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Half of Big Ten Football Schools Are in Current Virus Hot Spots

Half of Big Ten Football Schools Are in Current Virus Hot Spots

Half of Big Ten universities are located in areas where Covid-19 infection rates are currently classified as “uncontrolled,” according to data compiled by Scott Jedlicka, an assistant professor of sport management at Washington State University.

The 14-member conference announced on Wednesday that it would begin its football season in October, citing the newly acquired capability to perform daily antigen tests on its athletes.

“What’s interesting about the Big Ten’s decision and resumption protocols is that community spread does not seem to factor into the equation much at all, even though it has previously been cited by the conference as a major obstacle,” said Jedlicka in an email. “There is a much narrower focus on testing athletes frequently, and establishing cessation thresholds based on that testing.”

In an Aug. 19 open letter from Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren announcing the original decision to postpone fall sports, transmission rates on campuses and in surrounding communities were cited as a deciding factor.

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“Transmission rates continue to rise at an alarming rate with little indication from medical experts that our campuses, communities or country could gain control of the spread of the virus prior to the start of competition,” Warren said in the letter.

The Big Ten didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment on its reversal. The move came after pressure from, among others, President Donald Trump, who tweeted on Sept. 1 that he’d spoken with Warren.

State College, Pennsylvania, home of Penn State University, currently has the highest rate of infection in the conference with a seven-day average of 56 new cases per 100,000 people.

Half of Big Ten Football Schools Are in Current Virus Hot Spots

Jedlicka has created a website to track virus transmission rates in the communities where colleges are located. He classifies the level of infection based on guidance provided in an Aug. 10 Pac-12 conference report. His data show infection rates for the communities in which each school is located, not the rate of infection on each campus.

“In the Big Ten’s case, the lack of regard for community risk levels as a relevant factor in deciding to resume football is concerning, because many Big Ten locales are experiencing uncontrolled spread of Covid-19,” said Jedlicka.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.