Written by Drew McConnell

As the summer break begins to wind down and students begin to make plans for their (virtual) return to campus for the fall semester, we will be embarking on an academic year like never before. Saint Mary's University, along with just about every other post-secondary institution in Canada, has made the transition to virtual operations to deliver services and courses while respecting the physical distancing protocol necessary to mitigate COVID-19.

As has become the “new normal” ever since mid-March, students will partake in lectures, complete assignments, write exams, and even have convocations via the internet. However, one thing that won't be done virtually (or at all for the time being) is varsity sports.

"Atlantic University Sport [AUS] has announced the decision to suspend all conference regular season and postseason competition until January 2021," read a June 8th press release from the AUS. The release also noted that the AUS decision was made in conjunction with Ontario University Athletics (OUA) and Canada West, in consultation with USports, the national governing body of university athletics in Canada. A decision regarding winter term sports will likely be made sometime this fall, per the press release.

As a result of the AUS decision, over 2,500 student-athletes in Atlantic Canada will be sidelined for at least the first four months of the varsity season, which is no doubt a tremendous disappointment for the athletes and fans of all sports. However, given the tremendous risk involved in staging any event during a global pandemic, it was the right call. Having hundreds of people in close proximity, or athletes travelling across provincial borders, is not a wise scenario. Moreover, given that the AUS operates in four different provinces with four different health authorities, coordinating the logistics of a varsity schedule would be a nightmare.

But if we were to take a step back and attempt to chart a course forward, what could a potential return-to-play protocol look like? To start, perhaps we should take a look at what has and hasn't worked in professional sports.

Three major professional sports leagues – the National Hockey League (NHL), Major League Soccer (MLS), and the National Basketball Association (NBA), have all adopted the "hub city" model. This means that all league games are staged in the same city (the NHL in Toronto and Edmonton, the NBA and MLS in Orlando, Fla.). This prevents the problem of travel and cuts down on the risk of COVID-19 exposure.

All players and staff in all leagues are tested regularly – usually every day – to ensure the virus hasn't infiltrated the playing "bubble." There are also rigorous cleaning and sanitation protocols in place, and non-medical face masks are required in all common areas. And of course, no fans are permitted to attend any games – making for a more than unique atmosphere, as arena operations staff are forced to feed crowd noise into the buildings to mimic an authentic in-game experience.

Thus far, this model seems to be effective at protecting athletes and staff from the virus. The only pro league to forgo the bubble and attempt to replicate a typical season – Major League Baseball (MLB) – has seen several players and staff members test positive for COVID-19. The lack of strict guidelines coupled with interstate travel has allowed the virus to infect dozens of MLB personnel, causing several postponements. Eventually, the league had to crack down on players and staff that are found to be non-compliant with safety protocols.

Given the above, one could infer that, on the surface, a bubble format for the AUS may be an attractive option for university sports as well. But the question becomes – how? First, it would take a great deal of coordination and cooperation between the AUS, the athletes, and the university administrations. For instance, if the AUS were to assign a particular sport to a specific campus, you could treat said campus as a "bubble city." The athletes could be housed in the mostly empty dorms while ensuring they have adequate resources to complete their academic work. For example, you could designate the Saint Mary's campus for men's and women's hockey Dalhousie could host basketball, and so on.

Of course, the student-athletes would have to get used to a bit of an unusual schedule. As former Huskies men's hockey head coach Trevor Steinburg put it to me, student-athletes become masters of time management and balancing sports with academics.

This is just an idea of what it could look like in January, but really, nobody knows where things will stand in five weeks, let alone five months. Campuses could reopen in time for the winter term, which would make my proposed idea much more challenging to pull off.

The fact is that university sports don't have the massive financial incentive to return to play that the professional ranks do. There's no multi-billion-dollar television rights contract or millions of dollars worth of sponsors to satiate. For the athletes in those leagues, that's their livelihoods. For student-athletes, they play for passion and a love of their sport. Oh, and don't forget about the school spirit!

The latter point, school spirit, is why I think universities are better off waiting until it's entirely safe for sports to resume with spectators in attendance. The passion that the live crowd brings to university sport is what makes them so unique. For many fans, there's a significant personal connection to the school to which their loyalty lies. Whether they're current students, alumni, or parents or grandparents, varsity sports fans have an unmatched personal love and affection for their school colours.

The AUS did what it had to do to keep its athletes safe. In my opinion, safety supersedes every other possible reason for returning to play at this juncture. Honestly, there's nothing I want more than to go to the rink and put on the headset to call another hockey game for the AUS webcast. However, safety comes first.

There's no doubt that it's already been a long year, and we've all had to make considerable sacrifices. But in the end, we must remain steadfast in our pursuit to flatten the curve and be patient as a vaccine is being formulated. University athletics will be back eventually – and it will be more than worth the wait.

What University Sports Can Learn from the Pros for a ‘COVID Comeback’

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