Sankey: SEC playing football alone not ‘wisest decision’
Southeastern Conference commissioner Greg Sankey wants to see the season move forward as planned, but he doesn’t want his conference to be the only one on that path.
Sankey said in an appearance on “The Dan Patrick Show” Tuesday that it’s unlikely the SEC would play a season on its own should the other Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) conferences cancel the fall season due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“I don’t think that’s the right direction, really,” Sankey said, when asked if the SEC would be comfortable as the only conference playing football this fall.
“Could we? Certainly. There’s a difference between can you do something and should you do something in life.
“We’re actually set up our schedule with our own health protocols; we could, if that’s the circumstance, operate on our own. I’m not sure that’s the wisest direction.”
Big Ten presidents voted on Tuesday to postpone the 2020 college football season with hopes of playing in the spring. The league announced the decision on Tuesday.
Pac-12 also could announce it won’t be conducting football seasons on Tuesday, according to multiple reports.
The 12-team Mountain West joined the 12-team Mid-American Conference as FBS leagues that have postponed their football season and fall sports.
Independents Connecticut, Massachusetts as well as Old Dominion of the Conference USA have also opted out of the fall football season.
Sankey also dismissed reports that said the SEC is considering adding programs from other conference that might cancel fall football.
“There are probably any number of legal, contractual, media — I could go down the list of reasons that that’s not quite practical,” Sankey said.
Sankey also noted that the conference’s medical advisory group remains comfortable with the safety of current summer workout plans.
“Were that advice to change, it certainly would be a stopping point,” he said. “The indicators are we can right now do what we’re doing in a healthy way.”
–Field Level Media
