The college football world is largely in wait-and-see mode as leaders across the country try to sort out which way will be forward in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Much of this focus in recent days has centered not on the spring but rather the fall... and if the sport can start on time (or even at all).
We’ve had a wide variety of opinions on the subject, including ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit remarking he thinks kickoff might not happen in 2020. Though there has been push back to that thought, there’s been increased discussion as to some of the potential goal posts we need to reach before things like fall camp can occur. Dates like June 1, July 1 and August 1 have all been bandied about but one key figure provided some additional research into the matter in a conference call with the media.
According to Penn State athletic director Sandy Barbour, football teams will need two months of lead time on campus to physically prepare for the upcoming season:
Barbour also says that she doesn’t see a scenario where it is healthy/safe enough for students to play not have crowds.
— Ben Jones (@Ben_Jones88) April 2, 2020
Sandy Barbour: "We're not bringing students back to campus until it's safe." In other words, no football if students aren't on campus.
— Dennis Dodd (@dennisdoddcbs) April 2, 2020
A two month window before the season starts would put things right around July 1, an important date in college athletics in general as the start of the fiscal year. There’s been the concept of an NFL-style OTA or summer practice session floated to make up for the loss of the spring ball and that would also align with the time frame Barbour provided.
Another key component though is simply re-opening campuses like Penn State. Fellow Big Ten university Ohio State was among the first schools to move to online-only instruction for summer sessions and that would take the Buckeyes right up to the point where the football team would begin fall camp. Obviously athletics might be allowed to come back earlier than a general student population but Barbour’s comments indicate that there won’t be any potential for games without fans. Other AD’s have already noted how tough that would be from a financial sense anyway.
Will college football happen on time this year? It’s increasingly clear that nobody knows for sure. If kickoff is to actually happen in any form though, it does appear as though there will be some key restrictions on how programs ramp up and get ready for the pads to pop for real in 2020.