The ACC announced on Monday that its virtual media days, originally scheduled for July 21-23, have been postponed indefinitely. This comes on the heels of the conference canceling its in-person media days that were originally scheduled for the same dates in Charlotte.
The conference did not make a statement regarding the specific reason that its virtual event has been postponed. However, it did comment on the initial decision to change the format of the event last month.
"As we continue to navigate the necessary steps surrounding COVID-19, transitioning this year's ACC Football Kickoff from an in-person event to a virtual experience is the best option to provide media access to our coaches and student-athletes," ACC commissioner John Swofford said. "Our primary focus in all decisions continues to be the health and welfare of our student-athletes, coaches, and in this specific instance, all of our media partners and event attendees."
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has hit the ACC footprint hard over the last few weeks. Florida reported 12,624 new cases on Monday and Virginia added 972, according to Worldometers. North Carolina and South Carolina have also become hot spots since the start of July.
The ACC was the last Power Five conferences to move to the virtual format, but is the first to make a change after already scheduling an online event. The SEC, Pac-12 and Big Ten have not announced dates for their virtual media days events, while the Big 12 has its event set for July 20-21.
