From wake-up calls to check-ins, TCU football trying to keep players in a routine
Even though they may not be on campus amid the coronavirus pandemic, TCU football coach Gary Patterson is doing his best to keep players in a structured routine.
That means wake-up calls at 8:30 a.m. That means assistants checking in daily. That means keeping everything as close to being on campus as possible.
So far, so good as TCU students returned to school from an extended spring break on Monday in an online-only format.
But, as Patterson said jokingly in a phone interview Wednesday afternoon, “It’s kind of like asking me after the second day of fall practice — how’s it going? I don’t know. We haven’t even hit pads yet. We’re just in the first week.
“There’s going to be guys that are going to do better than the others just like regular students. The further we go, there’s a help line academically, plus academic support downstairs for these guys. Everybody is just going to have to put more effort into it. But we’ve got time to put more effort into it. We’re not practicing.”
As of now, there is nothing football-related TCU or any Big 12 team can do. The conference has suspended all sports-related activities, including meetings, until at least Sunday when it will be re-evaluated.
But Patterson is hopeful they’ll be able to use the various online platforms to show film and teach players remotely in the near future.
“Right now, we can’t do that,” Patterson said. “Hopefully we’ll be given something where we can do that.”
In the meantime, Patterson is like everyone else in trying to social distance and do his part to get through the pandemic. His staff has become familiar with Zoom for video conferences and online meetings so they can work from home.
And, like every other college football coach, Patterson has the same questions when it comes to whether spring practices will resume at some point and what the offseason will look like.
TCU managed to get four of 15 spring practices in before being shut down. Some teams got more. Some teams got less.
“How do you make it fair for everybody?” Patterson said. “I think that’s what the NCAA and the conference commissioners, AFCA and everybody is trying to work out. How do we make it fair? It’s really hard to talk about any of that right now because of where we are at even having a season this year. Right now, we’re just going to worry about things we can control.”
As far as Patterson is concerned, if spring practices are canceled entirely, he’d be a proponent of having a minicamp-type setup in late June, early July. He doesn’t think trying to squeeze spring practices in May makes much sense with so many weeks off.
“You’re not going to want to practice in May because you haven’t been able to run and lift with your kids,” Patterson said. “You’re going to have to get in an eight- or nine-week cycle to get your kids back in shape and get your kids stronger.
“If you had your options on the time where you probably would want to have some OTAs, you’d probably want to be able to do it at the end of June, after the Fourth of July and be able to get a break. That way you can get in your lifting and running and make sure your kids were in good physical condition to be able to handle what you go through when you go through fall practice. Then you go from there.”
For now, Patterson is mostly focused on the present. He said academics and ensuring student athletes are in a safe environment are the top priorities.
Most TCU athletes have returned home, although some remain on campus. Whether it’s injury-related rehab or basic internet needs, TCU is open to students if being on campus is a better environment than returning home.
“Where I’m from in western Kansas, they don’t have [easily accessible] WiFi,” Patterson said. “They don’t have tablets. You don’t have things where you can do everything online. You have to set a kid up to be successful. You have to have a good plan. That’s as simple as I can say it. Everybody’s on a case by case basis.”
This story was originally published March 25, 2020 at 4:27 PM.
