Big Ten football could start "immediately" — if the president of the United States has anything to say about it.
President Donald Trump tweeted Tuesday about having a "very productive" conversation with Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren on the topic of starting the Big Ten football season, which the conference later confirmed in a statement.
"Would be good [great!] for everyone — Players, Fans, Country. On the one yard line!" Trump wrote.
Trump added some details later before departing for an appearance in the Midwest, the location of several potential swing states for November's presidential election.
"Let's see what happens. [Warren's] a great guy. It's a great conference. Tremendous teams. And we're pushing very hard," Trump said, per a White House press office transcript. "I think the biggest headwind we have is that you have Democrats that don't want to see it happen. But I think they want to play, and the fans want to see it, and the players have a lot at stake, including possibly playing in the NFL. You have a lot of great players in that conference."
The Big Ten postponed its fall sports Aug. 11, citing health and safety concerns of playing during the coronavirus pandemic. Several member schools, coaches, athletes and parents have since pushed back on that decision, demanding a reversal or at least more transparent communication on how that decision came to be.
As it stands now, though, the conference isn't planning to play until winter 2021, though a plan to start around Thanksgiving also is being considered.
Many athletics departments still are struggling with coronavirus outbreaks. For example, Iowa recently paused all of its sports until after Labor Day, reporting 93 positive cases out of 815 tests given through last week. Since Iowa began reporting results May 29, the department has administered more than 2,700 tests, with 176 coming back positive.
