The decision to postpone fall sports in the Mid-American Conference hinged upon the unknown. Not what the conference’s presidents, administrators and athletic directors knew about the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic upon individuals, but what they still don't know about the pandemic’s potential impact.
“We all asked about the long-term effects, and there’s not really a clear definition of what those are, at this time,” University at Buffalo athletic director Mark Alnutt told The News on Thursday. “Until we know more, why risk it?”
Alnutt reiterated what MAC commissioner Jon Steinbrecher said Saturday, when the MAC announced the postponement: The decision is based on the health, safety and well-being of college athletes, coaches and staff members.
While there was confidence in June that fall sports could happen, that confidence waned as the start of fall practice approached, because of the aggressive spread of Covid-19, including growing case rates in states such as Ohio, Michigan and Illinois – where the MAC has member schools – and the lack of clarity on long-term health ramifications.
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“We weren’t where we expected to be,” Alnutt said. “We wanted to lean on our medical advisory group, in conjunction with understanding more at the local and state level. At the end of the day, there was never a ‘no, you can’t play.’ We never heard that. But the one thing that kept resonating with us was not being able to answer all these questions fully, in regards to the virus. What happens if several teammates test positive? If contact tracing determines 20 to 30 members have to sit out for 10 to 14 days, based on the CDC guidelines? You have a season full of disruption.
“The other aspect of that, and this is not known at this point and might not be known for a while: What are the long-term effects out there? Even though, among young people, the majority of the cases are asymptomatic and they seem to be OK after this goes through them, but, by the same token, what do we know about this? It made us think hard about what this decision might be.”
Given that absence of data related to Covid-19, the MAC decided not to take the risk of making its athletes into guinea pigs. The medical advisory board considered information from the World Health Organization, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state and local boards of health, Alnutt said. The medical group advised the conference’s leaders about the possibility of the resurgence of the virus, and the possibility it could coincide with flu season. There was no clear definition of the scientific or physiological impact of Covid-19, and testing turnaround time was unclear.
“You can delay the season for four weeks, but you still have those unknowns. For us, that was something really impacted our decision-making,” Alnutt said.
Dr. Carlos del Rio is on the NCAA’s Covid-19 advisory board and spoke with reporters Thursday on a webinar hosted by the Infectious Diseases Society of America. He suggested shutting down fall sports until the Covid-19 pandemic is further curbed.
"We need to focus on what’s important and what’s important right now is that we need to control this virus," said del Rio, executive associate dean of the Emory School of Medicine & Grady Health System in Atlanta. "Not having fall sports this year and controlling this virus, to me, would be the No. 1 priority, so my advice to colleges is if you cannot do it safely, you should not do it.”
The financial impact
The postponement of fall sports will make a dent in UB’s athletic budget. The full budget is not finalized for the 2021 fiscal year, but Alnutt expects the athletic department to bring in $8 million less this year.
That would include the loss of revenues from the College Football Playoff, the MAC’s television contract and tickets and donations, as well as a reduction in student athletic fees. UB announced this week that the student athletic fee will be reduced by $53 per student to $212.75 for the fall semester.
UB's football revenues of $9,724,780 in 2019 made up 21.1% of UB's athletic revenues ($45,977,952), according to the school's NCAA Membership Financial Report, obtained by The News through a Freedom of Information Law request. Included in that football revenue was $945,529 in ticket revenues, $2,040,455 in student fees, $3,808,510 in direct institutional support, $1,050,000 in guarantees from games and $369,766 in bowl revenues.
Alnutt said the pause in fall sports could also reduce some expenses for the athletic department, and that UB has a “healthy” reserve fund that could be utilized to reduce a budget shortage. UB is giving its season ticket holders in football the option to convert that payment into a donation toward the athletic program, to ask for a refund or to use that payment as a credit toward future season tickets. UB's athletic department also plans to launch a donation campaign.
Any decisions to freeze contracts, reduce salaries or furlough department employees, however, would not come from UB, as it is part of the State University of New York system.
“We’re still operating as an athletic department as we move forward," Alnutt said. "In terms of any furloughs, we’re a public institution, so we can’t make that determination as a campus or as an athletic department. That would have to come from Albany if there is a furlough for state employees, and once that determination is made, we’ll follow suit, moving forward. As we progress to the rest of this fiscal year, we have to be very diligent in terms of how we spend and what we spend it on, realizing the revenue piece is not there as it is, and how it sets up for the fiscal year 2022 and beyond.”
What the spring could look like
The parameters for a spring football season have yet to be finalized, or yet to even be determined. As of Thursday morning, six of the 10 FBS conferences, including the Southeastern Conference, Big 12 and the Atlantic Coast Conference still plan to play football this fall, as do five schools: Liberty, BYU, Army, Florida International and Rice.
Alnutt is a member of the NCAA's Division I football oversight committee, and outlined some of the points in formatting a football season that could begin after the new year. Some teams could begin their seasons Jan. 1, while others could begin the season Feb. 1, and a season must end by a specific date, which could mean a shortened season. Hours for countable athletically related activities, or CARA, for programs that do not play in the fall need to be determined.
There’s also the possibility that, if the virus subsides or if medical advancements are made to counter Covid-19, teams will play two full seasons in one calendar year. But, Alnutt said, “We can’t have a 12-game season in the spring and turn around and have a 12-game season in the fall (of 2021).”
“We’ll need to make that determination collectively, as a group, in terms of what makes the most sense for programs and for student-athletes,” Alnutt said.
“There is a sincere attempt to play (sports) in the spring, and we feel that we can be able to make that happen if this virus is at a level where we all feel comfortable that we can field teams in our various fall sports.”
