BYU Football’s 2020 Season Schedule Is Rapidly Changing

PROVO, Utah – BYU’s football media day is fast approaching and there are so many questions that are left unanswered. The biggest one is how the upcoming college football season will look, and that will impact the Cougars more than most teams because they aren’t affiliated with a conference.

The news is going at breakneck speed with new reports or rumors about what the upcoming season will look like. COVID-19 positive tests have caused many programs to suspend workouts and the latest stoppages came from Ohio State and North Carolina.

Plus, the Ivy League canceled all fall sports and while that might not directly impact BYU or the rest of the FBS, it could trickle up through other FCS and maybe even Group of Five teams.

The Big Ten is going with league only games and Pac-12 could be following suit.

A last resort could be playing the season in the spring, but that comes with plenty of other issues.

This has to make BYU football nervous about the upcoming season because they six teams from a Power 5 conferences on the schedule – three from the Pac-12 and two from the Big Ten in Michigan State and Minnesota. The Cougars are likely scrambling.

However, things could turn on a dime with the news by the time BYU gets to media day on July 20 or when camps open a few weeks after that. Everyone is planning for as many contingency plans as possible right now.

Will @BYUfootball play games in 2020? #BYU #GoCougs #BYUFOOTBALL https://t.co/BqlJ87X0GP

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) July 9, 2020

What Will A 2020 BYU Season Look Like?

The upcoming college season is going to get weird with the running announcement of the cancelation of games. The start of the season is getting closer and closer, and that six-week build-up to get ready is on the verge of pushing back the first games.

KSL-TV’s Dave McCann notes so many games that everyone would love to see played like Alabama and USC or Oregon vs. Ohio State, the reality is that time is running out to have these cross-country matchups happen.

“Things appear to bet getting worse. A few weeks ago we felt better because we had time and now some camps are opening this week that are opening the season in August when college football rolls out,” McCann said. “[BYU’s] media day is on July 20 and I think what they would say today and what they would say on the 20th would be two different things.”

The changes happening in conferences put BYU in a tough spot. There are places across the country where COVID-19 test results are looking great and others are the complete opposite. There is no real grip and control over the national health of the United States.

With the NCAA not really governing college football, it will come down to the conferences to make decisions about who to play.

That leaves BYU in the wind with other independents.

To play just the other independents has massive travel requirements as only New Mexico State is nearby and the rest are multiple time zones away, and Notre Dame will likely get in with the ACC to play a schedule.

If there are conference-only games across the board – BYU is in trouble. They already are losing Michigan State and Minnesota, but what if the Pac-12 does the same – that would be three more games.

42 college football games including two @BYUfootball games are affected. #BYU #GoCougs #BYUFOOTBALL #BIG10https://t.co/IgtmKfXL1g

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) July 9, 2020

“If BYU were to lose those games they would pick up three other games and play on and knowing better games are going on,” McCann said. “I would imagine they have a [contigency plan] but I don’t know and it will be talked about at media day. But again BYU might be thinking, ‘we have a plan why would we talk about it, because right now until this plan changes, this is our plan.'”

Right now the Cougars are in a tough spot and now is the time where athletics director Tom Holmoe will earn his paycheck by trying to fill out a competitive 2020 college football schedule for BYU.

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