Morehouse College cancels football season

ATLANTA - In an email sent to the Morehouse community, school president David Thomas said Morehouse fall sports have been canceled for 2020.

"I write to inform you that due to the COVID-19 virus, Morehouse College will not participate in intercollegiate athletic competition sponsored by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) this upcoming Fall. This will affect our cross country and football sponsored athletic teams. I want our scholar-athletes, parents and alumni to know that the College will honor all athletic scholarship awards," Thomas wrote.

Thomas stated that he felt the Maroon Tigers athletic teams wouldn't be able to compete without breaking previously established social distancing guidelines maintained by the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention.

He also mentioned that he hoped students will be able to return to campus in August to begin fall semester classes. Winter and spring sports are not affected at this time, but decisions regarding those sports will come at a later date according to Thomas.

Morehouse was scheduled to start the football season at home against Edward Waters on September 5th.

Atlanta's other HBCU football program, Clark Atlanta University, is currently scheduled to play this year. The Panthers would have ended their regular season against Morehouse on November 7th.