SAN FRANCISCO, July 12, 2020 (Gephardt Daily) — The Pac-12 CEO Group has announced that the fall season for several Pac-12 sports, including football, men’s and women’s soccer and women’s volleyball, will schedule conference-only games.
A news release from the Pac-12 Group said that in addition, the start of mandatory athletic activities will be delayed “until a series of health and safety indicators, which have recently trended in a negative direction, provided sufficient positive data to enable a move to a second phase of return-to-play activities.”
The decision is effective immediately across all Pac-12 member universities.
“The health and safety of our student-athletes and all those connected to Pac-12 sports continues to be our number one priority,” said Pac-12 Commissioner Larry Scott. “Our decisions have and will be guided by science and data, and based upon the trends and indicators over the past days, it has become clear that we need to provide ourselves with maximum flexibility to schedule, and to delay any movement to the next phase of return-to-play activities.”
Pac-12 CEO Group Chair and President of the University of Oregon Michael Schill, added: “Competitive sports are an integral part of the educational experience for our student-athletes, and we will do everything that we can to support them in achieving their dreams while at the same time ensuring that their health and safety is at the forefront.”
Pac-12 student-athletes who choose not to participate in intercollegiate athletics during the coming academic year because of safety concerns about COVID-19 will continue to have their scholarships honored by their university and will remain in good standing with their team, the news release said.
Details on conference-only schedules will be announced no later than July 31.
The Conference comprises 12 leading U.S. universities; the University of Arizona, Arizona State University, the University of California, Berkeley, the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), the University of Colorado, the University of Oregon, Oregon State University, Stanford University, the University of Southern California, the University of Utah, the University of Washington and Washington State University.
