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Today (Wednesday) is 17 days until Kansas football. That number is still 17 days, however, conference play won’t begin for 45 days, as the Big 12 has announced a new conference schedule.
KU’s official schedule no longer lists Southern Illinois, showing just the nine conference games listed by the Big 12 earlier today. Jeff Long is on record as saying that Kansas will play a nonconference game on Sept 12, and confirmed that it won’t be Southern Illinois. Per Big 12 mandate, any opponent would have to come to Lawrence for the game. (‘Sup, Nebraska.)
Kansas has the same home/away opponents as originally scheduled, just in a different order now. Like every other Big 12 school, the new schedule has three built-in bye weeks. The revised schedule:
9/12 TBA
9/19 Bye
9/26 @ Baylor
10/3 vs OSU
10/10 Bye
10/17 @ WVU
10/24 @ KSU
10/31 vs ISU
11/7 @ OU
11/14 Bye
11/21 vs UT
11/28 vs TCU
12/5 @ TTU
In related news, AD Jeff Long expects expects fans in attendance at Memorial Stadium, but is quoted by the LJW as saying capacity will be at 50% or less. The University apparently has yet to have anything approved by Douglas County health officials.
Obviously, this could all change at any point prior to Sept 12 or even Sept 26. Consider: The Big 10 released a revised schedule six days prior to cancelling the season. Something changed, and changed quickly, for those institutions in a span of just six days.
Bob Bowlsby had comments this morning along the lines of having “clarity” but not “certainty” following their most recent meetings. No doubt things will get more muddled as the weather cools and the politics heat up.