Michigan State football, Ohio State practice Tuesday. But will they play Saturday?

Will Michigan State football and Ohio State play Saturday?

Some signs point toward yes, but nothing official has been announced. So what if the COVID-19 outbreak that canceled the Buckeyes’ last game against Illinois wipes out this week’s game in East Lansing?

It is not a scenario Spartans coach Mel Tucker wants to think about.

“It's a very fluid deal,” Tucker said Tuesday. “What I can say is that we are focused on preparing for Ohio State, because that's what we can control. And we don't have any information that would tell us not to do that. So that's where my focus is, and that's where our focus has gotta stay. …

“I really would rather not even get into that, because that's not where we are.”

The Spartans (2-3) are scheduled to host No. 4 Ohio State (4-0) at noon. After the Buckeyes resumed small group workouts Monday, Ohio State spokesman Jerry Emig told The Columbus Dispatch the team would resume practicing Tuesday afternoon.

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However, Emig did not say what type of workout it would be, how many players might be participating or sitting out, or if the program has been medically cleared to play, according to Big Ten protocols. Ohio State is planning to face MSU without head coach Ryan Day, who tested positive for COVID-19 last week and remains in isolation.

“We’re resuming practice and preparing for the game,” Emig said. “It is still day-by-day monitoring and evaluating, though.”

With the Northwestern-Minnesota game already called off due to the Gophers’ ongoing outbreak and Michigan continuing to assess a potential increase in cases, it begs the question: Could the Spartans play a different opponent if OSU can’t play?

ESPN’s Heather Dinich reported on Nov. 13 the Big Ten presidents previously approved a process to allow two teams without COVID issues who had their games canceled in the same week to play each other, regardless if they had played before or were scheduled to in the future. That decision would need to be made by 1 p.m. on a Wednesday, Dinich reported.

“That'd be tough, because such a big part of our game – especially on the defensive side I feel, but even offense, too – is watching the film and getting ready for an opponent,” junior safety Xavier Henderson said. “But football is football at the end of the day, and we want to play as much as we can. So shoot, if they tell us we're playing somebody else, then we'll just have to try to flip the switch. But right now, we're focusing on Ohio State.”

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Two possibilities exist for MSU should the Buckeyes not be able to play.

The obvious would be a second straight game against No. 17 Northwestern, which MSU beat 29-20 on Saturday. The other could be Maryland, which is waiting for clarity on Michigan’s availability. The Spartans’ game at Maryland on Nov. 21 was canceled due to a COVID outbreak within the Terrapins’ program.

A message with the Big Ten for clarification on the rescheduling rules was not immediately returned.

Neither Tucker nor his players wanted to even contemplate that possibility.

“That's something that I don't think anybody's really ever done before as far as I know," MSU quarterback Rocky Lombardi said. "I know we haven't done it. So it's something that's so far out of my imagination, I can't even put myself in those shoes. For me, it's just taking it one day at a time, one play at a time. I'm trying to live in the present as much as I can. And to think about that, it's just so far-fetched for me, I can't even really you can answer.”

The Buckeyes’ game at Illinois was one of two canceled last week along with Minnesota-Wisconsin.

The Big Ten has yet to reschedule any games in season since it resumed in October.

“For me, that's not part of a discussion or a question that I have," Tucker said. "That's not where I am. And whatever those rules are for the league in terms of rescheduling games and all that type of stuff, really for me, that's all hypotheticals. And for me, that's not the best use of my time and my energy. All those scenarios and the what ifs and, 'Well maybe this can happen, maybe that can happen,' right now, I mean how does that help me? How does that help my football team today on a Tuesday when we're getting ready for a Tuesday practice. It doesn't factor in, so it's just not in my focus.”

Ohio State revealed Tuesday associate head coach and defensive line assistant Larry Johnson would coach the Buckeyes in East Lansing with Day not allowed on the sideline. Ohio State needs to play six games to be eligible for the conference championship game, with the Buckeyes’ annual end-of-season rivalry game with the Wolverines scheduled for Dec. 12.

Day told reporters Friday the Buckeyes would need a full practice Thursday and a walk-through Friday to be prepared to play the Spartans. Nothing has changed from MSU’s side.

“Especially with team like Ohio State, you don't ever want to be unprepared,” Henderson said. “So we're gonna come in with the attitude we're gonna play. We're looking forward to play such a good team, so we just gotta get better each and every day.”

Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @chrissolari. Read more on the Michigan State Spartans and sign up for our Spartans newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State football, Ohio State practice. Will they play Saturday?