After several false starts, the Big Ten officially announced Wednesday morning that fall football is back on.

The season is set to begin the weekend of Oct. 24 with teams set to play an eight game schedule in eight weeks followed by a championship weekend Dec. 19.

The championship weekend will see the top teams from the East and West divisions match up in the traditional conference championship game. In a new twist, however, the remaining 12 teams will also play during championship weekend, with the No. 2 team in each division matching up, the No. 3 team in each division and so on all the way down to the final two teams in the league.

The saga of getting to this point is one that included player lawsuits, parent protests, a meeting with Donald Trump and a university president accidentally leaking the news while chatting in front of a hot mic.

Big Ten presidents and chancellors initially voted 11-3 to postpone all fall sports back on August 11, with the thought being that football could possibly return sometime in the new year.

One of the key reasons for the postponement was the belief that those who contracted COVID-19 were suffering from a heart condition known as myocarditis.

So what changed in the past month to make league leaders feel more comfortable about moving forward with a fall season?

The league is set to adopt significant medical protocols including daily antigen testing, enhanced cardiac screening and an enhanced data-driven approach when making decisions about practice/competition.

The Big Ten Council of Presidents and Chancellors (COP/C) voted unanimously to resume the football season starting the weekend of October 23-24, 2020. The decision was based on information presented by the Big Ten Return to Competition Task Force, a working group that was established by the COP/C and Commissioner Kevin Warren to ensure a collaborative and transparent process.

“From the onset of the pandemic, our highest priority has been the health and the safety of our students. The new medical protocols and standards put into place by the Big Ten Return To Competition Task Force were pivotal in the decision to move forward with sports in the conference,” said Morton Schapiro, Chair of the Big Ten Council of Presidents/Chancellors and Northwestern University President, and Chair of the Return to Competition Task Force Steering Committee. “We appreciate the conference’s dedication to developing the necessary safety procedures for our students and the communities that embrace them.”

Over the past couple of weeks there had been rumors among some media that perhaps Maryland would opt out even if the Big Ten returned to play. But that rumor was squashed late Tuesday with a unanimous vote by the COP/C.

"I’m so happy for our players," Maryland head coach Mike Locksley tweeted out Wednesday morning on the return of Terps football . "They’ve been through a lot and stayed laser focused and committed on doing things the right way to earn the chance to compete on Saturday’s this fall."

As for crowds in the stands, the league has stated that it will not permit fans and there will be no public sale of tickets. The league is currently looking into how it can accommodate player families at games.