BGSU tests players, moves weight room as football workouts resume

BOWLING GREEN -- Offseason business resumed for Bowling Green State University's football team, but like all of this year, there was nothing usual about it. The Falcons, who had most of spring practice derailed by coronavirus cancellations, reopened their facilities and have about 50 players participating in workouts, coach Scot Loeffler said. Bowling Green has welcomed its second of three groups of players, adhering to new protocols due to the ongoing pandemic. Players are given a physical and tested for coronavirus upon arrival -- Loeffler said there were no positive tests in the first group, with results pending for the second -- and Bowling Green has made drastic changes to its weight room, schedules, and meeting procedure to resume a drastically different offseason. "It's as odd as I've ever been a part of," Loeffler said. Mandatory workouts do not begin until July 13, but Bowling Green is in the middle of bringing its football staff and players back to campus gradually. Coaches were allowed to come back to the football facility on June 15, although Loeffler said the staff still is working in two shifts. For the foreseeable future, Bowling Green is conducting all meetings virtually. Players who live in off-campus housing returned June 22, while players who were enrolled and living in on-campus housing came back Monday.Incoming freshmen will begin to report July 6. "We're taking it phase by phase, and the first phase was to get guys in here, get them physicals, get them tested, begin the workout process, and make sure that our procedure was right," Loeffler said. "Then we'll get the second and third waves in. We'll see where we're at, but it's a day-to-day, hour-to-hour, minute-to-minute-type-of-deal in regards to how this thing can change in a minute." As part of the resumption, Bowling Green took every piece of equipment out of the weight room in the Sebo Center and moved it all across Mercer Road to Perry Fieldhouse to increase distance between workout stations. BG further broke up players into small groups and staggered workouts, which are overseen by strength and conditioning coach Kevin Tolbert. "Essentially, all that's occurring right now is there (are) small pockets of players going into that weight room to work out, so it feels, still, as if they're not here because we're having virtual meetings and (the coaches) still aren't seeing them yet," Loeffler said. "It's really weird, it's odd, it's different -- but they're here and they're working out." If Bowling Green can safely return its entire team, its next task will be preparing for training camp, should the season begin on time. The Falcons' first game is scheduled for Sept. 5 at Ohio State. Loeffler said the program is in discussions about how to conduct training camp as safely as possible, which he said brought new obstacles. "That's going to be the biggest challenge, in my opinion," Loeffler said. "You're going to be doing some installation meetings on the fly or at home, and you've got to find a way to social distance to watch tape together. There's going to be a lot of preparation between now and training camp, in my opinion, to logistically figure out how to do it." Loeffler said the plan put in place by director of athletics Bob Moosbrugger and senior associate AD Kit Hughes took a steady approach, but there is still no such thing as a risk-free return to football. "I think Kit and Bob as well as president (Rodney) Rogers have done a really good job about going slowly, methodically, and not rushing to get them back in," Loeffler said. "They really laid out a nice plan in regards to safety. "I think this plan that they put together was really well-done, but it doesn't matter how well-done you make it. It's a virus and it's impossible to be perfect."