So many things have changed in the world this year and the Yuba College Athletic Program is no exception. During what would have been a standard season for many teams in March of this year, this worldwide pandemic stopped all play in its tracks and continues to prohibit our athletic program even now.
So then, where does that leave us today? And what has our athletic program been doing to combat the new restrictions? Athletic Director Eric Burns was able to provide some insight.
Director Burns explained that “We’ve got 9 sports operating now about twice a week” and that under state guidelines we can practice and play if we follow those strict guidelines. The problem, he says, is that we are not able to undergo many of the vast amount of testing and safety protocols required to do so. However, athletes are allowed to participate in conditioning classes. ” We are able to come back and do conditioning-like activities with minimal if any shared equipment or common touch points, but with spacing. And so for the most part it’s just conditioning and some activities that can be spaced out for the athletes.” “There really can’t be any interactive sort of practicing.”
Burns also mentioned that regular COVID testing will be a regular part of the coming seasons for athletes if we are able to have them. There would be other factors to consider in implementing that as well, such as the cost of regular tests and other teams’ abilities to undergo comparable procedures.
As of now the Spring semester is being scheduled to hold “two segments.” The first segment would include Fall sports such as basketball and then with slight overlap the second segment would begin in the latter portion of the semester with the standard Spring Sports such as baseball.
The following table is a list of the sports currently undergoing conditioning classes and the tentative schedule for Yuba College sports in the Spring
Off the field and court there are still advantages to being an athlete here at Yuba. According to Director Burns, student athletes outperform the general population in academics on a yearly basis. With regards to being an athlete in a cohort of teammates he said “There’s a level of connection that benefits the student athletes and we want to maintain that connection…We are committed to being available to them for their success”
Unfortunately, even though it is likely that sports will return in some capacity next semester, it is unlikely that fans will be allowed to join in person. In light of that possibility, the staff and faculty are working to provide other alternatives such as streaming “So that people who are interested in watching our events will have that opportunity.”
Being a student this semester has a unique set of challenges and new obstacles are standing in the way of athletic and academic goals alike. To quote Director Burns once more, “Don’t let something like this hold you back. There’s things to be gained from it, there’s lessons.”
If you would like to find out more about the athletic opportunities at Yuba college visit https://yc.yccd.edu/athletics/ or reach out to Director Burns at eburns@yccd.edu
Hello! I am a very invested student of Yuba College. I used to tutor English and writing at the WLDC and I still do tutor math/chem in the CSC along with being a Peer Mentor and the President of our student body government. I am a Pre-Med student working on transferring to UC Davis and then, Lord willing, on to Med School
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