LSU Athletic Director Scott Woodward Says To Expect Answers on College Season in July
Scott Woodward was candid and open with the LSU and college football community on Thursday afternoon. In a virtual town hall meeting hosted by the Advocate, Woodward provided some of the latest updates on what the administration is planning for as it pertains to football in the fall.
One of the first topics discussed was just what can we expect from a college football season in the fall. Woodward said he’s always been a glass half-full guy but that he’s “very positive” on having football this season.
Finding answers is something that LSU, the SEC and the NCAA have spent the last few months striving to accomplish. In Thursday's virtual town hall, Woodward revealed that people can expect final answers and decisions to start rolling in during early-to-mid July.
Woodward said a big part of college athletics blueprints for a season will be based off of the guidance and structure of professional leagues like the NBA and MLB.
“I think we're getting to the point where people are going to be very accepting and want football, and we're planning like the season is a go. We are going to do that and are planning that way,” Woodward said. "I'm very bullish and I think, like Coach O said we need football, this culture needs football, the state needs football, this community needs football and I'm very positive."
Of course one of the lingering questions that nobody really has a good feel for at this time is how many fans would be in the stands come LSU’s home opener against UTSA Sept. 5.
Will it be 80, 50 or 20% capacity? And if there are restrictions, what will they look like? Woodward admitted these are questions that LSU is still researching and simply said that the coronavirus will ultimately dictate what fans in the stands will look like.
"It's gonna be on the pandemic's schedule and we're gonna we're gonna see how this virus goes but I think we're progressing in the right way," Woodward said. "I think we're gonna have things that we can do that are going to be very proactive as far as social distancing."
Temperature taking at the gates and disinfecting mists are just a few of the ideas that are being discussed but Woodward assured that the gameday operations staff is doing everything it can to make sure fans are walking into a safe environment for football.
"It's just is too early for me to tell you what the best practices are and what they look like," Woodward said. "This is all very new territory for us, but I can assure you, we're going to do it safely we're going to do it properly. We're willing to assume some risk and I think fans are getting to that. And I think football is to the point to where I think fans really want that and they'll assume that risk."
One of the immediate plans that Woodward and the administration have been prepping for is having athletes back on campus, which started this week with football as well as men's and women's basketball. Workouts will start June 8 and Woodward said the training staff has been great in the protocols that have been the leading program in the SEC.
Woodward said the administration has and will continue to run a battery of tests this week as the players start returning.
"We're going to do everything we can do to get it right, come in and test them, give them physicals, we'll do a PCR testing, we'll do antibody testing, we'll do all the things that our medical experts think is the best thing to do to keep them safe," Woodward said. "I think from a timing standpoint we're in very good shape. I think Tommy's schedule is good. I think our kids are reporting in good shape and it's just a matter of doing it properly and not overdoing it."
All of these measures are being taken with the ultimate goal of not just football in the fall but a return of all fall sports.
“I’m very optimistic we’ll have football and that there will be a lot of fans in the stands,” Woodward ended Thursday's town hall interview.
