We have all seen the numbers roll in like a tidal wave over the last few weeks. The Clemson football program has 23 players who have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus. Kansas State on Saturday confirmed that 14 student athletes have positive tests. The report does not distinguish how many are football players. Alabama had five soon after they returned to campus for workouts. Texas also had a handful. The University of Houston had enough, that they immediately shut down the workout and closed the campus again. UCLA football’s positive tests are a different story.<\/p>\n
Officials at UCLA acknowledge that they expect positive tests sometime after Fall sport athletes return to campus next week. The difference is you won\u2019t hear them reported. During a press conference with UCLA\u2019s medical and NCAA compliance task force, they acknowledged that while the school itself is likely to report raw numbers of positive tests, they will not be delineated in any way that shows positive results in the football program or in any other UCLA sport. Matt Elliott<\/strong>, Sr. Associate Athletic Director, confirmed, \u201cAt this time we do not believe there is a delineation of specific student-athletes separate from the campus\u2019 overall reporting.<\/p>\n UCLA gathered a panel of five administrators from the NCAA compliance, medical, facilities, and operations for a press conference Saturday. The group went over the school\u2019s plan to begin reintegrating Fall sport student athletes on Monday in light of the COVID-19 virus.<\/p>\n UCLA has a multi-step process to bring the student athletes back on to campus. The first is that there is a desire to keep the initial group in the first few days to those that have to travel less than 50 miles to get back to school. It makes for easier tracking of where they have been and what their exposure levels may be. Anyone who comes in via air travel from another city or state will automatically be put into a 14-day quarantine until the incubation period for the virus has come and gone.<\/p>\n All student-athletes returning will be immediately given a COVID-19 test, and the antibodies test. In the ensuing days they will be given a typical physical exam, as well as a mental health evaluation. The physical will help determine what sort of workouts they will be allowed to do, since off-season workouts have been very limited. They will be given what is being called a \u201cfunctional movement screening\u201d as well as an athletic performance screening.<\/p>\n Anyone with a positive COVID test goes immediately into isolation. The school, knowing that most of its Summer education is remote\/on-line, has allocated enough dorm space that there will be no room sharing for anyone through this period. In the event of a positive test, certain areas have been designated as medical quarantine spaces. Head team physician, Dr. David McAllister<\/strong> acknowledged, \u201cWe do expect that we will some have positive test results and we do believe we do have a plan in place to address these.\u201d<\/p>\n How many tests are given and at what frequency is still a moving topic, depending on initial results.<\/p>\n The school has also put contact tracing in place in the event of positive tests, so there is the ability to trace the origins of the positive results.<\/p>\n All student-athletes are going to be required to do a daily report on all of their activities. It will include whom they were in contact with during their workouts and any other non-workout related contact with people. \u00a0The amount of people being allowed to work out in one given space will be 10. They will be required to wear face coverings at all times.<\/p>\n After the initial screening process is completed, anyone who is medically cleared, can begin their proscribed workouts, in what is deemed to be Phase II. All of these are fitness and training workouts. Phase III will be for those who remain medically cleared. It will increase the number of people allowed in given workouts and increase the exercises to athletic performance drills. Phase IV loosens the restrictions on people in one space and ramps up the workouts. These are all fitness and training workouts. There is no football work allowed during this time, as that requires NCAA time and plan clearance.<\/a> The NCAA has tentatively allocated July 6th<\/sup> as the first day teams can start to do walk-throughs and have in-person team meetings. They must still be in accordance with individual state and municipal laws.<\/p>\n The panel stressed that any off-campus activities where they come in contact with people not currently in the protocol system will require the student-athlete to start back at the beginning of the testing and tracking phases.<\/p>\n The coaching staff is not allowed to monitor these \u201cvoluntary\u201d workouts by NCAA rules, so the social distancing of the coaches and players is a given anyway. While the players are in the dorms, the coaches are allowed to continue with their eight hours per week of digital meetings with the team, per NCAA guidance. The staff, however, is required to go through the same protocols for testing and distancing.<\/p>\n The school has also set up what it calls the \u201cReturn to Training Anonymous Report.\u201d It is a three-section report that allows a student-athlete to report concerns about their own medical conditions, those of others on the team, and any other virus-related concerns.<\/p>\n This came to the forefront Friday, when the LA Times<\/em> reported<\/a> that a group of 30 athletes had formed a committee to express concerns and address questions about the reintegration onto the campus. The story claimed that the players had expressed a vote of no-confidence in head coach Chip Kelly<\/strong> to look after their physical and medical well-being. A letter from the committee was sent to the UCLA task force. The letter leaked to the media.<\/p>\nTask Force Lays Out Phases To Return<\/h3>\n
Monitoring The Progress<\/h3>\n
The Group Of 30<\/h3>\n