Note from the editor

Please be aware that due to the ever fluctuating COVID-19 pandemic, schedules for the sports listed below are subject to change. We will update this page if the PAC-12 conference makes any decisions that will affect any of the official start dates. Thank you.

Just a few months ago, the PAC-12 conference made the decision to postpone all fall sports for the remainder of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. For the University of Colorado, this meant all football, women’s soccer and volleyball, along with men’s and women’s cross country seasons would be delayed until spring or cancelled, and winter sports such as the tip-off of men’s and women’s basketball would be pushed back. The cancellation took many in the community, including student-athletes and coaches by surprise because of the decisions made by other Power 5 conferences to continue fall sports as planned. This was another blow to student-athletes, as many of them were sent home with their pre-seasons cut short the prior semester due to coronavirus outbreaks across the country.

There was a great deal of uncertainty with student-athletes returning this fall and how the semester would pan out, without any games being played. Not only was the concern of spreading the virus a major issue, but also there were many questions yet to be answered. What was there to do about practices? Conditioning? Team workouts? Were players going to opt-out? Would athletes be required to attend in-person class? At first, there was not much information given to the schools and teams regarding the stance of what they could physically do together as a team. Because the PAC-12 consists of many states that have different guidelines and restrictions put in place due to COVID-19, some teams were allowed to practice while others were not. Gradually, throughout the past few weeks of the semester, fall and spring sports have been able to conduct practice-like situations, but on a much smaller scale. Of course, here at the University of Colorado, all CU athletics had to shut down for two weeks beginning September 23rd due to the stay-at-home order put in place by Boulder County.

But, alas, the NCAA has released the dates for sports teams whose seasons were postponed from the fall to spring semester, along with a revised fall football schedule, which at first was delayed until spring, and an official start date for men’s and women’s basketball, which has now been given clearance to start late November. Seven CU sports programs were affected by the announcement. The dates and sports are as follows:

Football: The PAC-12 college football season will officially kick off on November 7th and will feature a seven-game, fully in-conference schedule. The conference championship game will either be held on December 18th or 19th, and it is yet to be determined if PAC-12 teams will be eligible for the college football playoff. The Buffaloes will open the season against UCLA at Folsom Field. 

Men’s and Women’s Basketball: After the NCAA approved a November 25th start date for men’s and women’s basketball, the PAC-12 officially signed off on the decision. Both programs will play 25-to-27 game schedules, with a few non-conference games sprinkled in there. Schedules will be released in the coming weeks. 

Women’s Volleyball: The season will officially begin on January 22nd and conclude on April 3rd, with the championship bracket being announced on April 4th. The NCAA tournament will begin April 9th, and the Final Four will take place April 23rd through April 25th. The Buffaloes schedule has yet to be announced. 

Women’s Soccer: The regular season will start February 3rd and continue until April 17th. Championship selections will be made on April 18th. The NCAA tournament will go from April 24th through May 16th. Game dates and times are to be determined. 

Men’s & Women’s Cross Country: The season will begin on January 23rd and go until March 5th. Postseason selections will be made the following day and the NCAA Championships are set for March 15th. Specific race dates and locations have yet to be announced.

Practice start dates are up to the discretion of each university affiliated with the PAC-12. There is no conference championship awarded in either soccer or volleyball, and the conference will determine a cross country title competition date in the near future.