With others taking the step ahead of them, the cancellation of athletic activities at Georgia Tech and the ACC seemed an inevitability. Tuesday, it became a reality.
The conference announced that it has canceled “all athletic-related activities including all competition and practice through the end of the 2019-20 academic year” in order to mitigate the further spread of COVID-19.
That includes the April 10 Friday night football scrimmage at Bobby Dodd Stadium.
The move follows decisions by the NCAA to cancel all of its spring sports championships and similar cessations of competition by the Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and American Athletic Conference, among others.
“Our top priority remains the health and safety of our student-athletes as well as our fans, communities and the overall well-being of others during these uncharted times,” ACC Commissioner John Swofford said in a statement. “We are particularly disappointed for our student-athletes and will continue to work with our membership to assess what is appropriate in the future.”
Last week, Tech athletic director Todd Stansbury said in a statement that he had hoped that spring sports seasons could resume when it was safe and appropriate. However, developments such as the CDC's advisement against mass gatherings and different member schools moving to ban students from dorms likely worked against the logistics of a possible resumption.
The NCAA last week committed to offering spring-sports athletes an extra year of eligibility to replace the one that has been lost this year.
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