Coronavirus Pandemic Impacts

[Pablo]

Perhaps, Coach Paulsen should consider recruiting JUCO players - https://www.espn.com/college-sports...juco-athletes-lose-eligibility-2020-21-season:

"The National Junior College Athletic Association board of regents approved a blanket waiver on Thursday for all sports in the 2020-21 season, meaning athletes at 512 member institutions in 45 states will not lose a year of eligibility regardless of their levels of participation this year.

The NCAA has not commented on the NJCAA waiver, but it has traditionally worked in concert with the junior college organization. The ruling potentially means that freshmen could play this spring and still enter a four-year school with four years of eligibility. Likewise, junior college athletes would be eligible to return for a third season."

"Many junior college basketball teams have already begun practice for a shortened season that begins on Jan. 2. Teams are permitted to play up to 22 games in the spring, with the championship tournaments ending on April 24."

 

[Pablo]

https://www.espn.com/mens-college-b...st-play-20-league-games-mens-women-basketball:

"IRVINE, Calif. -- The Big West Conference will play 20 league games in men's and women's basketball under a modified format that will reduce travel during the coming season because of the coronavirus.

The league announced its schedules on Wednesday.

No spectators will be allowed at games initially, although the league said it will revisit that issue as the season progresses.

The traditional home-and-home round-robin schedule has been altered so that teams will play the same opponent on consecutive days at one site, with the majority of games being played on Friday and Saturday. Each school's schedule will be played over 11 weeks, with a bye week built in.

Games won't be rescheduled if a team needs to quarantine because of the coronavirus during the season. Tiebreaking procedures will be used at the end of the regular season.

Big West play will begin with back-to-back games on Dec. 27-28. The regular season will end on March 6. Men's and women's teams will play the same opponent at opposite venues."

 

[Five Two]

Interesting study from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health about Wisconsin high school athletes and the virus.
https://ortho.wisc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/WI-HS-Sports-COVID-19-Summary.pdf

 

[Pablo]

Jeff Goodman
@GoodmanHoops
·
1h

A-Sun is changing course and going with a Thursday/Saturday approach in which it will play two games at the same site.

Smart move. Honestly, more leagues should take a similar approach in order to get as many league games in this season.

 

[Pablo]

https://collegehoopstoday.com/index...n-on-bubble-for-conference-play-in-2-3-weeks/:

"Sources: WCC to make decision on bubble in next 2-3 weeks
October 25, 2020 by Jon Rothstein

The WCC is considering playing its conference games in a bubble in Las Vegas during the 20-21 season, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the situation.

An official decision is expected in the next 2-3 weeks."

 

[Five Two]

ESPN has bailed on Orlando events due to differences over testing protocols among the different schools.
https://theathletic.com/2160764/202...ancel-espn-champions-classic-jimmy-v-classic/

 

[gmujim92]

Amid all the caterwauling about our lack of a schedule, it turns out we’re right where everyone else is ... trying to figure shit out.

 

[tblack33]

Amid all the caterwauling about our lack of a schedule, it turns out we’re right where everyone else is ... trying to figure shit out.

I’ll caterwaul all I please damn it.

 

[mkaufman1]

I mean Dave is just trying to find the closest teams to 350 in RPI that are willing to play Mason so its always pretty difficult to figure scheduling out for him.

 

[Pablo]

https://www.espn.com/mens-college-b...rside-terms-division-survival-season-covid-19:

"Every day spent in the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic seems to reveal a new financial problem for another Division I program. Tamica Smith-Jones is no longer surprised to see those headlines -- she's living one.

Smith-Jones, the athletic director at the University of California, Riverside, located an hour east of Los Angeles, entered a campus building last week and tried to convince the school's budget executives not to eliminate every team on campus.

The Big West school stands to lose all 15 sports (seven men's programs and eight women's programs), more than 300 student-athletes and the $23 million budget line attached to them in a cost-saving measure.

'[Elimination] would put us in the category as the only University of California school to not have sports,' Smith-Jones said. 'I don't think that's something we want to be known for.'"

 

[Pablo]

Jeff Goodman
@GoodmanHoops
·
1h

Cal’s men’s basketball team will pause team workouts for up to two weeks after a member of the program received a positive COVID-19 result following a regularly scheduled PCR test.





Jeff Goodman
@GoodmanHoops
·
3h

Bethune-Cookman is the first hoops program to opt out of the season. Brutal news for head coach Ryan Ridder, his staff and players. Ridder has done a terrific job in a difficult situation. He won the MEAC in his first season, is 31-17 in league play in 3 years as head coach.


https://www.sandiegouniontribune.co...ookman-cancels-all-sports-for-2020-21-seasons:

"Bethune-Cookman will not be participating in intercollegiate sports this coming winter or spring, announcing Tuesday that it has canceled all athletic events for the remainder of the academic year because of ongoing concerns about the coronavirus pandemic.

University President E. LaBrent Chrite said the decision was made 'in the face of a surging COVID-19 spike' both in the state of Florida and across the country.

'We have concluded that the risks are too great for our student-athletes and staff to travel and compete at this time,' Chrite said.

