By Harry Minium
Old Dominion University will take the first step toward playing football on Monday when players slowly begin returning to campus. At first, a few dozen will gather, most who live near Norfolk, to be followed in the next few weeks by the rest of the team.
This is a modest start, but it's also a visible sign that, yes, we are planning to play football.
The players will participate in voluntary workouts, meaning they will do conditioning drills and lift weights under the supervision of ODU's strength and conditioning staff.
Full football practice under coach Ricky Rahne and his staff will start in late July or early August.
Dr. Wood Selig, ODU's athletic director, says that because of the ever-changing coronavirus pandemic, we don't have details yet for hosting games on campus. It is, he says, still a work in progress.
"We're working with the University and state officials to determine how to best protect our players, coaches, fans and stadium staff," Selig said.
"We don't have all the answers yet, but each day brings us closer to our initial plan for the season."
We would all love to see the 21,944 seats at Kornblau Field at S.B. Ballard Stadium full when the Monarchs open on Friday, Sept. 4 against Wake Forest.
But it's likely that our venues will have a reduced seating capacity to comply with state guidelines. How many fans will be allowed into the stadium will be determined over the next four to six weeks.
We won't have answers to your questions about stadium capacity or how gameday may look or feel until then. We ask for your patience until we, and so many other universities, finalize our plans.
Dr. Wood Selig, ODU's athletic director, says final plans for the 2020 football season will be ready in 4-to-6 weeks.
We've been working on these plans for months. ODU's senior athletic staff has been meeting twice weekly via Zoom and the first order of business is almost always how do we bring athletes and fans back to campus safely?
Because so much still remains unknown, we have postponed deadlines for renewal of football season tickets. Thousands of you have renewed, and we appreciate that. Your support, especially under these circumstances, means everything to our players and coaching staff.
I spoke with some of you not long ago when the athletic department reached out to our season ticket holders by phone. Most who I talked to said they could not wait to see football played once again. We can't wait to see you back at S.B. Ballard Stadium, either.
If you've purchased tickets, you did so at no risk. If the season is shortened or isn't played, we will fully refund all ticket purchases, or you can receive a credit for future ticket purchases.
Football players will be the first athletes to come back on campus since mid March, when officials moved all classes online in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
"All athletes need time to get themselves back into shape through acclimation," Senior Associate Athletic Director Bruce Stewart said.
"Athletes will be coming back during the middle of the summer. It's so important for them to get their bodies adjusted to the heat associated with the summer months.
"You have to gradually bring athletes along so that when competition begins, they are physically ready."
Athletes and employees will report to campus in stages, with the last athletes to report on Aug. 8, when all students report back to campus.
The University will start class two weeks early on Aug. 15 and will end the semester two weeks early, just before Thanksgiving. The schedule was changed to protect students, faculty and others.
Athletes returning to campus will follow a protocol designed by a pretty smart group of people led by Morris Foster, ODU's director of research; Dr. Brad Butkovich, a local orthopedic surgeon and ODU's team doctor; and Dr. Robert Dunker, director of student health services, as well trainers, strength and conditioning coaches, facilities and academic officials.
"The driver for our plan was the collaboration of medical personnel on the committee," Stewart said.
Stewart and others also consulted with state officials and have followed state Health Department and Centers for Disease Control guidelines. I listened for nearly 90 minutes as Stewart and others went over the plan recently and it's a pretty detailed blueprint.
I only have room to summarize part of the plan, but I think you'll get the point.
It calls for athletes to do a seven-day self-quarantine period before reporting to campus. All athletes and athletic staff will be tested and must present a negative COVID-19 test to participate in workouts or, in the case of employees, return to work.
If athletes test positive, they will be self-isolated under the supervision of the University's Student Health Services. The Virginia Health Department will also do contact tracing on any athlete who tests positive.
Face coverings must be worn indoors, and touchless sanitizer dispensers have been placed in all ODU's athletic facilities. Athletes will receive guidance on the best practices for protecting themselves, including frequent hand washing and social distancing.
For instance, only 10 football players will be allowed in the L.R. Hill Sports Complex weight room at a time and will be separated by more than the required six feet. That's 10 people, mind you, in a 17,000-square foot facility.
Weight machines will be cleaned regularly between groups.
Each athlete will have his or her own water bottle, which can be filled from touchless water fountains.
Access to athletic facilities will be limited to those who have appointments to be there.
In short, we're doing everything we can to comply with medical best practices.
We're all going through tough times. This year has been in many ways the most tragic and most difficult I've experienced in my 67 years.
As coach Rahne said a few months ago, when football resumes, it will be the first real sign that the nation may be returning to normalcy.
When that happens, we're determined to provide Monarch Nation with the safest, most entertaining experience possible.
Contact Minium: hminium@odu.edu
Minium: Football Players Returning to Campus Means That, Yes, ODU Plans to Play Football
