Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren joined Scott Van Pelt on SportsCenter on Saturday night to discuss both the racial injustice surrounding the death of George Floyd and the COVID-19 pandemic altering plans for the college football season to begin in the fall.
“We were put on this Earth to do what is right,” Warren said. “I just think this is a constant reminder that even above sports, this is about life, and about a man who should not have lost his life.”
Warren is referring to Floyd, the 46-year-old African-American man who lost his life on May 25 when he was pinned to the ground with former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin’s knee pressed against his neck.
Yesterday, medical examiners determined that Floyd’s death was ruled a homicide, but the cause of how he died has been debated. The autopsy ruled that Floyd passed away from “asphyxiation from sustained pressure” to his neck and back areas that prevented adequate blood circulation to reach his brain.
“When he said ‘I can't breathe,’ unfortunately, many police are under [the] impression that if you can talk that means you're breathing. That is not true,” Dr. Michael Baden said on Monday when the results conducted of the independent autopsy were revealed. Baden was one of the medical examiners that analyzed Floyd’s cause of death.
Warren, who was selected as the first African-American to be named Big Ten Commissioner on June 4 of last year, created the Anti-Hate and Anti-Racism Coalition for the conference in an open letter released on Monday. Warren and his wife, Greta, are donating $100,000 from the Warren Family Foundation in an effort to deter hate, racism, and issues regarding voter registration. The details of the letter can be viewed here.
“I would really just challenge everyone in America. For us to use this as an opportunity, to recognize that we have a lot of work to do,” Warren said. “What we need to do now is come together and do everything we can possibly do to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”
Another underlying problem that has taken a backseat over the last week to the news surrounding racial injustice and police brutality is that of the COVID-19 pandemic and the return of college athletics in the fall.
“We will always put the health, safety, and wellness of our student-athletes at the center of our decisions. We’re in a perpetual state of evaluating how many students will come back to campus in the fall,” Warren said. “What do we do with fall sports? Are the stadiums full or are they empty? I think that’s part of the process of making the best decision.”
Warren and other Big Ten officials have been working around the clock to get sports such as college football back to action in the fall.
“We’re literally spending every waking hour working through all of these issues— the academic issues, the health and wellness issues, the health and safety of our student-athletes, coaches, fans, referees, the financial issues. We understand the importance college athletics has to society,” Warren said. “But one of the things we have to do is make sure we take this time to gather all of the information, so when we do make a decision, it’s something we know that we have done the best job we possibly can.
While there are many questions on how college athletics can make a return in a safe manner, Warren did provide some hope that a way to have sports be played in the fall is possible.
“I’m optimistically positive, and I’m excited about these next 30-60 days to see how we can come together and do what is right for not only college sports, but also our student-athletes and all the people in America.”
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