Tag: Southeastern Conference

SEC football players share concerns about playing amid COVID-19 pandemic, per report

Most SEC programs have been able to avoid widespread outbreaks of the coronavirus within their facilities; others have been less fortunate.

Editor’s Note: This article was originally published by Josh Vitale of the Montgomery Advisor with USA TODAY Sports. 

After the Southeastern Conference decided last week to move forward with a 10-game, conference-only football schedule during the coronavirus pandemic, we didn’t hear much from players.

That changed Saturday, though not by the conference’s doing.

The Washington Post obtained audio of a conference call conducted Wednesday among SEC administrators including Commissioner Greg Sankey, medical advisers and members of the SEC Football Student-Athlete Leadership Council, during which the players expressed concerns about the upcoming season as COVID-19 cases continue to spike throughout the country.

So far, most SEC programs have been able to avoid widespread outbreaks of the novel coronavirus within their facilities. Programs in other areas of the country haven’t been as lucky — Michigan State and Rutgers recently decided to isolate their entire rosters after multiple positive tests.

The question Ole Miss linebacker MoMo Sanogo posed, according to The Post, was what happens when thousands of students return to campus for the fall semester? Sanogo said he has four classes per week, and if those classmates go to bars and parties, he could be at risk of being infected even if he doesn’t, even with smaller class sizes and required face masks.

One of the officials on the call told the 21-year-old “as un-fun as it sounds, the best thing that you can do is just try to encourage others to act more responsibly and not put yourself in those kinds of situations. I’m very comfortable with what we’ve done on campus. I’m concerned about what happens from 5 p.m. until 5 a.m.”

“There are going to be outbreaks,” another official said, according to The Post. “We’re going to have positive cases on every single team in the SEC. That’s a given. And we can’t prevent it.”

The SEC responded to The Post’s story with a statement Saturday:

“The SEC hosts videoconferences with the SEC Football Student-Athlete Leadership Council to engage in candid conversation, share information and develop greater understanding of issues important to our student-athletes. The calls are intended to be confidential …

“The information we gather while engaging with student-athletes helps inform Conference decisions and provides an opportunity to share information with our campus leaders to further enhance our continuing support of the student-athlete experience. The student-athletes on the call expressed appreciation for the honest dialogue, indicated the discussion was beneficial and requested a similar videoconference in the future.

“As we all work to adapt to the realities of COVID-19, we will continue to support the health of SEC student-athletes.”

Another player on the call, who did not identify himself, asked officials whether they knew what lasting health effects players might experience if they contract the virus.

“The problem is a lot of this we don’t know,” Ole Miss sports medicine physician Marshall Crowther said. He added that some people don’t have long-term complications, but acknowledged that there are growing concerns about how the virus affects people’s hearts.

“You guys have answered a lot of questions the best way that you guys could, and we really appreciate it. But as much as you guys don’t know … it’s just kind of not good enough,” Texas A&M linebacker Keeath Magee II said, per The Post.

“We want to play. We want to see football. We want to return to normal as much as possible. But it’s just that with all this uncertainty, all this stuff that’s still circulating in the air, y’all know it kind of leaves some of us still scratching my head. … I feel like the college campus is the one thing that you can’t control.”

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SEC Basketball Power Rankings: Where does Florida stack up?

Fittingly, Florida Gators men’s basketball is once again receiving a solid amount of offseason recognition based on their potential.

As we approach the fall and get closer to college basketball’s currently projected start in November, Sports Illustrated has released a power ranking of the 14 teams in the SEC.

Though Florida lost point guard Andrew Nembhard to the transfer portal, it retained Tre Mann, who decided to withdraw from the draft and return to Gainesville, as well as added a pair of talented transfers in Tyree Appleby and Anthony Duruji. Fittingly, the Gators are once again receiving a solid amount of offseason recognition based on their potential.

SI currently has Florida as the No. 2 team in the conference behind Kentucky, who may be vulnerable this season after returning just one player from last year’s rotation. Writer Jeremy Woo is optimistic about the talent that UF returns.

Keeping Scottie Lewis and Keyontae Johnson for another year was a major coup for Mike White, and the Gators should be able to build on last year’s 11–7 conference mark. Someone will have to step up at point guard, preferably Tre Mann, who had a slightly disappointing freshman season but should get the first crack at replacing Andrew Nembhard. Transfers Tyree Appleby and Anthony Duruji should step into the rotation, and the Gators should be sound defensively again. If a go-to scorer emerges from the group, Florida should have a real shot to win the league. To be fair, we said that last year.

Here is the full SEC power ranking.

