NCAA Announces Voluntary Activities Will Be Allowed for All D-I Sports on June 1
May 22, 2020
The NCAA announced on Friday that voluntary activities for all Division I sports may begin on June 1.
The NCAA voted on Wednesday to allow voluntary activities for men's and women's basketball and football starting June 1, per ESPN's Andrea Adelson.
On-campus athletic activities for Division I sports have been banned since March because of the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused the cancellation of the NCAA's winter and spring sports championships.
In addition, the NCAA extended a waiver through June 30 for eight hours of required, virtual nonphysical activity. Also, men's and women's basketball and football players cannot take part in "countable required athletics activities" through June 30.
NCAA Division I Council chair M. Grace Calhoun explained the reasoning for the decision:
"The return of voluntary activity in addition to the extension of the waiver to allow virtual, nonphysical activity shows sensitivity to local, state and regional differences in how Division I campuses are reopening. We will continue to be considerate of these differences with wise and flexible administration of our regulations, and we expect schools to keep the well-being of student-athletes as a priority."
Football camps and clinics have also been banned at Division I schools.
Some teams have already made plans to pave the way for athletes to return to campus for athletic activities. Of note, the SEC announced Friday that voluntary athletic activities could begin on June 8 under "strict supervision of designated university personnel and safety guidelines developed by each institution."
As for the Big Ten, ESPN's Adam Rittenberg reported that the conference is letting individual schools decide on when student-athletes can return.