Like most conferences and leagues that have expressed interest in providing its student-athletes with some competition this upcoming school year, the Hockey East admitted they will confront more challenges as they inch closer to a new season. And as expected, the league – again, like others – plans to put health and safety first, along with physical and mental health, too.
More will be added to this blog post as the day progresses, so please stay tuned!
Friday’s highly anticipated meeting between the NCAA Board of Governors ended without a bang.
As of now – today, Saturday, July 25, 2020, to be exact – it appears as if the fall sports championships are still going to happen, but perhaps that decision could change in a few weeks when the board reconvenes for its next meeting on Tuesday, August 4. The NCAA – as many remember – did cancel winter and spring championships in March when states began implementing stay-at-home orders due to the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.
Friday’s decision does provide hope for those seeking to see some college football games played this year. But as many know, many programs and campuses across the country have had to pause workouts due to an uptick in coronavirus cases.
NCAA President Mark Emmert released a statement to the media following yesterday’s meeting, acknowledging that the “health and well-being of college athletes is the highest priority in deciding whether to proceed with our 22 NCAA championships beginning in late November.”
Last month, Mark Emmert expressed concern about the upcoming college sports season on a podcast, but did note the 2020-21 school year is “going to be different.”
The list of conferences and schools deciding to forgo the upcoming fall sports season due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic added a few more names to the list with this morning’s announcement from the Patriot League.
According to this morning’s release, the Patriot League’s Council of Presidents has decided its best for its member to not “engage” in any competition this fall, which includes both championship and non-championship contests. A decision on winter and spring sports will be made later this year.
The league will permit its members to hold workouts – conditioning and strength training – and practices, but they must adhere to the health and safety requirements for each sport.
Today’s announcement does, however, exclude two of the league’s members – the United States Military Academy and United States Naval Academy – which will be allowed to make its own decisions on their respective sports seasons.
The Patriot League – like most conferences – will explore options to provide its student-athletes that won’t be competing this fall with some opportunities to possibly play in the spring. And that means we could see a small, but limited football season.
A decision about winter and spring sports will be made at a later date, according to today’s press release.
While no games will be played this fall, the Ivy League will permit “practice and other athletic training opportunities” for those student-athletes who are on campus. The league will also provide its members with guidelines to help its coaches and student-athletes with conditioning and practice plans.
According to Heather Dinich of ESPN.com, the Ivy League’s decision to cancel its fall sports season was due to the various “COVID-19 policies” each school had put in place two weeks earlier for their upcoming school year.
How will today’s announcement impact the rest of the college sports landscape? The answer: we should know more in the coming days and weeks.
As of now, it appears some college football, as well as fall sports, will occur later this year, but it’s likely we will see more schools and conferences follow the Ivy League like they did earlier this year after the conference canceled its basketball tournaments at Harvard University in March. The Ivy League also canceled its spring sports season.
An announcement on if and when an Ivy League football season will occur either this fall or possibly next spring will be made next Wednesday, July 8, according to the league’s website.
The Ivy League posted a statement about its upcoming fall sports announcement earlier today, as well as shared the news on Twitter.
In addition to football, other fall sports that the Ancient Eight sponsors, including soccer, field hockey, and volleyball, will also find out if and when their respective seasons will take place, too.
The Ivy League, specifically its eight football programs, have been in the news this week following a Sunday report from TMG Sports that the upcoming season could be shrunk from 10 games to seven contests or possibly moved to next spring. Sunday’s report sparked additional reporting from ESPN’s Heather Dinich, who learned that the Ivy League’s “Council of Presidents has been meeting frequently via videoconference this spring” to discuss the upcoming fall sports season.
Just a short time ago, the New York Post reported that one of their sources believes it would be hard to see the Ivy League play any sports this fall due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The Ivy League was the first conference to cancel its basketball tournaments in March
The eight Ivy League football teams don’t compete for spots in the College Football Playoffs or bowl berths nor hold summer workouts for its student-athletes.
Dartmouth College and Yale University shared the Ivy League crown last fall by finishing their respective seasons with identical 9-1 overall marks, including 6-1 records against league opponents.
By Matt Noonan
