The ACC became the latest NCAA conference to cancel athletics activities through the end of the 2019-20 academic year in response to the coronavirus pandemic, and it might not be the last one to do so.
In a statement on Tuesday, the ACC said its member schools voted unanimously to cancel “all athletic related activities including all competition and practice through the end of the 2019-20 academic year.”
The ACC said it made the decision to mitigate the further spread of COVID-19, and that each of its institutions would continue to work with respective university and state policies in making individual campus decisions.
“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 unchartered 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.”
Other conferences, including the American Athletic Conference, Big Ten, Big 12 and Pac-12, have made similar announcements over the past several days.
Last week, the NCAA canceled its men’s and women’s basketball tournaments, as well as the Frozen Four for men’s and women’s hockey, College World Series for baseball and softball, and national tournaments for other spring sports like tennis, track and field, and golf.
“This is my 33rd year and I’ve never had anything happen like this,” said UNC football coach Mack Brown, who was in his office on Tuesday while the rest of the staff and players had all been directed to stay home. “It’s unbelievable. We would’ve started spring practice today. … It’s a real empty feeling, but we’ve got to figure out how to navigate it.”
ESPN’s Heather Dinich contributed to this report.