Rams Notebook: Joe Parker's thoughts on the 2020 season, COVID-19 procedures, and the We Are United movement

FORT COLLINS, Colo. — Who knows?

It’s been about a week since Colorado State football voluntarily shut down team activities due to a severe outbreak of COVID-19. And we now are within a month of when the college football season was originally supposed to begin. As crazy as it sounds, though, we still don’t truly know if or when the Rams will be taking the field this season. 

In a conference call with the local media on Tuesday, Aug. 4, Joe Parker said that despite losing non-conference games against Colorado, Oregon State and Vanderbilt this fall, at this point CSU still intends to play Northern Colorado on Sept. 19. Of course that game against the Bears could still be impacted by any league-wide decisions from the Mountain West and/or Big Sky Conference, as well as viral spreads along the Front Range. 

While no scheduling decisions have been formalized by the league as a whole yet, athletic directors from around the Mountain West have consistently been in contact and are expecting to come to a decision for the 2020 slate as soon as this week. 

Here is everything else Rams fans should know from Parker’s media session. 

Testing & Procedures

On Monday, CSU athletics conducted 150 COVID-19 tests for members of the football, volleyball, soccer, and cross country teams. Those tests results are anticipated to be released by CSU Athletics when they are available later this week. 

In accordance with CDC guidelines, student-athletes who previously tested positive since summer workouts began in early June were not re-tested. Additionally, there are also student-athletes who are currently or have quarantined as a result of contact tracing per the determination of CSU Public Health.

“This is an opportunity just to reaffirm our commitment to the safety and wellbeing of our student-athletes, our staff, and the community at large,” Parker said on Tuesday. “Five years ago, we established 11 guiding principles. One of them, the very first one, is student-athletes first and foremost.”

In total, CSU has conducted 420 COVID-19 tests since bringing athletes back to campus for workouts this summer. 

• Total positive cases among all student-athletes: 16
• Total positive cases in football only: 11
• Total remaining active cases among all student-athletes: 6
• Total remaining active cases in football only: 6

“It’s been challenging,” Parker said. “We’ve built some really sound protocols in place to try and manage as best as we can in this very fluid and uncertain environment.”

Parker explained how everyone involved with CSU athletics has been working diligently to try and mitigate the spread of coronavirus by implementing the safest procedures as possible. While positive tests are bound to happen, the biggest key for CSU is eliminating any unnecessary risks.

Instead of working out indoors, all lifting and exercises have been moved to the concourses of Canvas Stadium. Additionally, locker rooms remain closed, and all meals are taken to go. 

“Positive tests, in my opinion, are affirmations that we are being successful with our protocols. I don’t view them as failures,” Parker said. 

“We’re interested in detecting viral spread. We want to identify it, isolate it, and protect as many people as possible. We were creeping up there with the number of positives, so that’s what necessitated the pause with football last Wednesday.”

Trying to manage as best as possible

As we see the initial success of the bubble systems being used in the NBA, NHL, MLS, etc., some may wonder whether a similar system was considered for college football. According to Parker, though, a bubble system was never really a realistic option for amatuer athletics. 

As Parker explained, unlinke professionals, student-athletes have academic obligations. On top of that, because college athletes are not compensated for their work in the same way that pro athletes are, it simply would not be reasonable to expect these individuals to go stay inside a bubble for a year and give up the rest of their lives. Just like every other student on campus, athletes are social beings with outside relationships, off-campus obligations and a life outside of CSU. 

“That’s the great differentiator between what we do and what the professional sports at the next level do,” Parker said.

“…We’re doing what everyone else in society is trying to do. We’re trying to manage this to the best of our ability. We’re trying to move back to some level of normalcy. But we also understand that there’s going to be setbacks and impacts that we can’t anticipate, and we’re fully ready to adjust to whatever those things are.”

CSU will honor scholarships of players that choose to opt out

College athletics are in a really weird spot right now as a whole. The debate over compensation and amateurism continues to swing in favor of student-athletes deserving more for their efforts. But for a program like CSU, or really anyone in the G5, the solutions are not always simple. 

Unlike the major players in the SEC, Big-10, or even the Pac-12, CSU does not get the benefit of a lucrative TV deal. And the pandemic only makes things trickier because schools are losing sellout crowds, concessions, etc. 

That said, while the money is always going to be complicated, it’s clear that if the NCAA is going to push forward in the middle of a pandemic, schools must do right by the student-athletes that choose to sit out of competition. 

According to Parker, CSU has not yet had any student-athletes choose to opt out but the school will honor scholarships for anyone that feels they should sit out this year. 

“If a student were to approach us, we would support that decision without exception. We’d like to try and understand what their concerns are,” Parker said. 

Parker did reference the situation at Washington State as well though. “I can’t fault their decision,” Parker said. “If a student says they don’t feel comfortable participating in team activities, that probably means everything. I don’t know how you can parce. It’s a very interwoven experience.”

Parker’s response to the #WeAreUnited movement

In response to the #WeAreUnited movement out of the Pac-12 over the weekend, Parker stated the following: 

“That’s been an interesting development over the weekend. I think in so many ways we’re doing everything that the Pac-12 students are asking — with the exception of revenue sharing.”

“It’s never been a question in my 25-year career that the health and wellbeing of the student-athlete isn’t the first thing that we think about. That maps over COVID-19 and what we’re trying to do and accomplish. So, it’s interesting. I haven’t heard any of our students say anything directly about interest in We Are United.”

Parker continued that he does sometimes follow the social media activity of various roster members on campus. And if there is an interest from any CSU students, he’d be more than happy to discuss the nuances with them. 

“We aren’t a part of the Power-5 that had an advantage of a very lucrative TV contract,” Parker said.

 “We live in a space where if we’re going to be successful at the intercollegiate athletic enterprise, we have to do a blend of direct institutional support and self generated revenues. Our business model supports certain things but probably couldn’t support many of the things that those students in the Pac-12 are asking for.”

CSU still hopes to host fans at Canvas this fall

Finally, there is nothing quite like an electric college football atmosphere. From the die-hards tailgating for miles to the marching band pumping up the crowd with the fight song, the fans are a huge part of what makes college football such an incredible experience. 

Given the current situation, the chances that CSU will be able to host a capacity crowd at Canvas Stadium this year are slim to none. However, the Rams may still be able to play in front of a reduced group. At least Parker hopes so. 

“We’ve invested quite a bit of planning into a 50 percent scenario and a 25 percent scenario,” Parker said. “Obviously, (if there are) no fans, that’s pretty easy to plan for. So, we haven’t spent a whole lot of time contemplating that option.”

Parker continued that if they do reach a point where it’s clear that it won’t be possible for any fans to be in attendance, they may have to face the difficult question of whether the experience is still worth it for the students.

As Parker explained, for sports like football, volleyball, and even women’s soccer, having an invested group of fans cheering on the teams is a big part of the collegiate experience. If the teams have to play without any of that, Parker said he would have apprehension and concern about whether or not they were still providing the right type of experience for the student-athletes. 

“That’s a question we’ll have to ask of them and ourselves,” Parker said.