Rounding Third Softball

The NCAA Division I Council has voted to grant a year of eligibility back to DI Athletes competing in spring sports after the loss of the 2020 season. Initially the Council Coordination Committee had moved quickly to recommend the eligibility be returned. In recent days and with the major shortfall of 60% in NCAA revenue and distribution to the institutes, granting the year back had seemingly become in question as an issue of finances and possibly untenable for member institutes. Athletic Departments will now be able to match athletic aid from the previous year, offer less athletic aid, or offer no athletic aid to the returning athletes.

NCAA has announced that distributions to Division I Schools this year would be slashed by $375 million dollars because of cancellations of their Winter and Spring Sport Championships due to the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Pandemic. This is more than half from the expected distribution of $600 million. The cuts will also trickle-down to Division II and Division III in the amounts of $30 and $22 million dollars respectfully.

In our continuing series of interviews with Collegiate Head Coaches on the current state of the game and the effect of the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Pandemic currently gripping our nation and world; We speak with University of Alabama at Birmingham Head Coach Jimmy Kolaitis.

Coach Kolaitis is in his second year at UAB after five highly successful seasons at Oregon as an assistant coach. Kolaitis has one of the up-and-coming programs in Division I and had a 15-11 record in 2020 before the cancellation of the season came.

RTS: The COVID-19 Pandemic has obviously been one of the most unique and disturbing times in our countries history. From the standpoint of Collegiate Athletics it has been unprecedented in the fact of its impact on all sports including softball. Talk a little about how it has affected your program particularly. Where were you and your team when they found out the season had been canceled? How did you break the news that the 2020 season was over to your athletes and the immediate and aftereffect of announcement since?

Kolaitis: It was definitely one of the toughest conversations with a team that I have ever had.  You work hard and prepare for a season then it gets taken away from you, with at that time, so much of the unknown.  I also understand that the health of the student-athletes and everyone else is extremely important as we try to figure out what is going on. We had just landed in El Paso, and was on the field warming up when I received the call from my administration to shut it down.  As you can imagine they were devastated, especially the seniors.  We told them to just take day by day and not look into what they were reading on social media too much.  We would update them as we found out more details. Our staff let our young athletes know how proud we were of them, and how much we loved them.  Softball doesn’t define them, but it is important how we deal with situations like these.  We have so much to be thankful for, as college softball is not just about winning games, but how we grow as young people, and the relationships that we build over time with the people around us. 

RTS: As a coach what are your opinions on how NCAA has handled the outbreak and the cancellation of the 2020 season?

Kolaitis: We are dealing with something that we have never dealt with before.  Everyone is trying to figure this out the best way that they can.  I probably would have liked to seen the NCAA have a little more thought process before cancelling everything.  At the end of the day, it was probably the right decision, but I felt like they should have worked with the conferences a little more to figure out what was going on.

RTS: How does the cancellation affect what you will do in the future from an operational and progressive program standpoint since you are losing the season? 

Kolaitis: I don’t think this changes what we do from an operational standpoint.  Once we are given the green light to start playing again next year, we will prepare and work like we always have done.   

RTS: With the information at hand in which NCAA seems to be granting a year of eligibility back to the student-athletes that lost the 2020 season; How is this affecting your roster, recruiting, and scholarship management over the next year? 

Kolaitis: There are a lot of speculation and concerns of what this may look like.  I told my team that before we start worrying about the status of future eligibility, let’s wait to see what the details are.  All we know is the NCAA will grant the season back.   Once we get the details we can look at how the future looks.  People outside of the game thinks it is as easy as just granting them the season back, but there will be some challenges with this.  However, before worry about what this will actually look like, I believe it is a good time to stay patient and wait for answers.

Former Cal State Northridge Coach Gary Torgeson passed away Saturday in Ventura, California at the age of 78. An NFCA Hall of Fame Inductee in 2008, Torgeson amassed a 636-216-8 record in 13 seasons including four Division II National Championships and a Division I National Runner-up in 1994.

Australia is now the second country to announce they will not be sending their athletes to the 2020 Olympic Games this summer in Tokyo due to the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Pandemic. This includes the Aussies Softball Squad which had been one of the teams qualified to compete. Canada earlier today announced their delegation would not be competing. With the exit of Canada and Australia this leaves only four softball teams competing for the Gold; The United States, Mexico, Japan, and Italy. 

Canada has announced they will not be sending their delegation to the 2020 Olympic Games this summer in Tokyo due to the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Pandemic. This includes their softball team which had been one of the six teams to qualify to compete in the games. The United States, Mexico, Japan, Italy, and Australia are the other softball squads that are currently scheduled to compete in Tokyo. The International Olympic Committee will decide in the next four weeks whether to postpone the games that start in July. 

