Big 12 Lays Out Schedule For Fall Sports As Conference Forges Ahead During COVID-19 Pandemic

NORTH TEXAS (CBSDFW.COM/AP) — As the divide in the Power 5 conferences continues... the Big 12 has reaffirmed its decision to press on with college football and other fall sports, joining the Atlantic Coast and Southeastern conferences in taking the field despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

The move came one day after the Big Ten and Pac-12 announced they would not be participating this fall. There is a chance the other Power Five leagues will push their seasons to the spring, but that remains to be determined.

In the meantime, the Big 12 board of directors approved a plan to begin fall sports after September 1 with football playing a schedule in which each team can play one non-conference game before league play begins Sept. 26. The schools will all play each other to give them 10 total games.

To allow for flexibility, the Big 12 schedule includes two bye weeks for every team and a potential third off date late in the season. The date for the Big 12 title game is also being kept fluid -  either being played on December 12 or 19 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington.

The league's signature rivalry game, the Red River Showdown between the Oklahoma Sooners and the Texas Longhorns will still be played at the Cotton Bowl in Fair Park on Dec. 10.

As the Big 12 attempts to continue with a sports season all of the schools have agreed to enhanced COVID-19 testing that includes three tests per week in "high contact" sports such as football, volleyball and soccer. Rigorous testing that includes echocardiograms, a cardiac MRI and blood tests will be required before athletes can return to play. All non-conference opponents also must adhere to Big 12 standards.

"The virus continues to evolve and medical professionals are learning more with each passing week," Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby said in a statement. "We are comfortable in our institutions' ability to provide a structured training environment, rigorous testing and surveillance, hospital quality sanitation and mitigation practices that optimize the health and safety of our student-athletes. We believe all of this combines to create an ideal learning and training situation."

(© Copyright 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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