All Power 5 college football nonconference games now in jeopardy, Buster Posey opting out of MLB season, and other sports news

The Big Ten’s announcement of a conference-only schedule could mean the other Power 5 conferences will follow suit. And if that’s the case, college football will be missing some of its most exciting games this season.

Strength of schedule has become one of the biggest factors in determining a team’s ranking, and it was a key factor in LSU earning the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff last season over undefeated Ohio State and Clemson. The increased emphasis on this category has led to more Power Five teams challenging each other in nonconference games.

The Big Ten’s decision means Ohio State won’t travel to Oregon in what was largely regarded as the top nonconference battle. Penn State also won’t play Virginia Tech.

Reports have indicated the ACC and Pac-12 could be joining the Big Ten in conference-only scheduling. That leaves the SEC and Big 12, and they will more than likely hop on board if the other conferences halt nonconference games.

Here are some notable games that would be canceled if all Power Five conferences choose to play a conference-only schedule: Texas at LSU, USC vs. Alabama, Clemson at Notre Dame, Tennessee at Oklahoma, Wisconsin vs. Notre Dame, Michigan at Washington.

Each of those games could have major implications on a team’s playoff chances, and Notre Dame is notably listed twice. What happens to the Fighting Irish — one of seven FBS independents — is one of the biggest questions that need to be answered.

Another All-Star has announced he is sitting out the 2020 MLB season. This time, it was San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey.

Posey, 33, and his wife recently adopted premature-born twins. The Twins will be in NICU, so it was a risk that Posey didn’t want to take.

“From a baseball standpoint it was a tough decision, from a family standpoint and feeling like I’m making a decision to protect our children, I feel like it was relatively easy,” Posey said on a Zoom call Friday morning with media.

Posey joins Ryan Zimmerman, David Price and Nick Markakis as some of the notable players who have chosen to opt out. In all, 11 players have declined to play this season.

Posey burst onto the scene winning Rookie of the Year in 2010. Since then, he has helped lead the Giants to three World Series titles. His accolades include winning NL MVP in 2012, becoming a six-time All-Star and being known as one of the best hitting catchers of his time.

The closer it gets to football season, the chances of seeing fans in stadiums slowly decrease. While there’s still the possibility of fans coming to games, it doesn’t look like the crowds will feature large numbers.

The Jacksonville Jaguars announced TIAA Bank Field will seat just 25% of capacity this season. The stadium holds about 67,00 fans, so the Jaguars could be looking at a little more than 16,000 fans being in attendance.

The Packers recently advised season ticket-holders to prepare for home games to be played with fewer or no fans in attendance. More NFL stadiums will have decisions to make in the upcoming weeks, but it’s looking like opposing teams won’t have much problem hearing their play-calls in 2020.