SEC commissioner in favor of eligibility relief for winter sports athletes.
Southeastern Conference Commissioner Greg Sankey voiced support for college athletes receiving an additional season of eligibility to compensate for the cancellation of play caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Speaking on a teleconference Wednesday, Sankey said he would put a priority on athletes involved in spring sports. But, granting an additional year of eligibility should also be considered for winter sports, including men’s basketball, he added.
The teleconference came the day after the SEC canceled the rest of its 2020 spring seasons and league championship events. The SEC cited the continuing developments associated with the coronavirus as the reason for the cancellations.
“My first read is that is an appropriate step … ,” Sankey said of granting athletes an additional season of eligibility. It’s important “for our young people (to know) definitively what their eligibility status will be going forward.”
The NCAA announced Friday that “eligibility relief is appropriate for all Division I student-athletes who participated in spring sports” and that details of how that would be done would be finalized at a later time.
Sankey added that all athletes, not just seniors whose college eligibility was abruptly ended, should be considered for an additional season.
“I do want to say I don’t think this is simply just a senior issue,” he said. “Everybody in our programs, particularly spring sports, had their season disrupted.”
Sankey called it a “really important issue to work through in relatively short order, so young people around our programs have clarity of what’s next for their future.”
The granting of additional seasons of eligibility should be considered for winter sports, including men’s and women’s basketball, Sankey said.
On his radio show Monday night, Kentucky Coach John Calipari voiced concern about what he called “unintended consequences” involved with granting an additional year of eligibility. Those included the potential expansion of rosters beyond the current 13-scholarship limit and incoming freshmen expecting to join a team that does not include so many players competing for playing time.
Sankey said the SEC’s compliance staff had prepared an eight-page report that touched on those questions.
“So, there are a number of sensitivities here that merit that kind of discussion that I know is occurring right now,” Sankey said.
Spring football
The SEC’s cancellation of sports activities through April 15 includes spring football games and any Pro Day activities.
Spring football practices were not canceled. But, the advice of avoiding gatherings of more than 10 people makes football practices impossible to conduct.
Sankey said he was not “overly optimistic” about there being spring football practices. “We haven’t fully foreclosed that opportunity,” he said. “But, practically (speaking), that window is pretty narrow.”
With or without spring practice, Sankey said that he was “confident … our teams are adequately prepared going into the season.”
Fall football
When asked about any possible disruption to the 2020 football season, Sankey said, “Our focus is on preparing for the 2020-21 academic year (and) the fall season as currently scheduled. So, there’s a period on the end of that sentence.
“We’ll obviously think about everything going forward as we’re guided by public health information and decision-making.”
Summer football
The SEC has scheduled its football Media Days for July in Atlanta. When asked if that was still the plan, Sankey said, “We’re full steam ahead in our planning.”
Then, he added, “Last Thursday morning I was full steam ahead on playing a basketball tournament.”
Hosting events
Alabama was scheduled to host the SEC softball tournament this spring. Sankey was asked when schools playing host to events this spring would have to wait for another such opportunity.
“Not a wait of another 14 years,” he said.
Supporting athletes
While many athletes have left campus, including all of Kentucky’s basketball players, Sankey said the member schools will continue to supply support.
That will include academic tutoring. “Particularly important because of the move from classroom to online learning,” Sankey said.
Medical care will also be made available, he said, and “when appropriate,” help with housing and nutrition.
Financial impact
Sankey said he did not know how the cancellation of the SEC Tournament and other league sports activities might affect the revenue generated through television contracts.
He said the financial impact of canceling events “has not been at the forefront of our conversations. We’ve made decisions based on the health and well being of people around our programs.
“There certainly are revenue implications. We have staff working through those. ... I’m certain we’ll move forward financially in a positive way.”
‘I don’t know’
Given the reliance on health officials and not knowing how the coronavirus pandemic will evolve, Sankey said he could not give definitive responses to all questions.
“I-don’t-know is a perfectly acceptable answer … ,” he said. “We’re in one of those circumstances in life where there may be more I-don’t-knows than I know how something will play out.”
