Frost: Nebraska Football Will Play in Fall Even if Big Ten Season if Cancelled

Aug. 10, 2020, 4:02 p.m. ·

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Coach Frost said the players can opt-out of playing if they feel unsafe taking part.

Nebraska Football Head Coach Scott Frost says the team plans to safely move forward and play football this fall —even if the Big Ten Conference decides to cancel the season.

In a news conference Monday afternoon, Coach Frost said Husker players and coaches want to play football this fall.

Frost said with player safety and wellbeing in mind, the players have the choice to opt-out of playing without penalty. He said the athletes have more access to medical care such as testing and cardiac scans, academic resources, and more structure than they would if they were sent home.

Frost said if the Big Ten Conference decides to cancel the season, Nebraska will seek out other options to provide athletes with the opportunity to play.

“The virus is here either way, and I would contend that our players are safer here doing what they love to do and being monitored and screened constantly than they would be if we sent them home,” Frost said.

Frost said he would be the “first to pull the plug” on football if he thinks the players are at risk. Husker quarterback Adrian Martinez said he and the players have confidence in the athletic staff to keep them safe and will do whatever they can to play.

“I know for a fact that Nebraska has taken care of us here, and our coaches, our players, this locker room—we want to play. And we’ll do whatever we can to find a way to play,” Martinez said.

Another player, Dicaprio Bootle, said he feels safe, and wants to play as long as it is safe to do so.

"We feel like our staff, our coaches, have done a great job in making sure we've been taken care of this whole time," Bootle said.

Frost said player safety is always the top priority for the program.

He added not playing football this fall could cost the UNL athletic program between $80 and $120 million dollars, and the economic impact on the city of Lincoln and state could be much more.