Ryan Day gives emphatic plea that Ohio State wants to play

Despite the Big Ten’s plans, Ryan Day is fighting for his players

This morning, the Big Ten reportedly became the first Power-5 conference to opt out of the fall college football season due to fear of long-term effects of COVID-19, and the potential liability involved in allowing players to take the field during a pandemic. Such concerns are valid, and should not be taken lightly. By signing on for a 2020 season without some sort of written agreement from a players’ association — another cause the NCAA and University Presidents are not fond of — the Big Ten and other major conferences are between a rock and a hard place.

College football’s finest have been pleading with leadership to let them play, one way or another. Despite the Big Ten’s insistence that a fall season will not go on as planned, Ryan Day has decided to listen to his players.

Ryan Day wants to play a season if players are willing to take the risk

Day’s call to action is buoyed by two of his best and most outspoken players — Justin Fields and Master Teague III — both stating emphatically that they’d rather play the 2020 season than return to their respective homes and risk contracting the virus there. The statement both players posted on their personal Twitter feeds not only makes their plans clear, but also pitches a college football players’ association or leadership council, which has been an idea floated for years by media and pundits alike, only to be stomped out by the NCAA and those who line their pockets thanks to the hard work of unpaid student-athletes.

At this point, however, a union is only the background to the players’ true cause, which is to find some way to get on the field in 2020. Whether that be against Big Ten competition in the ‘Shoe or by other means, everything appears to be on the table. Day is using his voice to exhaust their options, for now.

For more NCAA football news, analysis, opinion and unique coverage by FanSided, including Heisman Trophy and College Football Playoff rankings, be sure to bookmark these pages.