In our continuing series of interviews with Collegiate Head Coaches on the current state of the game and the effect of the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Pandemic currently gripping our nation and world; We speak with Saginaw Valley State University Head Coach Todd Buckingham.

Coach Buckingham is in his eighth year at SVSU, and the veteran coach has become one of the well talked about names in recent years in the Collegiate Coaching Profession. Buckingham, also an NFCA Executive Board Member, had one of the hot teams as the Cardinals were 16-2 while scoring a win again the #1 ranked team in Division II before the 2020 season cancellation.

RTS: The COVID-19 Pandemic has obviously been one of the most unique and disturbing times in our countries history. From the standpoint of Collegiate Athletics it has been unprecedented in the fact of its impact on all sports including softball. Talk a little about how it has affected your program particularly. Where were you and your team when they found out the season had been canceled? How did you break the news that the 2020 season was over to your athletes and the immediate and aftereffect of announcement since?

Buckingham: ​I actually saw the official release by the NCAA stating that the “championships had been canceled” while watching ESPN the evening of the release.  That was a devastating blow to our program. Having one of the best starts in program history, we were poised and confident for a deep post-season run. We still held out hope that our conference would allow the teams to compete for conference bragging rights in regular season games.  But that was not to be, as the following day our conference President’s and AD’s convened in a meeting and determined that all athletic activity was to be suspended until May 31st, which obviously means the entire season.  I had called an early morning meeting that day with the team, so we were all together to hear the final news.  At least we were all together one last time to share stories and hug it out.  The seniors were immediately brought to tears, as were we all. Since the announcement, I have communicated via social media and messaging with my players, answering questions and checking on their well-being.  This has certainly motivated them to return with a vengeance in 2021.

RTS: As a coach what are your opinions on how NCAA has handled the outbreak and the cancellation of the 2020 season?

Buckingham: ​I have been through the complete “7 stages of grief” when trying to deal with this ruling by the NCAA.  Since I have a few days to process this, I can now say I completely understand why what was did was done. We as a society have to do everything we can in an attempt to “flatten the curve” of this pandemic lifespan.  I do, however, feel the NCAA could have handled the situation differently.  I feel simply “canceling all championships”, but then leaving the situation at that, was a misstep. I believe leaving the determination on what happens with the rest of the season in the hands of each conference was not the right thing to do.  If you look at conferences across the board, in all levels, some have suspended play to April, some until the end of March, and some have eliminated all hope of games.  What happens if the virus runs its course and is no longer a pandemic by April, and games could have been played?  I feel the NCAA could have simply said, “All spring sport activities are suspended until April 20th, or May 1st, or whatever”. Some sort of date that COULD leave the possibility of an abbreviated season of some kind to take place. Again, I realize hindsight is always 20-20, and I hate when people around me outside the pressure of making big decisions say “you should have”. However, his just seems a quick trigger to pull on the hopes and dreams of countless student-athletes across the country.

RTS: How does the cancellation affect what you will do in the future from an operational and progressive program standpoint since you are losing the season?

Buckingham:  This cancellation creates a lot of uncertainty as it pertains to funding, practice stressors due to roster size, and future recruiting. With the NCAA not making an official statement on consistent cancellation of CARA or VARA activities across all divisions, will some conferences elect to start activities before others?  That will give a competitive advantage to those institutions.

RTS: With the information at hand in which NCAA seems to be granting a year of eligibility back to the student-athletes that lost the 2020 season; How is this affecting your roster, recruiting, and scholarship management over the next year? 

Buckingham: Each year, every coach recruits players to replace those players that are leaving for graduation and natural attrition. What happens now that all players have the possibility of gaining an additional year of eligibility?  How do we honor the scholarships of those players now returning for that extra year, while also honoring the incoming players that have signed NLI’s with the same funds?  Also, now the rosters will be larger than normal, which carries budgetary stressors (uniforms, apparel, travel expenses, equipment, etc…)  How do we handle that?  Will the NCAA be supplementing any of that? ​And I have had several recruits contact me asking what all this means as it pertains to our program needs now, and that’s something I am now struggling to answer.

In our continuing series of interviews with Collegiate Head Coaches on the current state of College Softball and the effect of the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Pandemic currently gripping our nation and world; We speak with Florida International Head Coach Chris Steiner-Wilcoxson.

Coach Steiner-Wilcoxson was in her first year in Miami after success on the NAIA and DI levels the last 13 years. Steiner-Wilcoxson has a career record of 444-337-2, and at the time of the season shutdown FIU was 8-9 on the year.  

