'They have to be smart': Cincinnati football program hoping to avoid COVID-19 outbreaks
The University of Cincinnati’s football players will head home for Christmas later this week ahead of their trip to Dallas to play in the College Football Playoff semifinal, a three-day break after completing about 10 bowl practices.
There was some thought to keeping players on campus, head coach Luke Fickell said, after watching COVID-19 outbreaks postpone and cancel sporting events across North America, but Fickell says it’s important to give players a bit of a break.
“Obviously, there is a lot of stuff going on,” Fickell said. “They have to be smart. I think in the long run of what’s going to give us the greatest opportunity is the ability to do what we do, relax a little bit, go back down to Dallas, do what we do, and put our best foot forward.”
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There were reportedly 160 positive COVID-19 tests among NFL players last week, which postponed three games. The Cincinnati men’s basketball program changed opponents because of an outbreak last weekend and Texas A&M’s football team reportedly is dealing with an outbreak during its preparation for the Gator Bowl.
The Bearcats completed their ninth bowl practice Tuesday.
“You can’t avoid it, right?” Fickell said. “It is what it is. We’ve got to be smart and our guys have to be smart. We have to give them the opportunity to do what they need to do. There is a lot of sacrifices we all have to make. One of them is trusting them that they’re going to go home and be smart, to only be around family and try to keep their circles small.
“You ultimately have to look at what’s the best thing for those guys. These guys are why we’re here.”
Preparing for top-ranked Alabama, the Bearcats structured their bowl practices in three phases: Development of their younger players, beginning to game plan for Alabama while in Cincinnati and then full preparation mode when the team resumes practices in Dallas after Christmas.
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It was planned that way, Fickell said, so they’re not peaking too early and they aren’t boring players with the same type of practices.
“I remember when I was in school,” Fickell said, “we would go down for a bowl game sometimes for two weeks. We would practice, practice, practice and practice. We didn’t fare real well in some of those. I think the first time I was really starting to be a coach, I think we were going to the national championship, and Coach (Jim Tressel) gave them 3½ days off for Christmas. I think a lot of people thought that was kind of crazy. I don’t know if that’s the norm everywhere, but I know for us, just trying to make sure that there is a balance in what we’re doing and preparing.”
LUKE FICKELL NAMED COACH OF THE YEAR
Fickell was named the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year by the Football Writers Association of America on Monday after guiding the Bearcats to a 13-0 record in the regular season.
“This is so unique of a job that unless you’ve got really good people around you – I’m not just talking about players, I mean coaches and support – there is no way you can do it,” said Fickell, who is a three-time AAC Coach of the Year. “When there is success, there is two people who are going to get credit usually, the quarterback and head coach. The reality is when it happens, we have to do our best job of making sure everybody around us knows that it’s not because of us, it’s because of them. For the most part, whatever awards there are out there, yes, someone has to represent us, but there are a lot of people that really deserve this, much more than even just me. I just happen to be the one that is maybe in front and able to hold the award. A lot of these guys deserve a lot.”
COBY BRYANT: MAMBA MENTALITY
Senior cornerback Coby Bryant changed his number to No. 8 for the Cotton Bowl, unveiling his new jersey number during practice Tuesday after wearing No. 7 all season.
The number change is a nod to his namesake, Kobe Bryant, who wore No. 8 and No. 24 during his career with the Los Angeles Lakers.
"I wanted to go vintage Kobe,” Coby Bryant told The Enquirer’s Keith Jenkins. “I wanted to bring that playoff mentality."
Bryant’s parents named Coby after the late Hall of Fame basketball player (with altered spelling). Bryant was named the Jim Thorpe Award winner, which honors the nation’s top defensive back.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: College Football Playoff: Cincinnati hoping to avoid COVID outbreak
