SEC extends activities ban through May 31

The SEC logo is shown outside of the Hyatt Regency hotel for the NCAA college football Southeastern Conference's annual media gathering, Monday, July 10, 2017, in Hoover, Ala. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)

— The Southeastern Conference has extended its ban on in-person organized team activities in all sports through at least the end of May.

Organized team activities include practices, meetings and workouts, as well as camps and clinics for junior high and high school athletes. Such activities had previously been suspended through April 15 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

At Arkansas, the ban on camps affects the sports of soccer and swimming and diving, which had camps scheduled in April and May. Most other Razorback teams have camps beginning in June.

The SEC also announced Friday that it will expand virtual film instruction from two hours to four hours per week beginning Monday. The film instruction allows coaches to interact with athletes through video streaming platforms like Zoom or FaceTime.

The film instruction is being utilized by SEC football teams that had their spring practice canceled last month. Arkansas’ spring practice never began, while most schools were in the early portion of their spring drills at the time of the shutdown.

The SEC suspended all team activities on its campuses March 13, effectively ending the seasons for spring sports. At the time the league had left open the possibility for practices to begin on campuses beginning in mid-April.

On Thursday the SEC announced it would place all canceled 2020 spring championships at the same site in 2021. Arkansas was scheduled to host the SEC Tennis Championships later this month.