Pac-12 Says It Will Announce Return to Play Decision on Sept. 24

The Pac-12 announced the conference will vote on a decision to resume fall sports on Sept. 24 following a meeting of stakeholders on Friday evening. 

According to ESPN's Kyle Bonagura and Heather Dinich, no vote was expected to take place during the Friday meeting, but it wasn't off the table. 

Per a Pac-12 statement: 

"The Pac-12 CEO Group had an informative and productive meeting earlier today. We plan to reconvene this coming Thursday, September 24 to make a decision regarding possible return to play prior to January 1. The health and safety of our student-athletes and all those connected to Pac-12 sports will continue to be our number one priority in all of our decision making."

On Aug. 11, the conference announced it was postponing fall sports until January 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Optimism for the resumption of fall sports began to rise after the conference partnered with Quidel Corporation on rapid COVID-19 tests that would allow all programs to resume activities. That only grew further once the Big Ten announced it would resume sports in October. 

Leaders in the Big Ten, much like the Pac-12, voted to postpone play during the pandemic out of concern for the health and safety of athletes. 

Yet the opinions of conference leaders have shifted recently and the potential for the Pac-12 to remain in lockstep with the Big Ten on fall sports may see the two Power Five members return to play.

Per Dinich and Bonagura: 

"On Wednesday, governors of both California and Oregon said there would be no restrictions in place at the state level that would prevent the Pac-12 from having a season. There are still local restrictions, primarily that affect Stanford and California, but there is a strong belief, sources said, that local governmental hurdles can be cleared in the coming days.

"There had been a belief around the conference that teams would have to wait until the rapid tests from the Quidel Corporation were operational in early October before practice could begin, but there is growing optimism teams could ramp up workouts before then and begin padded practices once rapid testing is available, sources said. If that were to happen, it would give the Pac-12 a chance at opening the season in late October; however, a target date of Nov. 7 is viewed as the more realistic option, sources said."

When the Pac-12 meets next week to vote on a plan to resume fall sports, it'll be up to each member institution's chancellor or president to decide whether or not to move forward.