Just days away from the first Big Ten meeting between member schools with Illinois hosting Nebraska on Saturday, the conference announced its forfeiture policy for the 2021-2022 athletic year. With COVID-19 continuing to disrupt normal life around the world, the Big Ten announced how it will handle potential issues with teams being impacted and unable to play any games during the season.
Here is the full statement issued by the Big Ten on Monday:
“In collaboration and communication with the Big Ten Conference Athletic Directors, Chancellors and Presidents, the Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases, and the Sports Medicine Committee – effective today – the conference has determined that if one of its member institutions is unable to play a conference contest due to COVID-19, that contest shall be declared a forfeit and will not be rescheduled.