By Rich Palzewic
Sports Editor
DE PERE – With a few short weeks remaining until student-athletes start returning to St. Norbert College’s campus, there are still lots of unknowns due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
St. Norbert, members of the Midwest Conference (MWC), fields fall teams in football, women’s volleyball, men’s and women’s soccer, women’s golf, women’s tennis and men’s and women’s cross country.
“We are at the point where decisions have to be made,” said Tim Bald, St. Norbert athletic director. “If you had asked me back in March when this whole thing started, I wouldn’t have guessed we’d still be in this situation four months later. Like most other people, I figured after a month or so we’d figure it out and get back to normal – it’s tough. This week and next week are critical with what will transpire.”
Bald said he’s hopeful athletics can be played with some changes, but he’s not sure if that will happen.
“There’s talk maybe it would be conference-only games, similar to what other areas are doing,” he said. “The best scenario would be to do everything, but I don’t think anyone is thinking that’s realistic anymore. Even if we could play non-conference games, there aren’t enough opponents to make that happen. For Division III, we are not flying around the country. At this point, if we can get a conference schedule, that would be great.”
Bald said for football, that might be seven or eight games.
“In the Ohio Athletic Conference (Division III), they are doing conference-only, and they are playing the full schedule,” said Bald. “They can do that because of where they’re located and can get to each other – we can’t do that. Our footprint is over three states. A season would also most likely have no overnight travel.”
Grinnell College, also members of the MWC, recently announced it would not have a fall sports season.
Bald said if athletics move forward, the school would do everything in its power to re-socialize athletes back into the campus setting.
“We will do it in bits and pieces,” he said. “First, we’ll get them together virtually, then less than 10 in a grouping with social distancing for 14 days and then groups of 50 for 14 days before contact is allowed. We are prepared in football to have the guys wear face shields. At least with that, it would protect the athletes from some of the airborne stuff. Nothing is preventable, but that would help a bit. In football, soccer and volleyball, it’s tougher to socially distance due to the nature of the competition.”
Bald said the Northwoods League, which the Green Bay Booyah are members of, is an interesting situation, one that he’s keeping an eye on.
“Even with that, baseball is different than football from a contact level,” he said. “It could be easier in that sport. Having kids on campus being healthy is one thing, but then putting them into an athletic event is a whole other matter.”
Bald is the chairperson for a subcommittee for the MWC.
He’s working on guidelines for travel, hosting, officials and spectators.
“Admissions, tailgating, masks, concessions and bathrooms are all things that need to be thought about,” Bald said. “Some conferences are saying no fans for indoor sports, but allowing fans outside with social distancing. Schneider Stadium seats about 1,500, and we have about 130 kids on the roster. If you give each kid two tickets per family, you’re almost halfway to your quota right there. That doesn’t include the visitors, students or media.”
Bald said a public conference in New Jersey decided not to offer football, soccer and volleyball this fall, but is going forward with other sports that are lower risk.
“They are in an area with so much COVID spread that the decision to not have the high-risk sports was basically made for them,” he said. “They are going forward with tennis, golf and cross country, which are lower risk.”