NCAA cancels all postseason play, as Penn State indefinitely suspends all athletic activities
Update: The Big Ten announced Friday afternoon that in addition to its previously announced cancellations, all organized team activities will be suspended until April 6, at which time they will be re-evaluated.
There will be no March Madness this season. No NCAA Wrestling Championships. No college hockey postseason, and no other spring or winter championships.
In an unprecedented move Thursday afternoon, NCAA President Mark Emmert and the board of governors decided to cancel all winter and spring NCAA championships amid growing concerns surrounding COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. The Big Ten took it a step further, and Penn State even further than that.
Minutes after the NCAA’s statement, the Big Ten announced it would cancel “all conference and non-conference competitions” in all sports such as baseball, softball and lacrosse through the end of the academic year. Penn State announced several hours later it would indefinitely suspend all athletic-related activities, such as practices, and has officially canceled the Blue-White Game.
“As heartbreaking as this is for our student-athletes, coaches and staff, it is clear that the decision to suspend competition and focus on this worldwide health crisis is the only responsible action,” Penn State Athletic Director Sandy Barbour said in a written statement. “This is an unprecedented situation and is very difficult to navigate and requires us to move forward with an abundance of caution. “
As the country awaits the latest move of the coronavirus, both the Big Ten and the NCAA have a lot to sort out.
At issue now is whether players who will have exhausted their eligibility after this season should be granted an extra year. Athlon Sports’ Bryan Fischer reported, via an unnamed source, that the NCAA will work on the formal language on the eligibility for such student-athletes in the coming days and weeks.
But, for now, that means seniors like Penn State wrestler Vincenzo Joseph — who was eyeing his third national title at 165 pounds — are still treating this like a sour end to a great career. That might change in the future but, at this early point, it’s only speculation.
“I’m having a lot of feeling about what is going on right now that I’m having a hard time expressing,” Joseph said via Twitter.
Added Penn State hockey’s Liam Folkes: “Sad to see senior year ending like this. Tough thinking that we won’t put on a Nittany Lion jersey again.”
Disappointment permeated student-athletes around Happy Valley, the Big Ten and the nation. The Nittany Lions’ men’s basketball team was poised for its first NCAA tournament berth in nearly a decade, and now it won’t be able to take part. Senior forward Lamar Stevens was also just seven points away from setting the school’s all-time scoring record, a mark he almost certainly would’ve broken Thursday night.
Even the Penn State men’s hockey team was making a strong case for an NCAA tournament berth, as it was ranked No. 7 nationally in the most recent poll. It was supposed to play Minnesota in the Big Ten semifinals on Saturday.
“It sucks knowing that the time we put in for this long season, injuries that we withstand, and the mental roller coaster we endeavor will be taken away,” Penn State wrestler Roman Bravo-Young said on Twitter. “Everything happens for a reason, though. Stay safe out there!”
Others around the Big Ten shared a similar sentiment.
“You’d rather be alive,” former Nebraska linebacker Mohamed Barry told reporters Thursday. “Life is more precious than the things that we want.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there have been 1,215 cases of the coronavirus in the U.S. Pennsylvania has had 20 presumptive cases, with two confirmed cases, as of Thursday afternoon, according to the state department of health.
As of Thursday afternoon, Pennsylvania has 13 COVID-19 cases in Montgomery County, two each in Bucks and Monroe counties, and one each in Delaware, Northampton, Philadelphia, Pike and Wayne counties.
There are no confirmed cases in Centre County.
“This decision (to cancel postseason play) is based on the evolving COVID-19 public health threat, our ability to ensure the events do not contribute to spread of the pandemic, and the impracticality of hosting such events at any time during this academic year given ongoing decisions by other entities,” read the NCAA statement.
The NCAA’s announcement came a day after Penn State said it was suspending in-person classes through April 3. Online learning will be in place starting Monday, and in-person classes will resume April 6.
This story was originally published March 12, 2020 at 6:19 PM.
