For the first time since players returned to campus in early June for voluntary workouts, head coach Kirby Smart and his staff can now begin supervising their progress.

Last month, the NCAA Division I Council approved a six-week plan for coaches leading up to the season opener.

For Georgia, that begins today. So what does it mean?

Since arriving on campus, players have been working on their own, with strength coach Scott Sinclair and his staff providing safety protocols in the weight room. Smart and his assistants were barred from supervising or monitoring the results of the voluntary work outs.

Now, in the first non-voluntary part of the plan, players can now have eight hours of mandatory weight training, conditioning, and film review (no more than two hours per week on film) with the coaches.

The second part of the plan gets underway July 26. At that point, activities will be increased to include one hour per day for walk-throughs. These may include the use of a football. One hour per day is permitted for meetings.

The third part of the plan will kick off the start of actual preseason practice, which, for the Bulldogs, is still slated to begin August 9.

Following the typical five-day acclimation period, the team will be allowed workout in full pads.

At least that’s the hope.

Following Monday’s meeting of the league’s 14 athletic directors in Birmingham, Commissioner Greg Sankey announced that the SEC will wait until late July before making any decision on football—and presumably whether or not the league will go to a conference-only schedule.

“It's clear that current circumstances related to COVID-19 must improve, and we will continue to monitor developments around the virus on a daily basis,” Sankey said in a statement. “In the coming weeks, we will continue to meet regularly with campus leaders via video conferences, and gather relevant information while guided by medical advisors. We believe that late July will provide the best clarity for making the important decisions ahead of us.”

On Tuesday, the SEC announced it will postpone the start of volleyball, soccer, and cross-country competition through at least August 31.

According to an email from the conference, the decision will provide additional time to prepare for the safe return of competition on an adjusted timeline. The delay in competition includes all exhibition and non-conference games.

Of course, all workouts will continue under strict adherence to rules and COVID-19 protocols set in place from the beginning. Head coach Kirby Smart addressed these with reporters last month.

"There's a lot of different things that people don't understand have to go into this, and I think even our players are getting educated that it's not going to be the normal, 'Well, I'll walk in, and I go to my locker, and I get my stuff, and I work out, and I shower.' It's going to be completely different. A lot of that is controlled by our state, because we're adhering to the policies of our state in terms of workout protocol, showers, and locker room usage."

Tests for the coronavirus will also continue, although UGA has elected not to reveal any results specific to the football team.