The NCAA still hasn't made any decisions about whether its fall sports championships will proceed forward this year, but it did pass several mandates designed for the protection of student-athletes on Wednesday.
Among numerous guidelines issued by the NCAA Board of Governors on Wednesday, the NCAA is now mandating that all member schools must honor scholarships for any athletes who choose to opt out due to concerns about COVID-19 – a mandate that had already been made within the Big Ten – and that they must cover all medical expenses related to COVID-19 for their student-athletes.
The NCAA is also banning schools from requiring athletes to waive their legal rights regarding COVID-19 as a condition of athletic participation, and stated that “any NCAA fall championship or other postseason contests must be conducted within enhanced safety protocols for student-athletes and essential athletics personnel. These safety enhancements will include regular testing, separation of college athletes and essential personnel from all other nonessential personnel, and physical distancing and masking policies during all aspects of noncompetition.”
Per the NCAA's release, “NCAA championships may use reduced bracketing, a reduced number of competitors, predetermined sites and, where appropriate, single sites to limit exposure to COVID-19.”
While the NCAA did not make any decisions about canceling or postponing fall sports championships on Wednesday, it directed each division “to determine by Aug. 21 whether their respective fall sports seasons and NCAA championships should occur this year.” The Division II President Council and Division III Presidents Council both announced Wednesday that they had decided to cancel their fall sports championships for 2020 – and that those championships will not be rescheduled – but the Division I Board of Directors chose to further pass its decision on to the Division I Council, which will meet next week.
The NCAA has also directed each division to “determine no later than Aug. 14 the eligibility accommodations that must be made for student-athletes who opt out of participating this fall or for those whose seasons are canceled or cut short due to COVID-19. College athletes and their families must know what their eligibility status will be before beginning the fall season.”
The NCAA is expecting all schools who proceed forward with fall sports to adhere to its recently released return-to-sport guidelines and will establish an email and phone number to allow athletes, parents and others to report failures to follow protocol.
Our decisions place emphasis where it belongs on the health and safety of college athletes.
— Inside the NCAA (@InsidetheNCAA) August 5, 2020
NCAA President Mark Emmert pic.twitter.com/bIbVqiJM4V
The guidelines brought forth by the NCAA on Wednesday came after those requirements were among the demands called for by Pac-12 football players and Big Ten football players in unified statements this week.
“Our decisions place emphasis where it belongs — on the health and safety of college athletes,” NCAA president Mark Emmert said Wednesday in a statement. “Student-athletes should never feel pressured into playing their sport if they do not believe it is safe to do so. These policies ensure they can make thoughtful, informed decisions about playing this fall.
“First and foremost, we need to make sure we provide a safe environment for college athletes to compete for an opportunity to play in NCAA championships,” Emmert said. “A decision based on the realities in each division will provide clarity for conferences and campuses as they determine how to safely begin the academic year and the return to sports.”
