Pac-12 announces conference-only schedules for football, other fall sports

One day after the Big Ten stunned many within the college football community and announced conference-only schedules for football and other fall sports amid the coronavirus pandemic, the Pac-12 decided to follow suit.

Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott confirmed the news via an official statement:

“The health and safety of our student-athletes and all those connected to Pac-12 sports continues to be our number one priority. 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 Pac-12 also temporarily postponed 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."

Football, men’s and women’s soccer, and women’s volleyball are all affected by Friday's announcement. 

The Pac-12 also announced students who wish to opt out of returning to teams because of the virus will have scholarships honored by their universities. 

The Ivy League halted all fall sports, including football, until at least January 2021.