By choice and by virtue of his job title, Ross Bjork is a major sports fan.
Right now, the Texas A&M athletic director has a significant rooting interest. No, it’s not a particular team but for every league right now that’s trying to return in the COVID-19 environment.
The success of the various leagues in restarting their seasons could serve as a precursor to what could happen this college sports season, Bjork said during an appearance on The Paul Finebaum Show on Wednesday on the SEC Network.
“I think we need society’s permission, if you will,” Bjork said. “We need Major League Baseball to operate well. We need the NBA, even though they’re in a bubble, we need that to operate well.
“I think we need the optic of NFL training camp starting up, so we see football players carrying helmets to practice and we see people scrimmaging against one another.”
The SEC, along with the Big 12 and other power conferences, has pointed to the end of the month as an important gauge for where things stand for a college football season.
Bjork called it an “important check-in point” for schools and communities.
He’s not alone.
“We look at next week as an important milestone,” SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said on ESPN this week. “The way I’ll explain it: I’ve finished 41 marathons in my life and I realize you’re going to go mile by mile and we are on that journey. The challenge right now is to understand where that finish line may be.”
Already some plans are underway.
The San Jose Mercury News reported that the Pac-12 is working on a 10-game conference football schedule beginning Sept. 19 with three possible dates for its league championship game.
The Big 12 has its next board of directors meeting Aug. 3, although Commissioner Bob Bowlsby has been careful about not listing a go/no-go date. He did say the league has a couple of major decisions and “about a thousand” smaller ones.
Texas Tech President Lawrence Schovanec told the Austin American-Statesman that the Big 12 may not decide for two weeks or longer.
“We still have time,” Schovanec said. “So at what point do we have to make a decision? We haven’t gotten there yet. But I also think we recognize the fact that if we get to a go/no-go point we will be prepared to act very quickly and pivot on a dime.”
Bjork believes more time may be needed to evaluate everything from medical numbers in local college communities to the return of students.
“We need some data points to get to the right answer, whatever that might be,” Bjork said, “and I still think we’re weeks away from that.”
Like the Big 12 and the ACC among power conferences, the SEC is still planning on a 12-game regular season.
In theory, Bjork agrees with the concept. He talked this week with coach Jimbo Fisher about finding a replacement for Colorado on the schedule after the Pac-12′s decision to go to conference-only games.
“We have to assume that we’re playing 12 games,” Bjork said. “It is easier to pivot away from that than to build up to that. If we have to delay the season, I think that should be a serious conversation right now. Does that give us more time? If we have to give ourselves more time, let’s do it.”
Interruptions may be unavoidable, he said.
“Let’s play as many games as possible,” Bjork said. “If we have 12 games on the schedule and we get 10 of them in, then we get 10 of them in. It may have to be a season like that where you navigate your way through it [and] you keep everyone as safe as possible.
“If you hit an iceberg here or there, you adapt.”
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