USA TODAY International Edition
Health mandates prevent Pac- 12 play
On the heels of the Big Ten opting to start its football season in October, Pac- 12 Commissioner Larry Scott said Wednesday that his league was eager to find a solution to compete as soon as possible.
The Pac- 12 is now alone among the Power Five conferences as the only league not set to play football in the fall. Public health mandates in California and Oregon have kept the league from moving forward with its 12 members.
“At this time, our universities in California and Oregon do not have approval from state or local public health officials to start contact practice,” Scott said in a public statement. “We are hopeful that our new daily testing capability can help satisfy public health official approvals in California and Oregon to begin contact practice and competition.”
Also on Wednesday, the Mountain West opened the door to a possible return, but there are still no plans in place for a fall season. The MWC released a statement saying it is working on solutions to allow a return “at the earliest possible opportunity.”
Complicating the Pac- 12’ s potential for return are severe wildfires on the West Coast that have created some of the worst air- quality conditions in the world. Had there been no postponement due to the coronavirus, it’s possible select games would have been rescheduled because of the air- quality concern.
The Big Ten, which reversed its August decision to postpone the season, plans to implement rapid antigen tests for COVID- 19 that can be administered on a daily basis, a pathway the Pac- 12 could follow to help persuade public and state officials of safe conditions.
The Pac- 12 announced earlier in September its partnership with Quidel Corporation, a manufacturer of FDAapproved rapid tests that will allow the league to test student- athletes daily for COVID- 19.