KNOXVILLE, Tenn — Will we see football in Neyland Stadium this fall?
That's the big question on many fans' minds, and the Southeastern Conference has still not made a decision.
Of the Power Five conferences, only the SEC and Big 12 are still holding off on a decision about football.
The ACC announced this week they would play an 11-game season in 2020, with 10 conference games and one non-conference matchup. The conference will include Notre Dame in its scheduling.
The Big Ten and Pac-12 have already decided to cancel non-conference play.
Most of the smaller conferences are just waiting around to see what the big guys do and see how if impacts their schedules.
So what will the SEC do? We have no idea.
"Well, we want a football schedule. We really want that. That decision has not been made yet. So standby, stay tuned. We want first and foremost for our student-athletes to be safe and healthy and for our coaches," said Donde Plowman, UTK Chancellor. Plowman was also recently selected to represent the SEC on the NCAA Presidential Forum.
UT has said they are proceeding with plans to hold football as scheduled this fall, but with the season opener against Charlotte just over six weeks away on Sept. 5, time is running out.
Student-athletes are already on campus and are practicing under NCAA guidelines for safety during the pandemic, but several football players have tested positive for COVID-19.
"The athletic department is putting in really strict protocols. Our student-athletes are following it fantastically," Plowman said. "We're really proud of them. There's a lot of details to be worked out with the conference, with the SEC about all that. So stay tuned for decisions about that."
The decisions by the ACC, Big 10 and Pac 12 have already impacted the schedules of some SEC schools, but not UT so far. UT is set to play Big 12 opponent Oklahoma on Sept. 12.
The other non-conference opponents for UT this year include Furman (Sept. 19) and Troy (Nov. 21).
If the SEC elected to play only non-conference games and the schedule didn't change, the Vols first game of the season would be against the Florida Gators on Sept. 26.