Friars eye August return
PC basketballers aim to be back on campus on Aug. 31
PROVIDENCE – Providence College is gearing up to welcome student-athletes back to campus. Just as noteworthy, there’s an actual date: Monday, Aug. 31.
“We’ve got our plans in place. The 31st is when the general student population will come back,” said PC Athletic Director Bob Driscoll when reached Monday. “The student-athletes have been gone since mid-March. We’ve spent every day since then working on a plan to the best of our abilities, but we’ve also impressed upon them that when they come back, they have to wear their masks and practice social distancing. They can’t be going out and socializing in large groups.
“It’s really on all of us to protect our bubble to the best of our ability so we can stay COVID free,” Driscoll added.
Driscoll on Monday was expected to hold a call with the Friar men’s basketball staff “to finalize a date to bring (the players) back a little earlier than the general student population.”
As much as there are protocols in place, Driscoll is well aware that you need a Plan B, Plan C, etc. in an effort to alleviate any concern on the part of the coaches and players.
“I’m not sure anyone will get it right because the virus has a mind of its own. We want to get it right, but everything changes day-today,” said Driscoll.
As of Monday, the R.I. Department of Health listed 24 states where you will need to self-quarentine for 14 days upon arriving in Rhode Island.
“We have a lot of student-athletes from those states. That creates some issues for us as well,” Driscoll noted. “Getting the tests and making sure that they’re safe … figuring the logistics on-campus is what we’ve been working on. To have more time has given us a better chance to come up with the best plan we can, but even with that, you’re going to have to make some changes.”
Should someone within the Friar athletic community contract the coronavirus, Driscoll says there’s a plan “that would help protect all of our people on-campus as well as our coaches and student-athletes.”
The Big East earlier this month announced that all fall sports teams will participate in conference-only games. From a health and safety standpoint, PC will be following the same guidelines that are in place at UConn, Villanova, and the rest of the member schools.
“We have a COVID task force that’s setting standards for all Big East schools. If we travel to a Big East school, we know they’re going to have the best standards in place,” said Driscoll.
A slate of Big East games that – fingers crossed – begins sometime in mid-September will buy additional time for schools like PC to get their student-athletes “physically acclimated,” said Driscoll. “They’ve been working out on their own, but even that’s at a different level.”
The NCAA Board of Governors continues to meet on a regular basis. Sit tight, Driscoll says, for what is kosher today might not prove to be the case tomorrow. He did acknowledge the elephant in the room as it relates to the program that provides the college with the most visibility.
“The big issue is trying figure out basketball, which is an indoor sport. We’re going to be watching closely what they’re doing with the NBA, but we can’t replicate what they’re doing,” said Driscoll. “We’re not so worried about the competitive side or falling behind if for some reason we don’t play a nonconference schedule. You’ve got more time to prepare. Their health is the most important, but it’s about making sure we have all of our protocols set up properly so we can open the campus successfully. Athletics are important, but not as important as making sure our entire student population is safe.”