Pac-12 To Play Conference-Only Schedule in Fall

The Pac-12 CEO Group announced on Friday the sports will follow a conference-only schedule due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

The sports affected include football, men’s and women’s soccer and women’s volleyball. 

The conference will be “delaying the start of the mandatory athletic activities, 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 health and safety of our student-athletes and all those connected to Pac-12 sports continues to be our number one priority,” Pac-12 Commissioner Larry Scott said in a statement. “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.”

The conference will announce new scheduling details no later than July 31st. Players who decide to opt out of athletic activities in this academic year due to health and safety concerns over COVID-19 will still have their scholarships honored and be in good standing with their teams.