Will college football be able to hold its season? TCU is hoping it can happen by fall
TCU football is set to open its season at Cal on Sept. 5. That game remains on for now, athletic director Jeremiah Donati said Wednesday.
Everything, though, is subject to change these days amid the coronavirus pandemic. With positive cases surging across the country, forcing states such as California to order new shut downs this week, the idea of playing college football this fall seems to lessen on a daily basis.
“We may find our reality and what we have to be OK with is that we may not be ready to return to live sports,” Donati said. “I don’t think we’re there yet, but the trends lately haven’t been good.”
Until that point comes, Donati and the Horned Frogs continue preparations for the season to start on Sept. 5 in Berkeley, California.
“We’re still pressing toward the game Sept. 5,” he said. “There’s been no discussions otherwise at this point.”
Instead, the latest discussions have centered on forecasting different scenarios and contingency plans for the football season. Among the items being discussed:
▪ Comparable testing protocols. Donati said TCU would not play a team that doesn’t have comparable testing protocols. That is not expected to be an issue for fellow Big 12 schools or non-conference opponents such as Cal and SMU.
But a school such as Prairie View A&M, which TCU is scheduled to host for its home opener on Sept. 12, may not have the necessary resources to conduct comparable testing. Donati has already reached out to Prairie View A&M about this subject and expects to have a conversation soon with incoming AD Donald Reed.
“I fully expect to have a conversation with my new counterpart over there soon,” Donati said. “But every school we play this year is going to have to have comparable testing protocols. We’re not going to put our kids in unnecessary harm’s way. We understand there’s risk in everything you do these days, but we’re not going to put them out there versus a team that hasn’t been tested via comparable standards and protocols that we’re putting our team through.”
▪ Playing matchmaker. With so much uncertainty facing schools going into the season, it’s possible that opponents could be scheduled less than a week out. If a program has an outbreak and is forced to bail on a game, schools will be looking for opponents potentially within days of the would-be open date.
That means schools could be playing the same opponent more than once during the regular season, if it makes sense at the time.
“Our objective is to play 12 games,” Donati said. “For any game where an opponent doesn’t make sense to proceed with, we’ll try to find a replacement. There’s potential matchmaking this year. Everybody wants to play 12 games. Playing 12 games gives you the best chance to be eligible for a bowl game and the College Football Playoff. There’s obviously financial considerations for your television deal.
“At the same time, you’ve got to make sure your student athletes and staff are healthy and safe throughout. You’re kind of balancing all of that.”
▪ Spring football? With so much uncertainty facing the fall, the idea of playing the season in the spring has been discussed. But that is the last-case scenario as far as Donati is concerned.
It’s easier said than done when you factor in the short offseason going into a fall 2021 season, television windows and health concerns.
“There are a number of complications that go along with it,” Donati said. “It would be considered if and when the time is right, but our top priority is to play the 2020 season in the fall.”
▪ Containing outbreaks. Donati has been pleased with how the school’s coronavirus testing protocols have gone since football players and staff started reporting back to the campus last month.
TCU has kept most of the numbers of coronavirus cases involving the football program in-house, although news of special assistant Jerry Kill testing positive became known in a CBS Sports report. A source said Kill has fully recovered and is doing great.
Donati has viewed most of the positive cases as isolated incidents.
“We haven’t had an outbreak,” he said. “I feel really good about our protocols and contact tracing. It is cumbersome and it does take a lot of time. That’s going to be a challenge this fall for all the sports — managing that. Frankly, right now we have 200 kids on campus and it’s taking up a lot of our day. What’s it going to be like when you’ve got 10,000 kids running around? That’s going to be every university’s challenge this fall.”
At the end of the day, Donati remains hopeful and optimistic that football will be played in the fall. He’s not ready to write off the season quite yet, or go into panic mode.
Donati is pleased with what he’s seen from TCU with players and staff wearing masks and social distancing on campus. He would like to think other campuses are seeing similar progress.
“In my heart, I think we’re going to play this fall,” he said. “We’re learning more about the virus. We’re learning more how to protect ourselves from the virus, but the big issue we have is we’re running from the virus until there is a treatment or vaccine. That’s just our reality right now. We’re at the stage of co-existing with the coronavirus.”
This story was originally published July 1, 2020 at 6:13 PM.
