College football kicked off last weekend in Division I’s bowl subdivision, albeit with a slimmer serving of games due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Two scheduled games — Jacksonville State vs. FIU and Rice vs. Houston — were postponed due to virus concerns, though both delays were announced in mid-August.
The first slate of games was capped by BYU’s 55-3 drubbing of Navy on Labor Day night. Navy had decided not to practice live tackling in training camp to guard against coronavirus — and it showed on the field, as BYU overpowered the Midshipmen.
Next weekend is expected to be NCAA football’s grand opening, at least by 2020 standards, but one top-15 team is already facing a delay.
Oklahoma State-Tulsa postponed
Tulsa’s athletic department announced it was not ready to take on the No. 15 Cowboys for Saturday’s scheduled game in Stillwater, citing just seven practices in 17 days of preseason camp due to positive tests among the team, which forced a full nine-day pause in practice.
“The safety and health of our student-athletes is always at the core of all of our discussions and decisions,” said Tulsa athletic director Dr. Derrick Gragg in a statement without a hint of irony. “Without time to properly prepare physically we would be putting our student-athletes at a greater risk of injury.”
Both teams have an open date Sept. 19, so the game is expected to be pushed back a week.
Other high-profile postponements include SMU-TCU and No. 21 Central Florida’s opener vs. Florida International.
NBA bubble grows
The NBA’s coaches will be able to have guests in the Disney World bubble, after all.
Just days after a public plea from Denver Nuggets head coach Michael Malone, the league reversed course on its plan to only allow players’ families into the bubble for the conference semifinals, per ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Family members or longtime friends of coaches, staff members or front office personnel will be allowed to enter the environment. Each team will be capped at 10 guests from this group, and all guests must undergo a seven-day quarantine upon arrival.
With the Milwaukee Bucks and Toronto Raptors on the brink of elimination and Malone’s Nuggets just two losses away from going home, some guests could enter quarantine and see their loved one’s team eliminated before they are able to leave their hotel room.
