SoCon Sports Report

With COVID-19 rates continuing to rise in most states, and particularly throughout the southeast, at least four conferences have canceled fall sports, which all affect FCS football slated for this fall.  The Patriot League, Ivy League, Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) and Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) have all canceled fall sports. The CAA are the latest to put a hiatus on the 2020 fall sports season, canceling all sports in the fall, as it was released earlier today.  The Southern Conference plans to go ahead with a full fall slate as of July 17, 2020. However, with so many conference cancellations for the fall so far, it will be interesting to see how it shapes the landscape of SoCon football in the non-conference, as well as perhaps the non-conference in even men's basketball in the future. The only two schools wavering on whether or not to go through with a 2020 campaign in the CAA are James Madison and Elon, but other schools may follow suit on an individual basis.

Furman vs. Austin Peay (FCS 1st Rd) at Fortera Stadium in Clarksville, TN Say what you want to about COVID-19, but whenever the SoCon Football season happens, it needs to happen for one simple reason--REDEMPTION!  The 2019 season would see ominous clouds form over the Southern Conference football scene for more than an off-season pandemic. The postseason was also a forgettable time for a league with such a proud FCS tradition. With COVID-19 spiking again in 39 of 50 states, it's looking very likely we will be having college football in the spring. As of today (July 1, 2020), South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster said that at this time, it looks as though college football won't be played in the Palmetto State. “I will not remove those restrictions. I cannot lift those restrictions, if these numbers continue to rise and the danger persists. I can’t do it. I won’t do it,” McMaster said.  “This fall will not be like other falls. We will not be able to have college football. We wil