How The Failings Of Big Ten Football Can Teach A Lesson In Leadership
“If you ain’t first, you’re last.” That gem of a quote from fictitious racecar driver Ricky Bobby was a classic moment from the movie, Talladega Nights. Although grammatically incorrect, it is a snapshot of the competitive mindset that drives many in the sports and business world. It’s why there are rarely any commemorative t-shirts distributed to the runners-up. It’s why we never give a premium parking space to an “Almost Employee of the Month” and tend to quickly forget about the team that loses the championship finals regardless of their successful journey to get there. It’s also why, in leadership, being the first to make a major decision is a big deal. Back on March 11th, we saw it live when Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren became the first of the NCAA’s Power Five conference decision-makers to cancel all sports activity—including the revenue-generating men’s and women’s basketball tournaments.
Shortly after Warren’s announcement, commissioners from the ACC, SEC, Big 12 and PAC-12 took similar stances, becoming a footnote in a major reaction to an unprecedented global health crisis. As the coronavirus pandemic continued to topple dominoes throughout collegiate and professional sports, Warren’s leadership was commended for being decisive, proactive and intuitive.
And why not? The Big Ten made the announcement along with a statement declaring that its main priority was “the health, safety and wellness” of student-athletes and that it would continue to monitor all relevant information on COVID-19. Who couldn’t stand up and cheer?
Move the calendar ahead six months and Warren last week faced one of the hardest things to do in a position of leadership: Admit when a choice you’ve made was no longer a good one. You see last month the Big Ten was first, again—making the swift decision to cancel the college football season for all of its member institutions. But this time the kudos were muted by an outcry of complaints and objections from players and fans who’d become less fearful of the virus and more agitated with the new normal of canceled events, mask-wearing, and social distancing. As media members, star athletes, football coaches and athletic directors reacted to what was perceived, this time, as a rushed decision, other Power Five conferences soldiered onward to a modified season decorated with COVID testing and safety protocols.
Sure, a handful of scheduled games have been postponed due to responsible quarantine procedures in place at respective schools, but an exponentially higher number of games have kicked off without issue. Nationally televised broadcasts have generated revenue for participating conferences. The ability to open up home games to restricted capacity crowds have even driven dollar signs to respective universities…and the Big Ten was missing out.
And then last week Warren and his bosses at the Big Ten institutions reversed course. Now comfortable with facts they said they didn’t have had earlier, the conference said it was time to “play ball.”
The optics of that announcement for an October start with an eight-game Big Ten season led to a new round of critics. The fact that the ACC and Big 12 conferences are entering their third week of football and the powerhouse SEC prepares today for its season-opening weekend makes some wonder if the Big Ten was worried more about missing out.
In this damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don’t moment, what stands out is how poorly the Big Ten has handled communication of its thought process. When everything is moving at lightning speed and challenge surrounds you, the best know you can only succeed by OVER communicating.
That hasn’t ever been the Big Ten’s way. There’s been no transparency in what made the Big Ten and its respective university presidents vote in favor of reversing course now after being the first to cancel. The once applauded leadership has now been dinged with questions about the real motive for squeezing in what appears to be a last-minute football season. The disconnect is in taking ownership of the rush to judgment. Leaders are charged with making decisions all the time in the best interest of the business or the personnel. The ones who are able to showcase both a great business acumen and empathy for the staff are the ones highly regarded. By not discussing the over-reaction or the amount of research and science that went into change of heart, the Big Ten is yet again, missing out.
Until then, the natural interpretation is that the league rushed to be first and will now be the last to join the college football championship chase. What a difference six months makes.