Notes: A college basketball season in 2020-21 is not a slam dunk
Random notes for Thursday with the NCAA’s move to allow student-athlete voluntary workouts in June, speculation about college football and college basketball seasons, the UK-Michigan basketball game in London and more.
Is college basketball in more jeopardy than football?
▪ I wrote Wednesday that the momentum appears to be building toward an actual college football season in 2020. The NCAA voted Wednesday to lift its moratorium on student-athlete workouts June 1 for football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball. The SEC may vote soon on whether to allow student-athletes back to campus on June 1.
I referenced Bob Bowlsby in the column on college football. According to Kevin Sherrington of the Dallas Morning News, the Big 12 commissioner is worried about college basketball.
“If you’d like an idea, though, Bowlsby says all the experts tell them to expect it to take 18 to 24 months before everything returns to normal. Or something approximating what normal used to be,” Sherrington writes.
“In the meantime, we may get football, or some version of it, but Bowlsby isn’t so sure about basketball. The advent of flu season won’t help. For that matter, it may affect the prospects of football conference championship games and the College Football Playoff, particularly if the start of the season is delayed.”
▪ Ohio State AD Gene Smith says that with current social distancing guidelines, the Buckeyes could get 22,000 into its home stadium. If those guidelines are relaxed, about 40,000 to 50,000 fans could attend OSU home games.
▪ Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp says he is “optimistic” about a 2020 season. Georgia was one of the first states to “open up” during the coronavirus pandemic.
▪ If the NBA returns to play, Orlando-Disney World is reportedly the clear front-runner if the league opts for one site.
▪ Gentry Estes of the Tennessean writes that the biggest hurdle to sports returning is fear. “It’s understandable to be afraid. We all probably should be. Fear is a valuable defense mechanism to keep us safe. And considering you can’t leave the house without the risk of catching a highly transmittable disease, infecting your loved ones and/or ending up fighting for your life in an intensive care unit, fear is a rational response.”
▪ Barry Svrluga of the Washington Post writes that college athletics should use this time to heal its self-inflicted wounds. “The novel coronavirus pandemic has put everything on pause, sports included. Izzo-Brown and Leone are just two coaches trying to hold their teams together in all this uncertainty. But the people who run college sports might use this time to be productive, to put some of the toothpaste back in the tube. We have time now to take a breath. After we exhale, could we ask the question: Do nonrevenue college sports teams from the Northeast really need to be spending five nights in Texas, all in the name of playing two conference games?”
▪ Scott Rabalais of The Advocate in Baton Rouge says “tiny steps” are beginning to emerge in the bid to reopen college athletics. “So this must be a little glimpse into how 1945 felt, waiting for news of some far-flung capital falling to overwhelming Allied forces.”
Kentucky’s delayed trip to London and more basketball notes
▪ Kentucky basketball’s scheduled November game against Michigan in London has officially been postponed.
▪ It’s official. Kentucky has the No. 1 basketball recruiting class for 2020.
▪ Online abuse has been directed at a family in the wake of UK firing four cheerleading coaches after a three-month investigation.
▪ The NCAA has tabled until at least January the idea of a one-time transfer waiver for student-athletes. That means UK basketball players Olivier Sarr and Jacob Toppin, as well as UK football quarterback Joey Gatewood, will have to receive waivers to be eligible in 2020-21.
▪ The Herald-Leader’s Ben Roberts has a Kentucky basketball mailbag answering your questions.
▪ Kentucky football 2020 sortable roster in a Google sheet.
▪ Louisville is ready for the reported go-ahead of having athletes back on campus for voluntary workouts.
▪ What’s ahead for Kansas basketball in the NCAA violations case? The Kansas City Star has the answer. (Subscriber exclusive)
▪ Florida basketball will play Oklahoma in 2020 and 2021.
▪ An oral history of when Georgia knocked off North Carolina to reach the Final Four in 1983. Hugh Durham and the Bulldogs took down the Tar Heels long before “The Last Dance.”
Kentucky makes Pro Football Focus power rankings
▪ Kentucky is No. 20 in Pro Football Focus’ too-early power rankings for 2020. “After a really strange season in 2019, the Wildcats return a decent amount of talent in 2020 and should be competitive again in the SEC.”
▪ Tennessee football continues its recruiting momentum. The Vols picked up a late-night commitment from four-star athlete Kaemen Marley on Wednesday. Jeremy Pruitt’s club is currently ranked No. 2 for the class of 2021.
▪ The pandemic has pushed the pace of college football recruiting, writes Dave Matter of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
▪ Auburn has suspended wide receiver/defensive back Jashawn Sheffield after arrests. Sheffield appeared in just one game last season.
▪ New Ole Miss football coach Lane Kiffin may get a chance to coach against one of his former employers. The Rebels have signed a home-and-home contract to play Southern Cal.
▪ Peyton Manning’s series on ESPN Plus will return for a second season. Manning’s golf match with Tom Brady, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson is scheduled for this weekend, by the way.
▪ Mississippi State defensive back Jarrian Jones, who played in 11 games as a true freshman last season, has entered the transfer portal.
▪ Taulia Tagovailoa’s signing brings hope to Maryland football fans. But Don Markus writes the Terps have been there before.
Last but not least
▪ I recorded a podcast with Herald-Leader food writer Janet Patton about what to expect when Kentucky restaurants reopen on Friday.
This story was originally published May 21, 2020 at 8:22 AM.
