Big Ten parents released an open letter to commissioner Kevin Warren Wednesday morning. Credit: Courtesy of Lantern File Photos

They may not be united during the season, but the parents of Big Ten football players have joined the same team during the offseason. 

The parents of Big Ten players wrote a letter, formulated from 11 of the 14 Big Ten parent organizations and addressed to Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren, which cited a lack of confidence among Big Ten parents with the conference’s handling of the season’s cancelation and called for increased transparency, an open forum for parents to correspond with the conference and a plan of action from the conference’s Return to Competition Task Force. The Football Parent Association at Ohio State was among the 11 organizations to make up Big Ten Parents United. 

“This correspondence is intended to convey the total lack of confidence in the Big Ten Conference’s leadership, specifically the lack of planning, collaboration and/or communication,” the letter said. 

For increased transparency, the first demand from the group was for recordings and documentation of meetings concerning the cancelation of the Big Ten season to be released. 

The group also called for a Parent Organization Forum that would allow parents to converse with Warren about the decision process and the future. 

The letter also questioned how the Big Ten’s Return to Competition Task Force would plan for the return of the season, including what the parents’ role will be in the decision to return as well as how transparent the Big Ten will be with student-athletes and their families. They also asked what criteria the task force will use to decide if there will be a season this spring and when meetings between the task force and Warren will take place. 

The letter closed with a final purpose — one that has been the driving force for many parents since the postponement decision. 

“Our intention, at this point, is to provide a pathway forward to a successful 2020 Big Ten football season” the letter said.

The Football Parent Association at Ohio State will be holding a protest at Ohio Stadium Saturday to protest the Big Ten’s handling of the cancelation.