No Boise State Football In 2020; Mtn West Cancels All Fall Sports
The 2020 college football season appears to be all but cancelled as university representatives are opting to not have athletes suit up for fear of contributing to the spread of COVID-19. I think it's just a matter of time before the remaining programs that haven't decided on postponing seasons until the spring, or outright throwing in the towel, do so.
The Boise State Broncos 2020 football season officially ended on Monday (August 10), as the Mountain West Conference decided to indefinitely suspend all fall sports, according to information shared on the official BSU website. Boise State was set to begin the season by playing Georgia Southern on September 5.
There were some warning signs of things to come in the past couple of weeks. A large group of athletes from the Mountain West announced plans to opt out of athletics for the 2020 season out of fear of making the pandemic situation even worse. Also, the scheduled September 19 game against Florida State was canceled earlier in August due to an ACC rule set in place to prevent athletes from having to travel great distances to compete.
Football, women's soccer, cross country and women's volleyball are all programs that were hit with the suspension of the season. The majority of collegiate football conferences have cancelled their seasons, including the Big 10, the Southwestern Atlantic Conference, the Ivy League and the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. Division I football appears to be a go, at least for now.
The news is certainly a bummer for BSU fans. In July, the university announced new guidelines set in place to protect fans should the season have started as planned. Social-distance seating, limited tailgating space and mandatory mask wearing were all part of the plan in 2020.