Northwestern University, 7:30 p.m. EST on Big Ten Network
RELATED: Big Ten Conference Votes to Move Forward with Football Season Weeks After Canceling Fall Sports
The Big Ten Conference announced today the schedule for the 2020 football season, including an eight-game Conference-only schedule starting the weekend of October 24 plus a ninth game for all 14 teams during a newly created Big Ten Champions Week the weekend of December 19. pic.twitter.com/jaDXMhh2C8
— Big Ten Conference (@bigten) September 19, 2020
How can I watch?
Friday's season opener between Indiana and Wisconsin will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network.
On Saturday, games can be watched on Big Ten Network, Fox, ABC and FS1.
Several streaming services — including Hulu with Live TV, YouTube TV, DirecTV Now, and Fubo TV — will have games available for live streaming with a subscription.
RELATED: NBA May Start New Season as Soon as January After Delayed 2020 Finish
Emilee Chinn/Getty Images Rutgers football
How is the Big Ten handling COVID-19?
With coronavirus still spreading rapidly across the country, the Big Ten Conference has taken various precautions to keep players and staff safe throughout the season.
When announcing that the season was back on last month, the league said they've "adopted significant medical protocols including daily antigen testing, enhanced cardiac screening and an enhanced data-driven approach when making decisions about practice/competition."
The league also said that daily testing on players would begin by Sept. 30, and the soonest an athlete can play is 21 days after a positive COVID-19 diagnosis.
According to Sports Illustrated, the Big Ten Conference is not letting any fans attend the games this season, with the exception of family members of players and staff.
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