  1. Kentucky
  2. Florida
  3. Tennessee
  4. LSU
  5. Arkansas
  6. Alabama
  7. South Carolina
  8. Ole Miss
  9. Auburn
  10. Missouri
  11. Texas A&M
  12. Mississippi State
  13. Georgia
  14. Vanderbilt

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Don’t get too excited about a 10-game SEC football schedule

If there’s one thing the attempted returns of the NBA and MLB have shown us, it’s that sports are currently not feasible outside a bubble.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began earlier this year, many fans have expressed frustrations with members of the sports media for what having what they perceive to be a rooting interest in sports being canceled this fall.

I understand this impulse. We all want sports back. We all want our lives back the way they were before. And when you see someone express doubts about the feasibility of doing so, especially when it’s someone whose job is talking about college sports, it can be irritating. Be forewarned, this is one of those columns.

But I want to be clear: I do not want the football season to be canceled. As a journalism student set to graduate this December, the cancellation of the season would not only potentially impact my current employment. It could also impact my future stability immensely.

But there’s a difference between rooting for sports to be canceled and expressing skepticism and criticism toward the safety considerations (or lack thereof) taken by leagues. There’s a difference between hoping for this disastrous situation to perpetuate and arguing against shortsighted action that jeopardizes the longterm viability of sports.

My sympathies are with the latter when I say that I don’t expect college football to happen this fall, in any capacity.

With the SEC’s announcement on Thursday of a 10-game, conference-only football schedule, the Big 12 is the only Power 5 league yet to adjust its scheduling in a major way. Soon enough, it will follow suit.

But that won’t be enough.

If there’s one thing the attempted returns of the NBA and MLB have shown us, it’s that sports are currently not feasible if they aren’t contained within a bubble. Baseball opening day was just over a week ago, and six teams are already out of action on Friday due to exposure with COVID-positive individuals. Twenty people within the Miami Marlins organization have tested positive.

Baseball is about as socially distanced as a team sport can be, and it’s still spreading like wildfire within organizations. Just imagine, for a second, what would happen if athletics were held on a college campus.

Meanwhile, the NBA’s bubble has been a massive success story. With strict enforcement of rules, the association has had zero positive results in the last two weeks. The NHL began a similar experiment this week.

But an isolated bubble isn’t possible for baseball. And it definitely isn’t possible for football. Team size and logistical issues would keep it from materializing in the NFL, and the sheer number of teams and resource discrepancies would make it a nonstarter at the college level.

Far be it from me to underestimate the stubbornness of college athletics administrators, though. I don’t doubt that they’ll try to have a season at all costs.

The season may start, but it sure as hell won’t finish. And that would be a disaster.

The real shame is that time was never the issue here. The NCAA has had since March to see the writing on the wall and form a backup plan. That time was wasted figuring out exactly how soon it could get players back on campus.

I’m hopeful that a season can happen to some extent, even if it has to be in the spring. But each day that passes, an all-out cancelation seems more and more likely, and the tragedy is that it didn’t have to be this way.

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Gators News: July 31, 2020

Another week is nearly in the books, but none have been nearly as eventful as this past week with big news both in the college and pros.

Another week is nearly in the books, but none have been nearly as eventful as this past week in the sports world since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, with big news happening both in the collegiate and professional ranks.

In college football news, the Southeastern Conference finally announced that it will play out a 10-game, conference-only schedule this fall in response to other major conferences making similar arrangements. While the exact lineup of games has not yet been listed, one of the glaring voids on the calendar for Gators fans is the loss of the Florida State rivalry game in 2020 — the first time since 1958 that the two schools will not face each other on the gridiron.

As has been mentioned in these Gators News reports over the past few days, Major League Baseball continues to struggle with its abbreviated 60-game season as the novel coronavirus continues to rear its ugly head in clusters around the league, with the St. Louis Cardinals the latest team falling victim to multiple positive tests.

However, the National Basketball Association re-launched its season yesterday from its “bubble” at Disney’s Wide World of Sports complex to a great deal of fanfare, as the league has managed to avoid the mishaps that have befallen MLB with its novel approach to playing out its games. While time will tell how well it works, from the looks of it, the NBA is the only organization to get things right in the battle against COVID-19.

 

Around the Swamp

It’s great to be a Florida Gator!

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SEC announces plan to play 10-game conference-only football schedule

The SEC announced that its member schools will adhere to a 10-game, conference-only schedule for the upcoming 2020 football season.

The Southeastern Conference announced on Thursday that its member schools will adhere to a 10-game, conference-only schedule for the upcoming 2020 football season beginning on Sept. 26.

From the press release:

The 2020 SEC football season will be comprised of a 10-game Conference-only schedule and the SEC Football Championship Game will be played December 19 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, rescheduled from the original date of December 5. The schedule will include one mid-season open date for each school and an open date on December 12 for all schools.

“This new plan for a football schedule is consistent with the educational goals of our universities to allow for the safe and orderly return to campus of their student populations and to provide a healthy learning environment during these unique circumstances presented by the COVID-19 virus,” Sankey said.  “This new schedule supports the safety measures that are being taken by each of our institutions to ensure the health of our campus communities.”

