The first conference to act in March, the Ivy League made another big move this week, canceling all fall sports. No events will be held until January.
In what could become a pivotal moment in college football history, Jon Rothstein reports the Ivy League will announce the cancel their football season and all fall sports. Additionally, the conference “will not entertain any sports being played until after January 1st.”
In a typical sports calendar, the decisions of a smaller FCS conference might not be national news. The past four months have been anything but typical.
Think back to the morning of March 10. COVID-19 was only beginning to take its place as a ubiquitous facet of the world we know. That’s when the Ivy League canceled its conference basketball tournament. For nearly two days, the public outrage was palpable. But quickly the “overreaction” proved more of a premonition than a knee-jerk decision.
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The NBA shut down less than 36 hours from the Ivy League’s statement to cancel their basketball tournament. The Ivies were again first to cancel their spring sports calendar. An outcry followed, but soon enough ever college governing body had followed suit.
On Wednesday, the Ivies announced a decision that could have far greater ramifications. The Ivy League’s decision to not play football this fall will give other conference justification to follow suit. Don’t be shocked to see other FCS conferences follow suit. The domino effect might not stop there. FBS teams have already seen games canceled.
Per Dana O’Neil, there is a possibility the affected fall sports could be played in the spring. To that end, workouts and fall team activities could be left up to the discretion of individual schools, per Nicole Auerbach.
Everyone wants to play college football this fall, but the proverbial timeline to pull the ripcord is fast approaching. Mandatory workouts begin soon and most universities haven’t announced final decisions as to when (or if) the rest of their student body can return to school. Buckle up. The next few weeks could be bumpy.
