AAC commish says testing, ‘bubble’ key for competition
Mike Aresco admits he’s an optimist.
In the next breath, the American Athletic Conference commissioner concedes he’s also a realist. That combination in the age of coronavirus is difficult to reconcile. But Aresco, who led the AAC’S annual spring meetings virtually last week, remains resolute.
He said most of the discussion between league officials and athletics directors revolved around the return to competition – more specifically, testing protocols and the need to create a figurative bubble for players, coaches and essential personnel.
“You have to have a protocol, and we will have one,” Aresco told
The Commercial Appeal on Monday. “We have to know what we’re going to do. We’ll have a standard in our conference. If (individual schools) want to do more, that’s great. We also want teams outside our conference to have similar standards, and we’re having conversations pursuant to that.”
Also critical to the return to play, Aresco said, is the implementation of the “bubble.”
“The notion is you need a bubble around the people involved in the event itself,” he said, noting that while fans would not be allowed within the bubble, some attendance at games has not been ruled out. “That’s not just football. For anybody who’s been tested, you’ve got to have a bubble. If you haven’t been tested, you won’t be allowed in the bubble. Media would be in a particular spot a certain distance – 20 or 30 feet – from a person, for example. In my case, I’ll usually stand with (the host team’s) AD on the field during games. I won’t be able to do that if I haven’t been tested. Cheerleaders, if they aren’t tested, will not be allowed in that bubble. It won’t be easy. But keeping people protected within the bubble is key.”
Last month, the AAC announced the formation of the COVID-19 Medical Advisory Group, which meets virtually once a week. Aresco said the committee is working in concert with the league and its member institutions on variables across the board and every possible contingency.
For instance, what steps would be taken if someone tests positive?
“That’s the $64 question: What do you do when – not if,” he said. “It’s hard to think, with thousands of athletes, coaches, event staff, officials that you won’t have a positive test along the line. Or, more than one. We’re developing protocols on how that would be handled, what the quarantine would be, how to trace it, how to notify everyone. We’re still working on it, and it’s still not settled.”
Would games be played if one or more teams within the league can’t or won’t participate?
“That would be our inclination,” Aresco said. “We haven’t made a final decision, but our presidents and athletic directors would be inclined to
play if one or two members can’t. The ones that can’t play wouldn’t want to hold the others back.”
What if some teams can’t or won’t start their season on time?
“I anticipate a bumpy road,” he said. “What if we have to have a checkerboard season? Yeah, we might have interruptions. I can’t imagine it being totally smooth in this environment. But we have to try to manage it. You have to do your best to manage and eliminate risk. We’re getting more information (on coronavirus) every week. There’s more testing and more reliable testing. It’s going to be expensive, but we’ll (pay) it. (Not paying for testing) is not an option.”