Big 12 football kicks off season

By Noah Parker

Published Sep 18, 2020

In this Oct. 13, 2012, file photo, Baylor’s Matt Ritchey (45) stands on the field by a Big 12 Conference logo during an NCAA college football game against TCU in Waco, Texas. Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby feels good about where the league is with nine teams getting ready to play season openers this week. But the game not being played provides a stark reminder of the uncertainty of playing amid COVID-19. TCU won’t be on the field because of a virus outbreak on its campus. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

The Big 12 kicked off their first football games of the season Saturday along with the Atlantic Coast conference.

The two conferences’ return came amid widespread offseason deliberation and speculation as to whether there would even be a college football season.

Seven out of the Big 12’s ten teams played their first game of the season last weekend. Every team except Kansas allowed fans into their stadiums in a limited and socially distanced capacity

The Texas Longhorns and Oklahoma Sooners were among the six teams who had fans in attendance for their respective wins against the University of Texas-El Paso and Missouri State University.

Around 15,000 fans showed up in the DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium to see the Longhorns play, while Oklahoma announced a sellout crowd of 22,700.

Both schools capped fan attendance at 25%. Fans at both games were spread out in pods throughout the stadium and were required to wear masks. Students in attendance in Austin were required to test negative for COVID-19 before entering the stadium.

Texas head coach Tom Herman said after the game it really did feel like a real game despite the small, limited attendance.

“We had smoke; we had fans; we were cheering; we had music, the whole nine,” Herman said. “At the end of the day, the only thing different about this game was that coaches are wearing masks, and there weren’t a whole lot of people in the stands.”

TCU and SMU postponed what would have been their 100th meeting on Sept. 11 in Amon G. Carter Stadium, where the Frogs were set to make their home debut.

TCU’s first game is now scheduled to take place at home Sept. 26 against Iowa State, with an attendance cap at 12,000 fans, including 3,000 students. Information about ticketing and policies for attending the game are available at gofrogs.com.