How is the UW Football Team Surviving During the COVID-19 Outbreak?

Photo taken outside of the empty Alaska Airlines Field May, 26. The digital board shows a message about coronavirus safety saying, “If you’re sick, stay home.”

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By Nick Blume May 29, 2020

SEATTLE-The University of Washington Football Program has been significantly impacted by the coronavirus outbreak, missing spring practice, team meetings, and in-person class sessions.

As we approach the end of spring quarter, coaches and players have had to cope with plenty of new changes to the program since the mandatory quarantine began. A few months of societal lapse can have a big impact on a team like the UW Football Program and players who participate on the team. With concerns that the coronavirus might return in the fall, players and coaches are facing considerable uncertainty, including the possibility that the careers of some young athletes could be permanently hindered. You may also be wondering, how are the players and coaches staying connected and prepared for any likelihood of an upcoming season?

Beginning early March, The University of Washington shutdown in-person classes and moved all academics to Zoom and Canvas online. The transition sparked plenty of technical issues early on for students and professors. Many students moved back home to be safe with their families while others stayed in Seattle. The new head coach, Jimmy Lake, needed to ensure his team would remain connected and prepared during this quarantine in the chances of an upcoming season in the fall.

Training appropriately has required daily communication between players and coaches. The players and coaches are frequently communicating with each other every day. "I've been making sure that I'm on the same page with my coaches and making sure I have the workouts right," said Race Porter, a senior punter for the team. "We've had online Zoom calls with our coaches to go over housekeeping stuff." Coach Lake surprised the team recently with a special guest in one of their online meetings. The players had the opportunity to hear from former Husky Football Player and Super Bowl Champ, Jermaine Kearse. This is one of many ways the coaches are inspiring players to continue to grind through workouts and online classes.

Fortunately, the team finished the 2019-2020 season on a good note in a game against Boise State in the Mitsubishi Motors Las Vegas Bowl. The Dawgs torched the 18 ranked Broncos in a 38-7 win for the Huskies. In a farewell game for head coach Chris Petersen, QB Jacob Eason threw for 210 yards and a touchdown pass to Andre Baccellia. The emotional win marked Petersen's 55th win as head coach for the Huskies over his six seasons at UW. Peterson helped the Dawgs make appearances in the Rose Bowl, the College Football Playoff, and the Fiesta Bowl, all part of the New Year's Six bowl games. Coach Lake has taken over the program since then and has proven to be high-caliber through his notable 2020 high-ranked recruiting class with the help of Petersen and staff.

For those who don't know Jimmy Lake, he is a man of competitive spirit. He has gained a strong work ethic through the experienced talent he has been around throughout his career as a three-sport letterman in high school and a four-year football player for Eastern Washington. Everything he has endured through his sporting experiences and 20-year coaching career, the Huskies should be in good hands through his five-year contract deal. Lake hopes for two things, a 2020-2021 season, and to pass on to his athletes his confidence and will to win. Ultimately, Lake hopes to bring in another national championship to the program.

Photo taken displaying the empty UW football practice field May, 26.

Players have not been able to step foot on the practice field since early March.

Recently, Commissioner Larry Scott of the Pac-12 announced that players would be able to return to their given schools for practice on June 15, depending on campus and state regulations. For Washington State, that may not be the case. Gov. Jay Inslee's: Stay Home, Stay Healthy order supposed to expire May 31 will "probably" not be enough time to bring back businesses and public services, according to the Washington State Department of Health (DOH). This delay could cause further delays for UW football athletes to return to Seattle and prepare for the "upcoming" season.

Many players, including Julius Irvin, moved back to their home states to be safe with family and friends during the quarantine following Inslee’s order. Reluctantly, Irvin has been able to cope well with the transition to online classes and informational workouts from coaches. Irvin, in an interview, said, "our academic advisors and coaches do check on us weekly to make sure we know of assignments and stuff like that because it is hard to keep track of stuff when everything is online."

Irvin has been able to safely prepare at a local field and gym near his home in California. After completing his early morning workouts, Irvin has time to focus on school, complete homework, then relax and interact with family and friends. Once his priorities are finished for the day, he enjoys his favorite video games on Xbox One.

The players have high hopes for the fall season. Returning players are eager to revisit the culture of The Greatest Setting in College Football, and grind under Lake's command. UW's top-20 recruiting class for 2020 is loaded with young talent of sorts. It will be interesting as we move forward to see Lake's team come together once again (in-person) and prove themselves on and off the field.

The UW athletic department could face some financial issues depending on how the football season plays out for the Dawgs. If there is a season, you can guarantee Jen Cohen has already dissected every possible financial scenario based on crowd capacity, length of season, media revenue and more.

A recent article by Christian Caple explained the impacts of UW's athletic department budget with the effects of coronavirus considered. “The football program generated $84 million in revenue in FY19 (fiscal year), mostly through ticket sales ($25.3 million), media rights ($20.2 million) and contributions (nearly $20 million, including seat-related donations). The department reported $106.9 million in team-specific revenue for all sports in 2019, and football directly accounted for nearly 80 percent of it,” Caple says.

The athletic department totaled about $133.8 million in revenue for the 2019 fiscal year. The football team accommodated for about $84 million of that total revenue to bring things into perspective. The potential absence of a season or adjusted season, financially, is another conundrum Cohen is facing right now. The following months will tell us everything about the likelihood of a 2020-2021 season for the Dawgs.

By Nick Blume