The Northeast Conference has postponed its 2020 fall sports schedule due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the league announced on Wednesday evening.
The NEC did not give a specific date for the end of the postponement, saying that its council will reconvene before Oct. 1. The move will impact St. Francis University for all fall sports and Duquesne football, which plays in the Northeast Conference as an associate member.
The Dukes are still weighing their options for the 2020 season, a team source told Pittsburgh Sports Now. Duquesne could choose to play out the season as an independent if the NEC does not play.
Duquesne has five non-conference games currently on its 2020 slate. They’re set to visit Air Force on Sept. 5, Youngstown State on Sept. 12, Coastal Carolina on Sept. 19 and host Virginia University of Lynchburg on Sept. 26 and Robert Morris on Oct. 10.
Games that hang in the balance of the NEC’s decision are scheduled at Central Connecticut on Oct. 3, at Wagner on Oct. 17, home games against Sacred Heart on Oct. 24, LIU on Oct. 31, Bryant on Nov. 14 and at St. Francis to close the season on Nov. 21.
With the Big Ten and Pac-12 not playing non-conference games and the ACC announcing earlier on Wednesday that it will allow teams to play just one conference game, there are a number of teams that have not announced plans to cancel their seasons with games left unscheduled.
