The possibilities that include six- and eight-game schedules starting as soon as January were discussed in a meeting of conference coaches Friday, according to one person close to the situation who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to publicly divulge details of the conversation. One model involves only games within a team’s division as part of a highly truncated season that would help the conference preserve a full 2021 fall schedule.
No decisions were made and any proposed schedule would need the approval of conference chancellors and presidents.
Pac-12 officials hope lowered community virus caseloads and increased availability of expedited tests can help improve conditions over the next few months, allowing the conference to proceed with sports.
While the Big Ten Conference remained in lockstep with the Pac-12 in canceling plans for a fall football season, the Southeastern, Atlantic Coast and Big 12 conferences are forging ahead, with games scheduled to start next month.
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I guessed it a week ago and now ESPN reports some 65 CFB programs are not revealing results of COVID-19 tests of their players. Is this a coverup or school policy?
Just read a Wilner articles in the San Jose Mercury. Wilner reports that the Pac has formed a media consulting committee of alumni from SC, Cal, UCLA and CO (all very knowledgeable – I know one personally). The committee has recommended the Pac hire a consultant to handle all media negotiations (and media rights), who answers directly to Council (which I understand to mean that consulting committee) and not to Scott. Pretty obvious what is happening.
Finally, some Pac-12 presidents are getting a clue. I still think that SC should explore leaving the conference, but at least having a bigger say in the type of deal negotiated is important. Media rights negotiations are going to go much better if the conference has some strong teams, particularly USC that are competing for the CFP. It is time for SC to hire a real coach. I think UCLA will hire a good coach within a year. So if we have 6 teams – USC, Oregon, Washington, UCLA, ASU, Utah – that are strong and 2 that are CFP… Read more »
Maybe decades back when CFB wasn’t a have & have not environment to compete as it does today, West Coast college football might have been a strong conference. But things change over time and you have to change with it to stay “in the game competitively”. There has been talk for many years about having “super conferences” made up of strictly programs that can & do provide high level teams. But there are always roadblocks along the way like a uncaring UCLA administration that downplays itself from becoming a major player. Super conferences are going to be in the future… Read more »
As predicted by the recruiting services, three-star 2021 ILB Mason Tufaga (6-1, 210) from Honolulu St. Louis, HI, committed to UTAH earlier today over ORE ST, SO CAR, ARIZ, CAL and USC, all of whom offered.
The Athletic picks your 2020 national champion with 40% of the field eliminated. Surprise, surprise, surprise: ALA and CLEM rule the roost.
Stewart Mandel — ALA
Bruce Feldman — CLEM
Andy Staples — GA
Nicole Auerbach — CLEM
Max Olson — ALA
Matt Fortuna — ALA
Chris Vannini — CLEM
Clemson is scheduled to play only one team (ND) ranked in the preseason poll. And we have seen what happens when Clemson and ND play each other. In contrast, Alabama, that is replacing its starting QB, plays five ranked teams, including two ranked in the Top 10. Granted, two of those teams are ranked SEC style — including #13 Texas A&M and awful #25 Tennessee. But still, it appears that Clemson will use this as an opportunity to grab a cheap championship, and Dabo Sweeney has already began his “There Are No Asterisks” campaign. My guess is that, if the… Read more »
The ARIZ Wildcats continue to lose players: The Wildcats have now lost some very significant pieces of Kevin Sumlin’s defense this offseason, with SR LB Tony Fields II transferring in mid-July, following S Scottie Young Jr., who transferred to WV in mid-June. LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Most recently, former ARIZ LB/grad transfer Colin Schooler has left for TT and will be eligible to play immediately this fall for the Red Raiders. The Pac-12 has opted against playing football this fall because of the coronavirus pandemic. The Big 12 plans to play a reduced 10-game schedule that starts Sept. 12. TT… Read more »
The first college games were played including a touchdown on the first play of the first game. But I can’t watch because it’s too much like watching a candy maker making candy and all I have is a nickel in my pocket.
