The 14 athletic directors from the Southeastern Conference are scheduled to meet in-person on Monday at conference headquarters in Birmingham, Ala. to discuss the fall sports calendar, according to Pat Forde and Ross Dellinger of SI.com.
While the meeting had been previously scheduled, the agenda for the meeting takes on a greater significance as the Big Ten announced it would only play in-conference football games this season and the Ivy League announced it would not play sports this fall. The SEC is the most visible conference in the college football landscape and any decisions they could make about the college football season could lead to trickle down effects from other conferences.
Via NPR, the SEC has teams in seven of the top 11 states with the largest current increases in COVID-19 cases over the last two weeks. Louisiana, Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama and Texas are home to all but four of the league’s 14 athletic programs.
The SI report states a final decision on the fall calendar is not expected to come from the meeting on Monday. However, the meeting of the ADs will allow for the league to discuss possible contingencies for the upcoming season and move closer toward the actionable path they will eventually take.