SEC allows voluntary workouts starting June 8, paves possible path to football season
If and when there is a football season this fall, the first step toward a potential timeline will have been taken Friday.
Starting June 8, all student-athletes are allowed to return to campus for voluntary workouts, the Southeastern Conference announced. The decision comes after the NCAA Division I council approved a similar measure on Wednesday, though its set return date is June 1.
While all Missouri student-athletes are eligible for voluntary workouts June 8, a spokesperson said MU will have a staggered approach to returning to campus, starting with fall sports initially. Originally, only football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball student-athletes were allowed on campus for workouts, but the NCAA ruled to allow all sports back. The SEC followed suit, letting all student-athletes work out.
“The health, safety and well-being of Mizzou’s student-athletes, coaches, staff and fans is paramount and will be at the forefront in our decision-making process regarding the challenges we face with the COVID-19 pandemic,” Mizzou athletic director Jim Sterk said in a statement.
“For well over a month, our internal Mizzou Sports Park repopulation committee has worked with MU Health Care, University, city and county officials to design a comprehensive plan for safely bringing student-athletes back to campus next month in anticipation of resuming workouts.”
As the COVID-19 pandemic shut down sports across the country in March, the SEC canceled its men’s basketball tournament and other championship events. Originally, the conference canceled all athletic activities through May 31.
With a targeted resumption date of June 8, the SEC has created a transition period allowing student-athletes to “gradually adapt to full training and sports activity after this recent period of inactivity.”
Each SEC member university developed a plan consistent with state and local health directives, which allows certain activities to be permitted. Workouts will be under stringent supervision by university health officials and observe safety guidelines.
Sterk and SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said they are working as if the football season will be played as regularly scheduled. Mizzou’s season opener is against Central Arkansas on Sept. 5.
“At this time, we are preparing to begin the fall sports season as currently scheduled, and this limited resumption of voluntary athletic activities on June 8 is an important initial step in that process,” Sankey said.
“Our goal remains an on-time start to the fall sports season for all of our teams, and having football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball players return June 8 for voluntary workouts is the first step on that journey forward in today’s challenging climate,” Sterk said. “I expect that at some point down the road the NCAA and SEC will allow student-athletes from other sports to return, and when they do, we will likely phase those in starting with the remaining fall sports teams.”
Typical prevention measures like sanitation and social distancing will be enacted, and other recommended safety guidelines will be, too. As outlined by the school and SEC, they include:
- enhanced education for all team members on health and wellness best practices, including but not limited to preventing the spread of COVID-19
- a three-stage screening process that involves screening before student-athletes arrive on campus, within 72 hours of entering athletics facilities and on a daily basis upon resumption of athletics activities
- testing of symptomatic team members (including all student-athletes, coaches, team support and other appropriate individuals)
- immediate isolation of team members who are under investigation for or diagnosed with COVID-19, followed by contact tracing, following CDC and local public health guidelines
- a transition period that allows student-athletes to gradually adapt to full training and sports activity following this period of inactivity
Sterk joined the Paul Finebaum Show on Thursday and spoke about some of the logistics behind allowing student-athletes back on campus. Of note, he said MU doesn’t plan to test student-athletes who return to campus, which would cost about $65 per test. If they start to develop symptoms, then Mizzou will take the necessary precautions.
“If there are symptoms, then you test,” Sterk said. “At this point in time, we’re not going to be testing everyone as they come in. We could if things change and the validity of the test improve. But our experts are saying it’s better on the prevention side.”
Mizzou had already opened its facilities to coaches and other select personnel, Sterk noted last week. School officials were taking certain precautions, such as checking people’s temperature before they entered the building.
In June, NCAA rules allow only strength and conditioning coaches to monitor voluntary on-campus activities, and that will continue to be the case. That means there’s no clear guideline yet on whether Mizzou and other teams will be able to make up the spring football practices missed during the pandemic shutdown.
“The guidance we have received from MU Health Care, as well as city and county officials, and the SEC’s Medical Task Force,” Sterk said, “has provided a road map that allows us to safely open our facilities for supervised voluntary activities while continuing to provide academic support, medical and mental health care, and meals to our student-athletes that they would not have access to if they were at home.”
This story was originally published May 22, 2020 at 1:36 PM.