One of the biggest college football games of the 2020 season is officially not happening. While it was reported back in May USC vs. Alabama was happening because of the COVID-19 pandemic, The 2020 AdvoCare Classic, which was supported to play at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas has been canceled. The Dallas Cowboys made the announcement on Thursday and the reasons for the cancelation was “conference schedule policy changes.”
This is not a big surprise considering USC is likely going to play only a 10-game conference schedule. The Pac-12 Conference is finalizing the deal, and it would also mean the teams from the Pac-12 would have a delayed start. The plan has to be approved by university presidents before it can go into effect. With the majority of teams from the Pac-12 are from California, the move is not surprising considering the state has been hit hard from the COVID-19 pandemic. High school football in California will not start until December junior college schools in the state won’t start football until the spring.
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“Our decisions have and will be guided by science and data, and based upon the trends and indicators over the past days, it has become clear that we need to provide ourselves with maximum flexibility to schedule, and to delay any movement to the next phase of return-to-play activities,” Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott said who tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this month.
Back in May, Colin Cowherd of FS1 said the game wasn’t happening due to the stay at home orders in California. “Told by two people I trust — USC v Alabama isn’t happening. Trojans can’t even practice in L.A. potentially for several months. This is why Bama already talking to other possible opponents. Not official but understood. Feeling now that Pac 12 football in spring — much more likely,” Cowherd wrote on Twitter.
The last time Alabama and USC faced each other was in 2016 which was at AT&T Stadium. The Crimson Tide took down USC 52-6 and went on to play for the national title. Both teams will now move on to the start of the 2020 season as they both look to bounce back from 2019. USC finished the year with an 8-5 record and lost to Iowa in the Holiday Bowl. Alabama finished with an 11-2 record, and it was the first time since 2014 the team didn’t play for a national championship.
