Sankey: Time is 'Rapidly Slipping Away', Need Change in Public Health Trends
Time is of the essence for the SEC to make its decision on the state of fall sports within the conference, and they're running out of it.
SEC commissioner, Greg Sankey, took to the radio yet again on Monday to provide an update on where the SEC stands currently on the state of fall sports, indicating that time is "rapidly slipping away" to make decisions on football and other fall sports that may be impacted.
Prior to his appearance on the Paul Finebaum Show on Monday, Sankey and the SEC's athletic directors met in person for the first time since March to discuss the manner at which the conference ought to tackle the coronavirus pandemic as it pertains to athletics this fall. As it stands today, the SEC, says Sankey, is still waiting until "late July" to make its decision.
"We've seen the news around COVID-19 alter itself in different ways over a number of weeks, and so what we've identified is an opportunity in late July for an important check-in to see what our public health reality is. So, that's one big picture element. We were told from the beginning, 'take as much time as possible, you make better decisions,'" said Sankey.
Sankey also made a public statement on Monday immediately following the meeting.
The public-health reality as of right now is bleak, however. Coronavirus cases are on the rise in many states around the country, an antithesis to what the NCAA and conference commissioners were hoping for.
"The fact that we've seen increasing cases over the last few weeks across our region is not a positive indicator."
While plenty of other sporting events have begun to restart or will restart soon, such as MLS, MLB and NASCAR, the trend in public health still needs to move in the upwards direction, as of right now, it's not.
In light of that, testing and protocols are of the utmost importance for all power-five conferences and sub-decision conferences. One of the many questions, as it pertains to collegiate sports and working around the coronavirus pandemic, has been uniformity with protocols, something Sankey says all parties are waiting for.
"The NCAA, after the Senate Commerce Committee hearing in which I participated in Washington D.C., has been engaging in developing similar standards for its entire membership but has worked collaboratively over the last eight or nine days," the commissioner said. "I think we're moving towards a destination for those protocols."
While two power-five conferences (PAC-12 and Big Ten) have already come to a decision regarding all-conference play, Sankey says the SEC is not yet ready to make that determination. There is an indirect impact of the decision made by the Big Ten to the SEC as there were no cross-conference games scheduled this season between those two, however, there is a minimal impact between the PAC-12 and the SEC as Alabama was set to play USC, Texas A&M, Colorado.
"You've seen statements from my colleagues in the Big 12 in the ACC consistent with our thinking that, let's use time to the extent it's available to gather information and we'll make our determinations at an appropriate time, as we see fit."
While it so happened that ultimately all conferences ended up in the same boat in March, the circumstances surrounding the PAC-12 and the SEC could be different. Califonia and Arizona, for example, have vastly different protocols currently than a Kentucky or Florida.
Sankey and all campuses around the SEC are relying on medical guidance, talking with experts within the medical field, and continued to stress the need for everyone to continue social distancing, avoiding large gatherings and wearing masks.
Ultimately, Sankey feels the testing is the most important tool - besides a vaccine -, the conferences need to use to their advantage. "In order to facilitate, what may come, the opportunity to play, that reality around testing is going to be very, very important," he says.
There are still a little over two weeks remaining in the month of July, but as of right now time is not on the side of the SEC, or any conference in the NCAA to make a decision on fall sports.
As of right now, no decisions have been made within the SEC, and until more information is dissected and provided, it appears it will remain that way, but the overall outlook doesn't appear ideal.
