By For the upcoming 2021 season, the Pac-12 conference announced that if a team cancels a game due to COVID-19 relations, it will result in a forfeit.
In 2020, the conference amended the rules temporarily and counted games that were canceled due to player availability as no contests. Which, in turn did not impact the standings.
“Any forfeited contest shall be regarded as a conference loss for the team making the forfeit and a conference win for its opponent,” the Pac-12 said in a statement. “The Pac-12 rule provides the Commissioner with discretion to determine whether an institution is at fault or primarily at fault for an instability to play a contest based on the facts of the situation.”
And unlike last year, when canceled games were recorded as no-contests, commissioner George Kliavkoff has the authority to declare forfeitures this fall.
Last month, the Pac-12 also updated their return-to-play protocols. Vaccinated players and coaches no longer have to get tested for COVID-19 in addition to not having to quarantine after being exposed to players who have tested positive.
However, for the unvaccinated individuals, they will have to undergo regular testing and wear a mask indoors according to ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura.
Teams that reach 85% vaccination rates have the possibility of protocols being modified.
One week from the 2021 season, the majority of Pac-12 football programs are approaching a COVID-19 vaccination rate that could limit disruption caused by the delta variant.
At least seven teams have reached or surpassed the 90% mark, while two more have topped 85%, according to data provided by the Pac-12 conference schools.
In an article by CBS, college football saw 139 games postponed or canceled during the 2020 regular season. These cancellations led to some conferences changing the rules to be able to let their teams still play and qualify for bowl games and championships.
David Cobb says “In total, 139 games were nixed from the schedules while some games were able to come together on less than three days’ notice. It affected not only conference championship races — as evidenced by Ohio State nearly not making the Big Ten title game because of the conference’s own rules — but the College Football Playoff race as well. “
With the Pac-12 changing their forfeit rules, this could change many things for the upcoming seasons. We are likely to see more teams not have as good of a record since a forfeit will count as a loss according to the new rules and championship and bowl games.
The Pac-12 released their football schedule in March of this year, but this is more than likely to change on the schedule as COVID-19 is still an ongoing issue this year.
The 2021 football season is set to open on Saturday, August 28, as UCLA hosts Hawai’i before the full slate kicks off with all 12 teams playing the following week, including two games on Thursday, Sept. 2, one game on Friday, Sept. 3, and nine on Saturday, Sept. 4.
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