The UT Martin Athletics Department will no longer play NCAA-sanctioned sports for the duration of the 2019-20 academic year.
Thursday, the NCAA announced that all remaining winter and spring championships had been canceled.
The OVC Board of Presidents additionally announced that effective immediately, athletic-related activities involving member institutions had been suspended until further notice due to the COVID-19 public health threat.
Wednesday, the UTM campus announced it was transitioning to online-only courses until Monday, April 6 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
UT Martin also sponsors two non-NCAA sports in equestrian and rodeo.
The National Collegiate Equestrian Association announced Thursday it’s canceling its championship event.
Meanwhile, a decision on the 52nd Annual UT Martin Spring College Rodeo – set for April 16-18 – is still pending and will be reevaluated at a later date.
In a statement, Skyhawks Athletics Director Kurt McGuffins said, “The health and well-being of our student-athletes is always our primary concern. In accordance with the OVC’s decision, we regret to announce that the rest of the 2019-20 UT Martin Athletics season has been canceled. It is truly an unfortunate and disappointing situation but it is necessary given the COVID-19 spread. There are still a lot of unknowns and we ask for patience during this time.”