This action was taken following extensive discussions and thorough deliberation among the SEC’s Presidents and Chancellors, Athletics Directors, Conference Office staff, and medical advisors, led by the SEC’s Return to Activity and Medical Guidance Task Force.

“After careful consideration of the public health indicators in our region and following advice of our medical advisors, we have determined that this is the best course of action to prepare for a safe and healthy return to competition for SEC student-athletes, coaches and others associated with our sports programs,” said Sankey.

The decision to limit competition to Conference-only opponents and rescheduling the SEC Championship Game is based on the need for maximum flexibility in making any necessary scheduling adjustments while reacting to developments around the pandemic and continued advice from medical professionals.

“We believe these schedule adjustments offer the best opportunity to complete a full season by giving us the ability to adapt to the fluid nature of the virus and the flexibility to adjust schedules as necessary if disruptions occur,” Sankey said.  “It is regrettable that some of our traditional non-conference rivalries cannot take place in 2020 under this plan, but these are unique, and hopefully temporary, circumstances that call for unconventional measures.”

The rescheduled start to the season will allow the SEC to continue to monitor health trends across its 11-state footprint, as well as monitor developments in technology around mitigation and treatment of the virus, including:

– Trends in public health indicators throughout the SEC’s 11-state footprint, including positive cases of COVID-19, hospitalizations and recovery statistics

– State, local and campus heath directives, including restrictions on gatherings, isolation requirements for travelers, and other health and travel restrictions

– Continued development of risk mitigation strategies

– Continued advancement in COVID-19 testing reliability and availability

– Continued evolution of time-based strategies for resuming activities after positive test results, including contact tracing, isolation and quarantine requirements

– Observation of successes and challenges presented by return to competition in other sports

A revised schedule for the 2020 SEC football season will be announced at a later date following approval by the Conference’s athletics directors.

Further decisions regarding safety standards related to athletics events, tailgating and other game day activities, including social distancing, face covering and other health measures consistent with CDC, state and local guidelines, will be announced at a later date.

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SEC votes to honor scholarships of student-athletes who opt out of fall sports

With concerns over COVID-19, some student-athletes might decide not take part in sports this fall.

The Southeastern Conference announced on Friday that, if a student-athlete on scholarship decides to sit out for fall sports due to health or concerns over hazards involving the COVID-19, their scholarship will still be honored.

From the statement:

“Southeastern Conference student-athletes who elect to not participate in intercollegiate athletics during the fall 2020 academic semester because of health and/or safety concerns related to COVID-19 will continue to have their scholarships honored by their university and will remain in good standing with their team, the Conference announced Friday.

The action is the result of a unanimous vote of the SEC’s Presidents and Chancellors following a recommendation of the Conference’s Athletics Directors.

“SEC universities are committed to full support of its student-athletes, whether or not a student-athlete decides to participate in sports during these uncertain times,” said SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey.  “SEC student-athletes have frequently expressed their desire to compete, but it is important for student-athletes and their families to know the financial support committed to them by their institutions will not be at risk because of health concerns presented by the current pandemic.”

The SEC will continue to monitor developments related to COVID-19 to determine at a later date if the policy should be extended to the Spring semester of 2021 or beyond.”

Gators men’s basketball a No. 6 seed in latest ESPN bracketology

In the latest update from ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi to his 2021 NCAA Tournament predictions, the Gators were picked as a No. 6 seed.

In the latest update from ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi to his 2021 NCAA Tournament predictions, the Gators were picked as a No. 6 seed.

Lunardi placed Florida in the West Region, where Gonzaga is the No. 1 seed, set to play the first and second rounds in Dallas. Its projected first-round opponent is the victor of a play-in game between No. 11 seeds Clemson and Seton Hall. If coach Mike White’s team were to survive the first game, it would likely play No. 3 seed Texas Tech in the second round. With this bracket, the Gators could also draw Kentucky in the Elite Eight.

UF is one of seven SEC teams predicted by Lunardi to make the tournament, the third-most represented conference behind the Big 10 and ACC, which are each projected to put nine teams into the tournament. The other SEC teams slotted by Lunardi to make the big dance are No. 4 Kentucky, No. 4 Tennessee, No. 8 Alabama, No. 8 Arkansas, No. 8 LSU and No. 10 Ole Miss.

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Gators News: July 16, 2020

The main story this week for Gators fans has been the SEC’s response to the Big 10’s and the PAC-12’s decision to play conference-only games

Thursday is here again and as we cruise towards the weekend things remain pretty weird in the sports world thanks to the COVID-19 outbreak and the varying ways both the public and athletic leagues have responded to it.

