Professional sports leagues have gradually returned along with their games being played in front of empty stadiums. It may be a different case for collegiate leagues. These, along with their respective participating universities, cannot afford to take in the hefty expenses and embrace the risks that come with resuming operations.

According to a recent article posted by Yahoo Sports:

The Mid-American Conference (MAC) recently became the first college football conference to cancel the upcoming season. The league is currently divided into two divisions: the East and the West. The East division includes a number of universities based in the Ohio area while the West covers the Michigan area. Due to the current situation of the coronavirus pandemic, the MAC will instead put its focus on playing football in the spring.

“If one major conference or two say we’re not playing, the others have a hard decision to make,” a conference commissioner told Yahoo Sports.

Bigger collegiate leagues are also expected to release their final decisions on the matter in the upcoming weeks. Although the Big Ten’s schedule was already released earlier this week, the league's board was still not confident about the season being held. The Big Ten along with another major conference in Pac-12 is the most expected to opt-out of playing sports in the fall.

College Football Canceled? The MAC Is

Even though the players and coaches are all raring to get back to the gridiron, safety is still the utmost priority. Universities, whether big or small, cannot afford to have an outbreak in positive coronavirus cases because of football games being played. These institutions and leagues cannot inflict more damage to an already-worrying coronavirus tally in America.

The entire college football landscape is currently all ears on the developments coming from the different conferences before making their respective decisions regarding the said situation.