LITTLE ROCK — The Southeastern Conference on Tuesday, July 14 announced that it will postpone the start of volleyball, soccer and cross country competition through at least Aug. 31 because of coronavirus concerns.
The conference said in a news release that the postponement will "provide additional time to prepare for the safe return of competition on an adjusted timeline." Exhibition and non-conference games are included in the delay.
Non-conference competitions will have to be rescheduled by the participating schools, according to the release.
"The SEC continues to monitor developments related to COVID-19 as it evaluates the potential impact on fall schedules in all sports, with the understanding that the primary responsibility of the SEC and its institutions is to ensure the health and well-being of its student-athletes," the release says.
College athletics conferences across the country are weighing whether to postpone, cancel or reduce the number of fall sports competitions amid the pandemic. The Big Ten Conference announced Thursday that it will not play non-conference games in football or several other sports this fall because of the pandemic. The Pac-12 announcement the next day that it's also shifting to a conference-only fall schedule.
The NCAA football season is scheduled to kick off Aug. 29. The University of Arkansas is scheduled to open the season Sept. 5 against Nevada.
Arkansas Athletics Director Hunter Yurachek was one of 14 conference athletics directors to meet with Commissioner Greg Sankey in Birmingham on Monday for the first time since the start of the pandemic. He and Sankey both called the meeting "productive."
Among the topics discussed were possible scheduling options for the fall and best practices for game management to ensure a healthy environment, according to a news release.