The main story this week for Gators fans has been the Southeastern Conference’s response to the Big 10’s and the PAC-12’s decision to limit its conference schedules within the confines of its member ranks, which could be something of a compromise at this point. The SEC has suggested a 10-game schedule this season consisting of eight intra-conference games and two non-conference games among three models, including an eight-game SEC-only plan and a nine or 10-game schedule that would include at least one scheduled Power 5 matchup.

Here is the rest of the news from the Gator Nation.

Around the Swamp

It’s great to be a Florida Gator!

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Here’s a look at the SEC’s best receivers from each school and how they rank

This 3rd installment in our Gators Wire original series will attempt to rank the likely No. 1 wide receiver for every member school in fall.

After previously examining each Southeastern Conference program’s projected quarterback and lead tailback entering the 2020 season, this third installment in our Gators Wire original series will attempt to rank the likely No. 1 wide receiver for every member school this fall.

Featuring high-powered offenses throughout the league’s 14 teams, the conference had nine wideouts selected in the 2020 National Football League Draft, meaning there will be some big names to replace and opportunities for returning players to step into larger roles.

The Florida Gators had three receivers chosen in the draft, the most of any SEC program, with Van Jefferson coming off the board at No. 57 to the Los Angeles Rams, Freddie Swain at No. 214 to the Seattle Seahawks, and Tyrie Cleveland at No. 252 to the Denver Broncos, the fourth-to-last overall selection.

Three of the league’s wideouts went in the first-round, headed by Alabama Crimson Tide standout Henry Ruggs III to the Las Vegas Raiders at No. 12. His teammate, Jerry Jeudy, followed shortly behind, selected by the Broncos at No. 15, and Justin Jefferson of the LSU Tigers was plucked by the Minnesota Vikings at No. 22.

NEXT: No. 14 Josh Ali – Kentucky Wildcats

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Walmart requires masks, trying to save college football in 2020

The major retail store is one of the latest to require masks to be worn while shopping in its premises.

(This was originally published by Matt Zemek on Trojans Wire.)

It’s not a joke, and it’s definitely not an anti-Southerners thing, either. This REALLY is serious business: Walmart, America’s largest retailer, has decided to require all customers to wear masks. The news broke early on Wednesday:

Let’s be very clear about this: Walmart executives and administrators didn’t have extensive meetings and say, “Darnit, we have to save college football for 2020.” This is — first and foremost — a move meant to promote public health and safety, to get the coronavirus under control. Walmart’s reach in and through American life and the nation’s economy made it important to commit to this plan, which could ripple throughout the country and affect tens of millions of citizens for the better. The domino effect on positive cases, hospitalizations, uses of ventilators, and deaths could be notable.

(You will note that I used the word “could,” as opposed to “will.” I am not a scientist and don’t want to project scientific certainty.)

At the very least, even if you are unconvinced about mask-wearing (and there are plenty of Americans who fall in that camp, a result partly brought about by Anthony Fauci’s own lies and the lies from other public health officials about the effectiveness of mask-wearing in the past winter), this much is clear:

Walmart OBVIOUSLY felt it had to pull the trigger on mask requirements. The company’s cost-benefit and public health analyses led it to the conclusion that it had to put this rule in place, to reduce spread of COVID-19. Yes, in an immediate sense, this was not and is not primarily a college football-related move.

But: Walmart is a company with a substantial presence in the South; more precisely, it has a substantial presence in the less urbanized areas of the South, with fewer alternative or upscale shopping options for large numbers of citizens. Walmart is often — by necessity, as a geographical reality — the main grocery outlet for a lot of Southerners to an extent not matched in some of the other regions of the country, especially the more populous regions.

The idea that college football is completely irrelevant to Walmart’s decision is — I would think — inaccurate. There is definitely increased anxiety in the South about college football not happening in the fall, which would be a massive psychic blow to the region if it happened.

Unconvinced about this last point?

I give you this, from earlier in the week:

College football is such a part of the bloodstream of Southern culture — part of the DNA of the fabric of life in the South — that Walmart executives have surely become more aware of the enormity of what could happen in the coming months. It isn’t — and hasn’t been — the job of Walmart executives to save college football, but I’m sure they either hear about it or talk about it once every few days.

The Southeastern Conference and its coaches have become more aggressive in promoting the need to wear a mask:

You can generally see Southern public figures and entities who carry enormous influence mobilizing to try to save college football. Walmart’s decision on Wednesday — while not primarily motivated by the need to save college football in 2020 — surely INCLUDES the salvation of college football as one of its many goals. It’s all part of a region beginning to realize what’s at stake.

Now, if only Mitch McConnell and Nancy Pelosi would get on board with monthly checks to all Americans, paying them to stay home in a pandemic. Walmart’s decision will give college football a chance of being played, but monthly checks and the continuation of unemployment assistance remain the biggest things which can be done to enable college football to be played this fall.