What Every SEC Athletic Director Said About the Return of Athletes to Campus
The Southeastern Conference voted today to allow athletes to return to campus for voluntary workouts beginning on June 8.
Here's what each SEC Athletic Director had to say about the decision:
Mitch Barnhart (Kentucky)
“With the NCAA and SEC approving a return to activity, we will now work with our partners at the state and local government and university levels to determine the date that our student-athletes will come back. We will not compromise the safety and well-being of our student-athletes in this process, taking all possible precautions. Once we take this important step in returning to activity, we will shift our focus to preparing to return to play and bringing the entire UK family – student-athletes, coaches and fans alike – back together this fall in a responsible and safe way.”
Ross Bjork (Texas A&M)
"The health and safety of our student-athletes is the top priority as they are allowed to return to our world-class facilities starting Monday, June 8th for voluntary workouts. Texas A&M Athletics has constantly gathered input from local health officials, and we have been very busy planning for the return to athletic activity. We are ready for this moment, and I want to thank our Health and Performance working group for putting together such a great plan."
Greg Byrne (Alabama)
“The health and safety of everyone, including our student-athletes, coaches, staff and fans has been, and will continue to be at the forefront as we prepare to return. We appreciate the leadership and guidance of the Southeastern Conference and its Return to Activity and Medical Guidance Task Force throughout this situation to best equip our campuses with educational materials and recommendations on best practices. Resumption of voluntary in-person activity is an important step in moving us towards the fall athletic season, which we are fully preparing for with a phased approach beginning June 8. In addition to our public health officials, we are fortunate to have an elite sports medicine staff here at Alabama, from our athletic trainers to our team doctors that we will continue to take direction from as we make decisions for a safe return."
Keith Carter (Ole Miss)
"We are excited about today's announcement by the SEC and look forward to safely welcoming the first wave of student-athletes back to campus beginning June 8. I want to commend Shannon Singletary and the rest of the Ole Miss Athletics planning subcommittee, which is comprised of medical professionals and a diverse group of university administrators, for their leadership and diligence in formulating our gating plan, which will work cohesively with the timeline established by the SEC. The subcommittee's priority is to protect vulnerable employees and students, and under the guidance of multiple experts, peer reviewed information, the CDC, MSDH and campus and local authorities, we will take a phased approach to reopening our department."
John Cohen (Mississippi State)
“Today’s vote by the Southeastern Conference and Wednesday’s vote by the NCAA Division I Council are important steps in the direction of bringing the process towards welcoming our student-athletes back to campus and preparing to begin the fall sports season as currently scheduled. We have been working strategically and collaborating with medical professionals, our university leadership, our coaching staffs and our conference leadership on preparing and implementing a plan based on operating guidelines for our student-athletes and staffs to return to campus and take part in voluntary athletic activities on June 8."
Philip Fulmer (Tennessee)
“We are prepared and excited for the return of student-athletes to campus. Health and safety have been our top priority as we’ve gone about this planning process, and we’ll continue to follow guidance from medical experts and health officials as we navigate the coming weeks. Our staff and student-athletes should be prepared for a ‘new normal,’ as we’ll be implementing changes to how everyone accesses and uses our facilities. We plan to be extremely diligent in maintaining a healthy environment for our student-athletes, coaches and support staffs. In the coming days, we’ll execute procedures enabling student-athletes to return, with members of our football program being the first to arrive. We will conduct screening leading up to the resumption of activities on June 8."
Allen Greene (Auburn)
"As always, the health and well-being of our student-athletes and the Auburn family remains our highest priority. We support the SEC presidents and chancellors' decision to reopen our facilities for voluntary in-person athletics activities. Through extensive collaboration, campus colleagues have developed plans to safely manage the return of our student-athletes. To build on this momentum, it is imperative that we proceed with a great deal of discipline and flexibility, with the end goal of conducting fall activities as previously scheduled."
Greg McGarity (Georgia)
"I'm sure everyone is pleased now to have direction from both the NAA and the SEC on some parameters for bringing student athletes back to campus in cooperation with the University System of Georgia. It's only the first step and there are many details still to be determined on every campus. We'll certainly be driven by the medial community and our sports medicine staff led by Ron Courson. Guidelines and enhanced health and safety measures will be followed to the letter. Again, this is only the first step with further details and plans coming over the next sever days and weeks."
Jim Sterk (Missouri)
"The health, safety and well-being of Mizzou's student-athletes, coaches, staff and fans is paramount and will be at the forefront in our decision-making process regarding the challenges we face with the COVID-19 pandemic. For well over a month, our internal Mizzou Sports Park repopulation committee has worked with MU Health Care, University, city and county officials to design a comprehensive plan for safely bringing student-athletes back to campus next month in anticipation of resuming workouts. Our goal remains an on time start to the fall sports season for all of our teams, and having football, men's basketball and women's basketball players return June 8 for voluntary workouts is the first step on that journey forward in today's challenging climate. I expect that at some point down the road the NCAA and SEC will allow student-athletes from other sports to return, and when they do, we will likely phase those in starting with the remaining fall sports teams."
Scott Stricklin (Florida)
"Our student athlete wellness group has been working for some time with UF Health officials on a plan to integrate our student athletes back on campus. They have developed a gradual phasing program so that we don't have an influx of a large number of student athletes returning at once. Football, Volleyball and Soccer teams will return in phases within those teams in the month of June. Our student-athletes will be screened and tested through a partnership program with UF Health and our staff has worked with a number of experts to promote a safer environment for the return of our Gator student athletes."
Ray Tanner (South Carolina)
"Based on the decision today by the Southeastern Conference Presidents and Chancellors, the University of South Carolina will be ready to host football student-athletes on campus for voluntary workouts on June 8. They will be on campus several days before to get tested for the COVID-19 virus. We are excited to have our student-athletes back on campus. Their health, safety and well-being are our number one priority. Our staff and medical team have developed a thorough set of protocols that exceed CDC guidelines and will help our student-athletes through the transition back to campus."
Scott Woodward (LSU)
"The health and safety of our student-athletes is our top priority. We believe our student-athletes can and will receive the best possible care under the daily and strict supervision of our medical personnel and athletic trainers and in a facility designed to accommodate the unique needs of elite-level athletes."
Hunter Yurachek (Arkansas)
"I appreciate the leadership and commitment of SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey, our conference member institutions and the SEC’s Return to Activity and Medical Guidance Task Force related to returning student-athletes to campus. As we resume on-campus activities, the continued health and well-being of our student-athletes will remain our top priority. I sincerely appreciate the efforts of our Department of Athletics staff and numerous medical professionals across our state, who worked collaboratively to develop a detailed plan in accordance with University, SEC, NCAA and Arkansas Department of Health directives. We are well prepared and look forward to confidently welcoming back many of our student-athletes in the coming weeks.”
**Vanderbilt Athletics Director Candice Storey Lee was just yesterday named the full-time AD. She has yet to publicly release a statement on the matter.
You can follow us for future coverage by clicking "Follow" on the top righthand corner of the page. Also, be sure to like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @SIRebels and @nategabler.
