Recreation and Athletics | Responsible Reopening

Athletics Reopening Information

Recreation and Wellness

The University of Mount Union fitness center has been modified to allow members of our campus community to exercise safely while maintaining appropriate social distancing. Sanitation and cleaning supplies are readily available throughout the facility, and machines are regularly wiped down.

The multipurpose room (ground floor MAAC) and Peterson Fieldhouse are also available to members of the campus community during hours of operation. Individuals utilizing these spaces are asked to observe social distancing.

The McPherson Academic and Athletic Complex, like other buildings on campus, has decreased its overall maximum capacity at this time.

NCAA Athletics

University of Mount Union varsity student-athletes will participate in the 2020-2021 athletic year in accordance to the Ohio Athletic Conference's announcement on July 24, in adherence to Responsible RestartOhio, and under the guidance of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) recommendations.

It is recommended and requested that student-athletes practice shelter-in-place and self-quarantine for two weeks prior to your arrival on campus. Upon arrival on campus, student-athletes can begin following the NCAA Resocialization Guidelines.

In order to accommodate new and returning student-athletes, the University has extended an option for early on-campus physicals by appointment during the months of July and August.

The Purple Raider athletic training staff will be offering telemedicine options once classes start, and all in-person evaluations and treatments during the daytime will be by appointment.

Updates and additional sport-specific information will be provided to Mount Union student athletes by their head coach.

Office of Athletics

(330) 823-4840 | parnelmi@mountunion.edu

FAQs

Will fall student-athletes be able to compete in the spring?

The NCAA recently made a decision to permit 2020 fall sports to play in the spring of 2021. The OAC is considering various models that would provide competition in the spring for fall-sport student-athletes.
How does this decision affect the 18 or 19 week seasons as well as traditional and non-traditional seasons?

For the 2020-21 year only, the traditional and non-traditional weeks have been replaced with 114 days to be used the way each institution wishes to use them. The 114 days represents 19 weeks of six days (factoring a day off each week).
Does the 114-day rule apply to teams or individual student-athletes?

It applies to teams, and keep in mind that if any individual student-athlete engages in athletically-related activity, the entire team uses one of its 114 days.
Will any activities other than competition be allowable in the OAC during the fall?

Yes, the Conference plans to use much of its 114-day allotment for a robust fall season that will keep student-athletes engaged and prepared for spring competition. Current guidelines and strategies are being explored.
Will student-athletes exhaust a season of competition during the fall?

No, until there is competition, a season is not exhausted. Since there will be no OAC competition in the fall, there will be no season of competition exhausted.
Do NCAA Resocialization principles need to be followed?

Yes, and if “athletically-related activities” as defined by the NCAA are a part of the resocialization, it must count as one of the 114 days.
If a team begins to compete in 2021 and then needs to stop due to the virus, or schedules are reduced due to resocializations and season push-backs, will the student-athletes lose a season of participation?

If a team does not exceed half of its allowable maximum contests or dates due to Covid, those eligible student-athletes will not burn a season of competition. The NCAA made this exception for this year only. This number includes OAC and NCAA post-season. You can view each sport on the attachment (note that the NCAA is still deliberating dates of competition compared to contests).
If the above-mentioned 50 percent waiver comes into play, do the students retain their lost semester(s)?

If a team does not exceed half of its allowable maximum contest dates due to COVID, those eligible student-athletes will be awarded two additional semesters to their 10-semester limit.
Due to the virus, has the NCAA reduced the minimum contests or dates required for a team to compete in order to qualify for the NCAA postseason?

Yes, the NCAA has reduced the standard minimums by one third. You can view each sport on the attachment.
Will the NCAA conduct fall championships?

NCAA Division III championships in fall sports for 2020-21 are canceled. With the health and safety of the division's student-athletes, coaches, athletics administrators and communities as its priority, the Division III Presidents Council made the decision Wednesday to cancel the championships due to the COVID-19 pandemic and related administrative and financial challenges.

For the University of Mount Union, this affects men's and women's cross country, football and men's and women's soccer and women's volleyball.

This does not restrict an institution from competition during the 2020-21 academic year just that there will be no NCAA championship events conducted over that span of time.

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Now that we are using 114 days instead of “weeks,” must we give our student-athletes one day off per week still?

Yes, and keep in mind that if you have multiple-sport athletes, you must still give every student-athlete one day off per week.
Can any competition take place this fall between or among OAC schools?

Not formal in person competition that we have conducted for the last 118 years, but OAC coaching groups are urged to communicate and think of creative ways to conduct virtual competitions that would be fun for the student-athlete and keep us all engaged and connected. You can use your 114-day year to video student-athletes running, throwing, jumping, hitting, shooting, kicking, serving, etc. and issue challenges and competition on-line.