Kansas football head coach Les Miles reacts to new Big 12 format

Kansas football head coach Les Miles and athletic director Jeff Long have released statements regarding the Big 12’s schedule format change.

Nothing has been easy during this offseason, considering things have been changing at what seems like the speed of light. In the latest news, Kansas football along with the rest of the Big 12 will be transitioning to a new schedule format for the 2020 season, similar to the one the ACC adopted.

The schedule is in a “9+1” format, which means that each Big 12 school will play nine conference games and one non-con game, with the non-con game in the Big 12 school’s home stadium. The Jayhawks are definitely going to be impacted by these rules, especially head coach Les Miles who echoed the uncertainty of the situation in his statement regarding the schedule change:

"“While this has been a difficult time for our football team not knowing what the schedule will be and when we’ll be able to play, we are pleased to move forward with the 9+1 format. We are fortunate to have Jeff Long, who knows the college football system as well as anyone in the country, on our side as these decisions were made. As has been the case since the pandemic began, our football team will continue to work through the ever-changing environment and line-up and play football when allowed.” via KU Athletics"

Despite the challenges posed by COVID-19 and the constantly changing college football landscape, Les Miles does sound hopeful for a 2020 season. There really isn’t a whole lot he or his team can do other than prepare like there are 100 percent going to play this Fall, but the reality is that at any moment the season could be totally canceled.

As a matter of fact, UCONN was the first FBS level school to cancel their season earlier this morning. Of course, the Huskies are an independent, but this is a significant milestone for this college football offseason. This could potentially open the floodgates for other smaller schools to do the same, which would make it tough for the Power Five teams to require their players to play.

With any luck, UCONN will be one of the only schools to suspend their program, but there’s no telling how this could impact other teams. At the very least, the Jayhawks sound like they’re going to be preparing to play this season until they either can’t play or take the field according to Les Miles.