Greg Sankey is not in the prediction business.
He is looking at facts. That said, the SEC commissioner told “The Paul Finebaum Show” on Monday that COVID-19’s upward trends are “problematic,” but he also said he feels the “responsibility to not just say we’re done.”
Plans for the upcoming college football season in relation to the schedule will not be made until the end of July.
Sankey, after a full day of meetings with the league’s athletic directors in Birmingham, plans to take as much time as possible before devising a plan.
“There are many opportunities to learn, which is the way we’ve always seen what would unfold,” Sankey told Finebaum. “You go back to April, one of the guide points for our faculty members, to take as much time as possible in your decisions because you will have better information.
“My comments over the weekend on ‘Marty and McGee’ are an indication that trends are not what we want, not what we experience a little earlier in the summer, but in the wrong direction. That’s problematic. That doesn’t mean that’s the finish line and that things won’t change. We have seen the news about COVID-19 alter in different ways for weeks.
“What we have identified is an opportunity in late July for a major registry to see what our public health reality is.”
College football scheduling has been a hot topic since last week when Big Ten became the first Power 5 conference to announce that it would play a conference-only schedule.
“We are not at that destination and several of our colleagues conferences are not at that destination, so Big Ten made its decision,” Sankey said of the exclusive format for the conference. “We have no common games with the Big Ten Conference this year, just one of the realities on our calendar. The impact of your decision is indirect.
“We had two games to play with the Pac-12, the USC-Alabama to be scheduled in Dallas and Colorado and Texas A&M, so we have had minimal direct impact on our schedule. We had a call Thursday night with Larry Scott after the Big Ten conversation. Larry gave us a more complete update on some of his circumstances and understanding of his realities within the state of California. “
Other Pac-12 problems, Sankey noted, were three Week 0 games, which affected Scott’s decision.
Still, Sankey pointed to March when the conferences made the decision to call basketball early. It is possible, he said, we are on a similar path for fall.
“I don’t know if it’s every conference for us, but obviously people made decisions,” Sankey said when asked about the Big Ten making a decision independent of the other Power 5 conferences. “… I observed what happened March was a very good indicator of what can happen when we look into the fall, which were groups of universities, conferences, that made independent decisions. Now we all end up at the same destination.
“That is a good example of what we were able to see this summer. Here is what happened. Now, it remains to be seen if we will all end up in the same destination. “
The SEC, ACC and Big 12 have been consistent in their positions, Sankey said, to “use time as it becomes available to collect information.”
“The fact that we have seen an increase in cases in recent weeks in our region is not a positive indicator,” said Sankey. “That is just a statement. I will not provide a number. That is not the right direction.
“There has to be more intention and more focus on paying attention to the guidance that has been given on distancing, collecting facial masks, breathing masks, and hand sanitation. We still have many unknowns. … Those conversations that ended with this will be important to see what happens in the next two or three weeks. Those are not too hopeful comments. I want to be clear about it. “
However, there are positive indicators. The health of student athletes and staff was noted, and Sankey hopes to be able to extend that to fans.
ACC Commissioner John Swofford late last week echoed the same sentiments.
The Pac-12 reacted on Friday with a similar move, which means Alabama’s game with USC on September 5 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas is now canceled.
The move left SEC fans wondering what the conference will do for next season.
Before Sankey’s appearance on “The Paul Finebaum Show,” the SEC’s AD meeting was the first in-person meeting of the conference’s athletic directors since the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament in Nashville in March.
“It is clear that the current circumstances related to COVID-19 must improve and we will continue to closely monitor developments around the virus on a daily basis,” Sankey said, according to a statement. “In the coming weeks, we will continue to meet regularly with campus leaders through video conferences and gather relevant information as we are guided by medical advisers. We believe that the end of July will provide the best clarity for making the important decisions that lie ahead. ”
According to the statement, athletic directors heard a report from members of the SEC’s Medical Counseling and Return to Activity Task Force and discussed issues relevant to the current preseason schedule and the upcoming fall seasons of the competition, including an update on current COVID. 19 test procedures.
Topics discussed include possible scheduling options for conducting athletic competition in Fall 2020.
“We had a productive meeting on Monday and participated in discussions on a number of important issues that will contribute to the critical decisions that will be made in the coming weeks,” Sankey said of the meeting. “The ability to interact personally over the course of an entire day contributed to the productivity of the meeting.”
Mark Heim is a sports reporter for The Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Mark_Heim.