With Gov. Newsolini at the helm, I don’t see how football is played in California, which is a shame, because there is no rational reason for the Pac 12 not to play football this year. But, as stated here by others, the woke Presidents in this conference hate Trump so much, they couldn’t possibly be seen as giving in to him. The PAC 12 is now morphing into the Mountain West. With people like Folt, Scott, etc running the show, the message being sent is that football is not important. What elite player would want to be a part of… Read more »
I have a late friend whose favor saying was “That person is so stupid, that they would screw up a one float parade.” Apt description of Larry Scott. Someone on this board wrote that the Pac did not shot itself in the foot when it cancelled the season, it amputated its leg! Another apt description. If the Pac does not play, or cannot get itself together to participate in the 2020 season (and right now, I think it highly likely the SEC, ACC and Big 12 all play and the Big 10 will play a truncated season with those four… Read more »
LAT — A visiting researcher at UCLA has been arrested and charged with destroying evidence, the latest Chinese national to face accusations in U.S. courts of trying to conceal ties to China’s military or government institutions. The FBI began investigating Guan Lei in July, suspecting he had committed visa fraud and possibly transferred “sensitive software or technical data” from UCLA, where he studied machine-learning algorithms in the school’s mathematics department, to “high-ranking” officials in the Chinese military, an FBI agent wrote in an affidavit. Guan, 29, isn’t charged with those crimes. Instead he’s accused of destroying evidence after agents, staking… Read more »
It’s very similar to the Cold War days with the U.S.S.R. I don’t trust the Chinese Government one bit. They failed to contain the coronavirus, continue to spy on us and then wonder why we employ import/export sanctions. I’m only buying products made in the USA and will not purchase anything made in China.
rlee, do you think the Chinese are trying (and will try) to influence our election in favor of Biden? They obviously do not want Trump re-elected.
Yeah, they want their money back they now are having to pay from the uneven trade agreements made from the previous administrations “give-aways”. Biden would be just the one to give it all back and with apologies added!
I think they want someone who they can manipulate and that would be Biden in my opinion. The scary scenario to me is if somehow Harris takes over for Biden. “Heels Up” would give away everything!
China is just the next “Johnny Come Lately” to attempt stealing secrets from the US as the USSR did during WW!! & the atom bomb. Joe McCarthy was actually onto to something accusing the communists of penetrating our government with spies during the early 50s. But it got ugly in the way he & his researchers went about investigating & accusing those they suspected with espionage. Come to find out later, the infiltration of spies were alarming as evidence has been found in USSR spy records. How much of our technical superiority has been confiscated over the last decades by… Read more »
Trump advocated, in the strongest terms possible, for the Big Ten to begin playing CFB in 2020. He never mentioned the Pac-12, and it’s easy to understand why.
Kind of like the PAC-12 doesn’t matter with Trump, Allen? Well with the progressive anarchic leanings of most west coast academia, should it surprise anyone?
Trump certainly knows how California and the west coast feels about him and always will. Oh, the Pac-12 still matters a lot IMO (after all, we are the Conference of Champions, right?). But he’s got battles he can win, and they aren’t out here.
It’ll be interesting to see if the Pac-12 plays follow the leader, yet again, if the Big Ten decides to play. I have no doubt that would happen. Then, Trump would have achieved his goal anyway. 😉 🤔
The Tour de France starts tomorrow. If France can manage that without significant issues, surely American universities can manage football games and other sports. Do a short season in the Pac 12, each team plays the 5 teams in the division and have a championship game. That seems totally doable. That should not have an effect on 2021 season or NFL draft.
Golden, The decision to cancel IMO was almost exclusively political. From what we are now seeing, if I were to guess, the Pac got told by ESPN and Fox that they are not paying for the Pac deciding voluntarily and for political purposes not to play football (I know that is what I would do if I were representing ESPN and/or Fox). My guess is the Big 10 got told the same thing AND the Big 10 fan base, players, some of the schools, and the coaches are calling out their council of Presidents for making a political decision and… Read more »
I think you are correct. Any organization that doesn’t play any sport is choosing not to, not because they can’t but because they don’t want to. Just look around the world, sports is going on everywhere.
My money says we go with a 6 or 8 game schedule and that the conferences going for it now will have to wrap it up early.
I’m hoping that is the case Steveg. Playing the 5 other teams in the South Division and then hopefully a PAC-12 championship game against the North champ would be a 6 game schedule. I’m hoping some games are played as opposed to none.
rlee, I would not hold my breath. IMO opinion the decision not to play was political and the Pac is by far the most “woke” of the Big 5. If the SEC, ACC, and Big 12 play, my guess is the Big 10 plays starting in mid-October or so. I doubt the CA government will allow the CA schools to play, and can you imagine playing in Seattle? The half time show would be an Antifa and BLM riot! Or perhaps it would boycotted!