Pac-12 Conference leaders voted Thursday to hold an abbreviated football season beginning Nov. 6, reversing the league’s decision last month to pull the plug on all athletic competition until 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic. The fundamental facts about the pandemic remain unchanged, and the conference continues to face tougher governmental restrictions on public activities in Western states, such as California and Oregon, than much of the rest of the country. The Big Ten, which also postponed its season in August, changed its mind last week and is slated to start a shortened season in late October. “Our CEO Group has taken a measured and thoughtful approach to today’s decision, including extensive consultation with stakeholders on the evolving information and data related to health and safety,” said University of Oregon President Michael Schill, who is also chairman of the Pac-12’s CEO Group. The season the Pac-12 has decided to go ahead with is effectively a mad rush to be included in the College Football Playoff, the sport’s four-team championship tournament, to which the Pac-12 hasn’t been invited since the 2016 season.

Source: Wall Street Journal September 25, 2020 00:03 UTC