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Report | Power 5 conferences hold emergency meeting Sunday

According to ESPN, commissioners from the Power 5 collegiate athletic conferences met Sunday to discuss whether fall sports can be played.
Credit: AP
Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby talks to the media after canceling the remaining NCAA college basketball games in the Big 12 Conference tournament due to concerns about the coronavirus Thursday, March 12, 2020, in Kansas City, Mo. The biggest conferences in college sports all canceled their basketball tournaments because of the new coronavirus, seemingly putting the NCAA Tournament in doubt. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Doubt surrounding fall college sports continues to grow as the seasons draw even nearer.

Sunday, ESPN reported the commissioners of the Power 5 Conferences held an emergency meeting as concern surrounding whether football and other fall college sports can be held continues to grow.

ESPN said several sources have told it Big Ten Conference presidents, following a meeting Saturday, are prepared to cancel fall sports and were gauging if presidents, chancellors and commissioners in the other power conferences were going to fall in line with them.

That ESPN report said the "vast majority" of Big Ten presidents have indicated they would vote to postpone football, "hopefully to the spring." But, no official vote took place during Saturday's meeting.

Doubt continued to grow after the Mid-American Conference became the first FBS conference to postpone fall sports, including football, Saturday.

ESPN also reported that several sources tell it in the past 48 hours, "that the postponement or cancellation of the football season seems inevitable."

The report quotes an un-named Power 5 coach saying, "Nobody wanted to be the first to do it, and now nobody will want to be the last."

It also quotes a Power 5 administrator saying, "It feels like no one wants to, but it's reaching the point where someone is going to have to."

The Big Ten, Pac 12 and SEC have all moved to 10-game conference-only football schedules for the 2020 season. The ACC is set to play a 10-game conference schedule with one non-conference game, so long as that game is played in the school's home state.

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The Big 12 announced it would allow one non-conference game in addition to the league's nine-game schedule, and was the final Power 5 conference to announce its fall plan.

According to the ESPN report, the ACC, Big 12 and SEC have wanted to wait to make a decision until after students returned to their campuses, "but they might be forced to act if the Big 12 and/or Pac 12 take action this week, the sources said."

Wednesday, the NCAA Division II and Division III canceled their fall sports championships, including football, after the NCAA decided to not take unilateral action and leave decisions to divisions and schools.

Throughout the week, more Division I FCS conferences have taken action to postpone fall sports to the spring, including the Big Sky Conference.

6 News reached out to the Big 12 Conference for comment, following the articles' release, however has not yet heard back.

To read the ESPN report in full, click here.    

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