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The Big Ten has the initial blueprint for conferences to share:
Scheduling within conferences will take some time, but it's not difficult. In fact, the exercise will provide conference offices opportunities to set up dream matchups in the conference we would not have otherwise seen in 2020.
When is the cut-off date for a season in the coronavirus era? A six-game schedule would require the season to begin in late October. There are nine Saturdays combined in October and November, meaning Oct. 24 or Oct. 31 are the latest Saturdays in which a fall season could begin.
What we might also see is a spread of games across the week, with games spread across Tuesday through Saturday. This allows conferences to work with TV networks to provide as many live events possible without much overlapping. This will allow for bigger ratings, more ad revenue and, again, more flexibility in scheduling. Plus, the idea of playing weeknight games is easier if you're not expecting fans in the stands. Games could conceivably move from a Tuesday to Thursday night should a big Thursday night game be canceled one week before kickoff. Again, this might be difficult, but it's doable — and perhaps even a necessity to squeeze as much money out of the games to keep some athletic departments afloat.
- A 10-game schedule with no bye weeks. This allows for games to be rescheduled if dates are postponed due to COVID-19 outbreaks.
- Divisional games in the first half of the schedule. A 10-game schedule shortened to six games provides an undisputed divisional champion if the season is cut short (and it also provides an opportunity for the season to be completed in the spring if six games are completely played in the fall). An undisputed divisional champion is of course important for conference championship purposes, which are a massive cash cow.
- Cross-divisional games in the back half of the schedule. Some rivalry games are played across divisional lines, but those must wait until the second half of the season to make sure there teams are more likely to at least push through a six-game schedule against divisional opponents.
- Flex dates. The conferences have at least 13 dates to play a maximum of 10 games. That number of available dates could be extended to 14 if the College Football Playoff and its FBS members agree to shortened prep work if conference championship games set for the first week of December are delayed one week. Playoff director Bill Hancock has said previously he believes such a decision can be made and done so without hesitation if the need arises.
Scheduling within conferences will take some time, but it's not difficult. In fact, the exercise will provide conference offices opportunities to set up dream matchups in the conference we would not have otherwise seen in 2020.
When is the cut-off date for a season in the coronavirus era? A six-game schedule would require the season to begin in late October. There are nine Saturdays combined in October and November, meaning Oct. 24 or Oct. 31 are the latest Saturdays in which a fall season could begin.
What we might also see is a spread of games across the week, with games spread across Tuesday through Saturday. This allows conferences to work with TV networks to provide as many live events possible without much overlapping. This will allow for bigger ratings, more ad revenue and, again, more flexibility in scheduling. Plus, the idea of playing weeknight games is easier if you're not expecting fans in the stands. Games could conceivably move from a Tuesday to Thursday night should a big Thursday night game be canceled one week before kickoff. Again, this might be difficult, but it's doable — and perhaps even a necessity to squeeze as much money out of the games to keep some athletic departments afloat.
