ATHENS – Minds rode to the concept of a spring season as the collegiate football story rode forward after the Big Ten and Pac-12 completed their fall athletics programs.
The SEC and ACC have made their intentions to move forward to an autumn football season clear, while the Big 12 is thought to be on the brink.
SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey issued the following statement on Tuesday after the Big Ten and Pac-12 made their decisions official.
“I look forward to learning more about the factors that made the leadership of the Big Ten and Pac-12 today. I remain comfortable with the in-depth and conscious approach as the SEC and our 14 members take to support a healthy environment for student-athletes.
“We will continue to improve our policies and protocols for a safe return to sport, as we monitor developments around COVID-19 in an ongoing effort to support, give up and nurture our student-athletes every day. “
RELATED: Greg Sankey more insight into SEC direction
Could a fall college season football still happen with three of the five Power 5 conferences and three of the 5 Group of Five Conferences still standing?
Time will tell, just as spring football cannot be completely ruled out despite the obvious challenges it would present.
Former Florida and Ohio State national championship coach Urban Meyer said “No chance,” when asked about the possibility of a spring football season.
“You can’t ask student-athletes to play two seasons in one calendar year.”
SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said spring football was not a priority when asked about it in a July 15 Sirius XM interview, but kept the door so wide open.
“If circumstances dictate, I will not take that completely off the table, but it is certainly not on the list of priorities at this point,” Sankey said.
“But I do not think we have the luxury of seeing what has happened in our environment, in our culture, to simply say ‘No’ to some options.”
Sankey followed that up, ‘I want to be abundantly clear because I know what’s going on on social media. It’s on the list, ‘Yep, has always been. ‘Is it a priority on that list? ‘No, I think we have other priorities before we get there.’ ”
Are we still there?
The biggest challenge is apparently that several of the current eligible NFL draft players would surely make the choice with the 2021 NFL Draft scheduled for April 29 through May 1.
Sankey made it clear that he would not blame her, and that is probably why Meyer was so quick to reject the concept.
“That would be a tough comparison to jumping football with players at high levels,” Sankey said. “That they should all make a decision.”
Sankey used former Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa as an example to illustrate why top-level players are likely to miss out.
“His injury was the second week of November, and yet he can have tremendous medical support, surgery with world leaders, rehab,” Sankey said. “You see him at the Citrus Bowl in January and he’s the fifth choice in the draft.”
The potential for injury would undoubtedly lead to players with NFL wire characters rejecting them and starting preparations for their professional futures.
College football crisis coverage
Pac-12 cancels fall season, ‘college sports can not exist in bubble’
What Big Ten fall cancellation could mean for SEC
Big Ten publishes official statement on cancellation of fallsport
Jim Harbaugh, Ryan Day, James Franklin, Scott Frost push back
Justin Fields among Big Ten players leading movement
RELATED: What college football players want to say about the season
