LEXINGTON, Ky. — As professional sports leagues move ahead with plans to restart without fans in attendance, the prospect of a college football season in the fall in empty stadiums still faces additional challenges.
Asked Monday if he thinks colleges could play without fans, Kentucky football coach Mark Stoops said he thinks that proposition is unlikely.
"I think the first thing that comes to mind is there’s going to be a lot of critics out there, the optics of it," Stoops said. "To say that you’re going to have college players out there that are allowed to play and line up six inches apart from each other and breathe on each other, sweat on each other, get in big piles and do all of that, but you’re not allowed to have fans in the stadium? That’s going the be the first thing you hear. ... I’m not sure that’s a viable option."
Stoops is generally reluctant to speculate on hypothetical situations, preferring to follow the mantra he tells his players daily: Control what you can control.
In response to multiple questions about delaying the college football season or the chances of playing at all during the coronavirus pandemic during a Zoom news conference with reporters Monday, Stoops noted those decisions would be made by administrators above him in the pecking order.
He was clear that he, his assistant coaches and players want to play whenever public health officials say it is safe to do so.
But if that means playing without fans in the stands, as many professional leagues a preparing to do as the economy is reopened this summer, Stoops has hesitations.
"The other thing (that is different) compared to the NFL is financially," Stoops said. "I think it’s very important to have people in the stands. We know universities are counting on that. We need people in the stands. Before this whole situation happened you heard me talking about it and kind of encouraging our fan base to pick it up and to pick up season tickets and to get in there because we need them. It makes a difference to us having them in there, both financially and for their support."
UK athletics director Mitch Barnhart declined an interview request from The Courier Journal to address the financial impact a delayed or canceled college football season might have on the program, citing continued uncertainty about what the situation will look like by the fall.
Several athletics departments, including Louisville, have already begun to make cuts though.
Stoops said earlier this spring he would be open to giving back part of his salary to the athletics department to help offset any revenue lost during the pandemic. He reiterated that point Monday but said Barnhart has not signaled Kentucky needs to take that step yet, as other schools have.
For now with UK's campus closed to in-person classes, Stoops is meeting with players and coaches using Zoom, urging them to take personal accountability for their offseason workouts and academic work.
Stoops said he is on the same page with other Southeastern Conference coaches about the time needed to safely prepare for a season when universities are allowed to bring students back to campuses, noting the coaches and league office held a conference call in which they discussed the topic last week. He declined to address the specific timetable coaches have agreed on, but said they hope for some leeway from the NCAA about additional coaching opportunities with their players not usually allowed during the summer to make up for missed spring practices whenever players return to campus.
"Make sure they’re physically ready to play and in good shape, taking care of their safety, that’s first and foremost," Stoops said. "Then from there, what can we do to make sure we’re putting a good product on the field?"
Stoops acknowledged the importance of considering all scenarios, including a postponed season, in order not be caught with "our heads in the sand," but he said he will continue to prepare for UK to open the season on Sept. 5 as scheduled until told otherwise.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear has already warned against planning on large crowds at sporting events this fall, so if college football needs to be played with fans in attendance, the chances of a postponement seem even greater.
"If it does get pushed back, then we’ll deal with it," Stoops said. "We’ll deal with the best we can. It’s real important for us to be out there, it’s important for our state and our community, and it’s important for our fans to be there.
"... You know it’s not my decision. That’s from people that are a lot smarter than me, but when they tell us it’s safe enough, we want to be out there. I want to be out there with fans in attendance too, because I believe they make a difference. We feel that energy. It’s a part of our sport."
Jon Hale: jahale@courier-journal.com; Twitter: @JonHale_CJ. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: https://ift.tt/2zShSql.
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