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Mississippi State head coach Mike Leach, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey comment on status of football as many players push to play

Sankey posted a pair of tweets on Monday amid reports college football might not happen in 2020.
Joel Coleman|
Mississippi State head coach Mike Leach, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey comment on status of football as many players push to play
Mississippi State head coach Mike Leach, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey comment on status of football as many players push to play

"Can we play? I don't know. We haven't stopped trying."

Those 10 words came from the Twitter account of Southeastern Conference Commissioner Greg Sankey on Monday following a weekend in which it appeared the bottom fell out of a 2020 college football season.

On Sunday, reports LIKE THESE emerged, outlining how the Power 5 conferences were moving towards cancelling fall sports. Sankey responded with a pair of tweets on Monday afternoon indicating, for now, SEC football still has a pulse.

"Best advice I’ve received since COVID-19: 'Be patient. Take time when making decisions. This is all new & you’ll gain better information each day,'" Sankey posted. "(The SEC) has been deliberate at each step since March...slowed return to practice...delayed 1st game to respect start of fall semester..

"Deveoped testing protocols...We know concerns remain. We have never had a (football) season in a COVID-19 environment. Can we play? I don’t know. We haven’t stopped trying. We support, educate and care for student-athletes every day, and will continue to do so...every day."

Sankey's comments are far from an assurance that a 2020 season will be played, but they do at least leave a door open that perhaps didn't appear was even cracked over the past weekend.

Prior to Sankey's tweets, MSU head football coach Mike Leach addressed the potential cancellation of the season in a meeting with the Starkville Rotary Club. PER BEN PORTNOY OF THE COMMERCIAL DISPATCH, Leach is hoping to get the chance to lead the Bulldogs out on the field this fall.

"Right now college football hasn't quite figured out if they're the dog or the vehicle and whether they're going to stay," Leach said, according to Portnoy. "I wish there was more clarity to that. We're all waiting to see, and we're excited about our team, we're excited about this opportunity and hope we get the chance to share it with everybody around the country."

Leach also commented on the potential cancellation of football by the Big Ten. Multiple reports have indicated the Big Ten is perhaps the closest to calling off fall sports of all the Power 5 conferences. Leach indicated he's not in favor of that move.

Meanwhile since Sunday, college football players all across the country have chimed in, stating their desire to get on the field this fall. Many Mississippi State Bulldogs joined in:

Monday afternoon, Mississippi State Director of Athletics John Cohen made his first comments regarding all the uncertainty, putting his full support behind Bulldog players and coaches as he retweeted the MSU football account's plea to play this fall.

No one knows for sure what the end result will be in regards to whether or not there is football this fall. Will the Power 5 stay united and all make the same choice, or could each conference make separate calls?

It certainly appears final decisions will soon be made, but at the moment – after a weekend of things trending towards no football in the Power 5 conferences – there seems to be some semblance of a chance that at least the SEC might elect to move forward with a season. Only time will tell.

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Joel Coleman
JOEL COLEMAN

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