Bethune-Cookman, located in Daytona Beach, Florida, has 15 varsity programs, and the fall 2020 seasons were canceled back in July. Chrite said the latest decision was made 'after a series of meetings with stakeholders across the campus' along with athletic director Lynn Thompson, coaches, health experts and state officials."

 

[Pablo]

Jeff Goodman
@GoodmanHoops
·
38m

Louisville announces it will allow approximately 3,000 fans per game (15 percent capacity) within the 22,090-seat KFC Yum! Center for men’s and women’s basketball games this season. All seating anticipated to be within the lower bowl and premium seating areas.




Jeff Goodman
@GoodmanHoops
·
58m

Big East commissioner Val Ackerman announces the Gavitt Games against the Big Ten are canceled for this season.

 

[Pablo]

Jeff Borzello
@jeffborzello
·
2h

Val Ackerman on a Big East bubble: “It’s a possibility. We are looking at a variety of game formats that would be an alternative to what we’re calling the travel model.”

But plan A is to travel like they normally do and have a traditional schedule.

 

[Pablo]

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/l...3-billion-in-losses-11603857052?mod=home-page:

"The Athletic reported that Major League Baseball lost roughly $3.1 billion during the 2020 season.

The league’s EBITDA — earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization — showed a loss of about $2.7 billion, according to The Athletic.

This figure would break down to an average loss of about $100 million per team, although the losses vary by team despite some revenue sharing measures in place.

Team owners have been laying off workers to cope with the financial losses related to the coronavirus pandemic. Scouts, stadium workers and sales staff have been hit particularly hard from the layoffs.

The $3.1 billion loss is large, but still lower than the $4 billion loss owners expected at the beginning of the season.

'We are going to be at historic high levels of debt,' MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred told Sportico on Monday. 'And it’s going to be difficult for the industry to weather another year where we don’t have fans in the ballpark and have other limitations on how much we can’t play and how we can play.'

The losses and financial uncertainty may not stop with the conclusion of the 2020 MLB season.

'It’s absolutely certain, I know, that we’re going to have to have conversations with the MLBPA about what 2021 is going to look like,' Manfred said. 'It’s difficult to foresee a situation right now where everything’s just normal. And obviously, if it’s not normal we’re going to have to have conversations about it.'”



https://www.marketwatch.com/video/s...williams/1C3CA5CE-0EB3-4741-8803-5EEECC45B081

 

[Pablo]

Brett McMurphy
@Brett_McMurphy
·
4h

Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst among 12 members (6 athletes, 6 staff members) of Badgers program that tested positive for COVID in past 5 days. Additional test results are pending

Brett McMurphy
@Brett_McMurphy
·
4h

Wisconsin-Nebraska game canceled & Badgers pause all team-related activities for at least 7 days due to an elevated number of COVID-19 cases within program

 

[Pablo]

Jon Rothstein
@JonRothstein
·
4m

Dan Gavitt on the CDC's mandatory 14-day quarantine if one player tests positive for COVID-19: "We're hopeful that may evolve during the season. I don't anticipate that there's going to be a change before the season begins."
Quote Tweet

Jon Rothstein
@JonRothstein
· 5m
NCAA Senior VP of Basketball Dan Gavitt tells me that recent COVID-19 spikes have influenced the NCAA's thoughts regarding putting the 2021 NCAA Tournament in a bubble.



https://www.sandiegouniontribune.co...ain-west-conference-bubble-schedule-las-vegas:

"The Mountain West released an 18-game conference basketball schedule earlier this month. The plan for now is to stick with it.

Or maybe that should be, the hope is to stick with it.

The West Coast Conference is seriously considering a bubble format in Las Vegas for its league season, and Mountain West Commissioner Craig Thompson admitted the WCC might have company."

 

[Pablo]

Jeff Goodman
@GoodmanHoops
·
Oct 31

One head coach to me last night:

“We aren’t in an MTE, and we have no idea who we are playing right now or when. Have zero contracts.”

The season starts in 26 days.

 

[Patriot8]

Jeff Goodman
@GoodmanHoops
·
Oct 31

One head coach to me last night:

“We aren’t in an MTE, and we have no idea who we are playing right now or when. Have zero contracts.”

The season starts in 26 days.

Mason will be playing in the Williams College MTE. Other schools will be Le Moyne and Lebanon Valley.

 

[Pablo]

Jon Rothstein
@JonRothstein
·
3h

Sources: Fordham has paused basketball workouts for two weeks after a program member has tested positive for COVID-19. This is the first positive test within the Rams' athletic department since August.



Jon Rothstein
@JonRothstein
·
1h

Sources: Conference-USA is considering playing its league games back-to-back on Friday/Saturday this season instead of Thursday/Saturday for safety purposes. Games will be held at same location. ADs are expected to vote this week on ruling.


[URL='https://twitter.com/JonRothstein']Jon Rothstein
@JonRothstein[/URL]
·
1h

Sources: WCC Presidents will review and discuss this week whether or not the conference will play its league games in a bubble in this season. WCC is looking at multiple sites in Las Vegas for bubble play.

 

[Pablo]

Jon Rothstein
@JonRothstein
·
57m

UConn's attendance for home games at Gampel Pavilion this season will be limited to families of both coaches and student-athletes, per release.