The New Normal for College Athletics during COVID-19

With COVID-19 still being a major problem, how have college athletics, and more specifically Rochester Institute of Technology, had to change how sports are played?

It is now the end of the fall semester and we are still in a pandemic. Since March 2020, we have had to change how we do everyday activities to help reduce the spread of COVID-19. Many colleges have had to cancel their sporting events for the fall season. The NCAA has been hit pretty hard by COVID-19, with many college football teams not playing their full season and having limited to no crowds at games.

According to a report by Craig Garthwaite, a professor at Northwestern University, and Matthew J. Notowidigd, a professor at University of Chicago, they explained: “The combination of these factors is costing universities tens of millions of dollars and upending the underlying business model of college sports. Universities across the country have already responded by ending many low revenue sports. This had led to widespread lamentations about the decreased opportunities for intercollegiate athletes who play sports that cannot support themselves financially”.

One positive takeaway from all this is that the current business model for the NCAA has been more exposed to the public, with a focus on profit over students. Garthwaite and Notowidigdo stated:

“Its leaders would like to pretend it remains an amateur endeavor, but they only want to apply those cherished principles of amateurism to the athletes risking their health to generate profits, and not the coaches and administrators who financially benefit from the current system.”

How is RIT handling the situation so far?

“We have been dealing with it from the day we shut down last March to whenever it ends which could be next month or a year from now. So much uncertainty” said Wayne Wilson, head coach of RIT’s Men’s Division 1 hockey team. “We have been planning as a team, an athletic department, a University, a league and the NCAA. We have been planning every day at some level for our student athletes to take classes and play hockey in a safe environment. I do think we will begin play in November and an announcement may be made as early as today about our plans as a league.”

As of November 2020, there has yet to be any games played for the 2020-2021 season. “The players have been doing dryland training outside and have been skating since September 3” Wilson stated. “There have been many phases of training from working out with just the guys they live with two groups of 13 and finally as a team. There are other numerous guidelines on the ice such as wearing a mask. Separate locker rooms. Using their own water bottles. No hitting. Testing every two weeks before we go to a much more comprehensive testing plan when we approach games. The return to play guidelines is numerous and stringent.”

COVID-19’s financial effect on RIT Athletics

“The financial considerations are a tough question to answer” Wilson responded. “The school has supported the safety of the student athletes and all students with numerous plans in place that come with a cost. We will also be playing with no fans that will result in no revenue but I’m not sure what that all amounts to. The school without question has stepped up big time in creating as safe an environment for all students on campus along with everyone who works at the school. Our players are appreciative and look forward to representing RIT again this year.

Tim Volkman, RIT’s director of athletic communications, commented on how decisions were made for fall and spring sports. “There was no specific event that influenced the decision about fall sports. It was a decision made out of an abundance of caution in the face of the pandemic.” Volkman said. “There is no plan yet for spring sports, but we’ll be working with the Liberty League in the coming months to figure out the best course moving forward.”

When it comes to how COVID has affected RIT sports monetarily, Volkman stated: “There were no significant financial effects. Ticket and concession sales for live events obviously went away, but that was about it.”

RIT Student Athlete’s response to COVID-19

“I have been pretty involved with hockey this semester just in a very different way that I have been throughout my time here at RIT” said William Calverley, one of the captains on the men’s hockey team and a 3rd year business management student. “We started practicing mid-September in groups of 12 using two different locker rooms. Only recently have we been allowed to practice as a full time without any contact while still getting dressed in 2 different locker rooms.”

Calverley has had more free time this semester, stating “I have been using that time to really focus on school and work towards being the best student that I can and getting work done well before the due date.”

When looking ahead, Calverley expressed: “As of now the current plan is still up in the air but we are just trying to stay focus on being ready for whatever happens.”

The effect on College Athlete’s health

Whether colleges can still participate in games or not is important, but at the end of the day, the student’s health is still the most important factor. In a blog by Dr. Francis Collins at the National Institute of Health, Collins discussed the results of a study at Ohio State University. The focus of the study was on 26 student athletes afflicted with COVID-19, both male and female, and what an MRI scan on their hearts shows after they have recovered.

“The MRI scans, taken 11-53 days after completion of quarantine, showed four of the student athletes (all males) had swelling and tissue damage to their hearts consistent with myocarditis,” said Collins. “Although myocarditis often resolves on its own over time, severe cases can compromise the heart muscle’s ability to beat. That can lead to heart failure, abnormal heart rhythms, and even sudden death in competitive athletes with normal heart function.”

The effects on student’s health have the possibility to be catastrophic, and safety first seems to be the key to how things are going to be for college sports moving forward.

“The more science-based evidence that’s available, the more prepared athletes at large and small colleges will be to compete safely in this challenging time,” according to Collins.