RTS: The COVID-19 Pandemic has obviously been one of the most unique and disturbing times in our countries history. From the standpoint of Collegiate Athletics it has been unprecedented in the fact of its impact on all sports including softball. Talk a little about how it has affected your program particularly. Where were you and your team when they found out the season had been canceled? How did you break the news that the 2020 season was over to your athletes and the immediate and aftereffect of announcement since?

Steiner-Wilcoxson: We were in midflight from Miami to Philadelphia headed to Marshall University for our first conference series.  We had heard that some teams and conferences were on hold and we just were trying to stay positive and give our administration and the conference time to lay out a plan for the athletic programs and our seasons.  We were suspended and awaiting some time and decisions to be made so we just told our kids to hold on and stay positive.  Once more updates were made we let our kids know that they will have a chance to return and do it again next season.  It was an emotional time for everyone with a lot of unknowns and questions.  At first everyone of course is upset and confused but as we moved forward and the opportunity to do it again next year gives our kids a sigh of relief and a second chance.  We understand there are still a lot of unanswered questions but everyone is working and waiting patiently to see how this all plays out.

RTS: As a coach what are your opinions on how NCAA has handled the outbreak and the cancellation of the 2020 season?

Steiner-Wilcoxson: I think that everyone was traveling and already on location should have had the opportunity to finish playing.  The teams were already playing in basketball tournament should have finished and played out and at least you would have had closure. They were taking precautions and limiting fans so for the athletes actually playing could have finished. We were already at the airport and on our way. I would have loved to of played, but I understand they were trying to get everyone home. I would have loved to of seen them start with suspended season and then move forward as they watch how everything works out, but I understand they are trying to keep all our athletes and staffs safe.

RTS: How does the cancellation affect what you will do in the future from an operational and progressive program standpoint since you are losing the season?

Steiner-Wilcoxson: I have always lived each day living life to the fullest and never taking anything for granted.  I reiterated to our team this is exactly what can happen in life and we must be prepared for all challenges.  We are all thankful for the second chance and especially for our seniors.  We have to live life and work hard every day, this is a great example of how sports affect our daily lives in a positive way and how much this sport and opportunity mean to us.  We love the ability to share our days with our sisters and do what we love.  It gives us an opportunity to learn from our past experiences and better prepare for the future. 

RTS: With the information at hand in which NCAA seems to be granting a year of eligibility back to the student-athletes that lost the 2020 season; How is this affecting your roster, recruiting, and scholarship management over the next year? 

Steiner-Wilcoxson: Right now we have a lot of unknowns.  We are happy our seniors will get another chance to finish their careers, but we still are not sure how that will affect us except we are thankful for a second chance to make things right.  I am excited to see what the future holds for our players and program; we will work hard to make sure that we take advantage of the opportunity.  We are trying to find the positives in this situation. 

This week Rounding Third Softball starts a series of interviews with Collegiate Head Coaches on the current state of College Softball and the effect of the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Pandemic currently gripping our nation and world.

We talk today with University of Toledo Head Coach Joe Abraham. Coach Abraham was in his second season with the Rockets that was 11-12 when the season was ended. Abraham lead Toledo to a MAC Conference Championship and an appearance in the NCAA Regionals in year one of his tenure.

RTS: The COVID-19 Pandemic has obviously been one of the most unique and disturbing times in our countries history. From the standpoint of Collegiate Athletics it has been unprecedented in the fact of its impact on all sports including softball. Talk a little about how it has affected your program particularly. Where were you and your team when they found out the season had been canceled? How did you break the news that the 2020 season was over to your athletes and the immediate and aftereffect of announcement since?

Abraham:  It was really weird for us because we were playing a game and hearing that the NCAA was making an announcement and that conferences were starting to shut down.  As soon as our game with Indiana was over, we got word that the Big Ten had cancelled its season and we saw the NCAA announcement about its championships, but we couldn’t figure out whether it meant the postseason or the entire championship season (as the regular season is called in NCAA parlance).  But either way, we knew that once the Big Ten was done, the MAC was also very likely to be done for the spring, so we were literally standing on the field after the handshake when we pretty much knew the deal.  We chatted for a while and then someone remembered that we hadn’t taken a team picture this spring, so we gathered and took our team picture.  We found out for certain about an hour later at dinner when the MAC released its announcement.  Everyone was constantly checking their phones and Twitter, so it wasn’t really a matter of me breaking the news, we all got it about the same time.  We still had two days in Madeira Beach, so we made the best of it.  We let the girls do whatever they wished with parents during the day on Friday and the coaches and the juniors put together a great Senior Night party that we had at a house on the beach that a few of our families had rented.  Those families made the food, other families took care of the seniors’ cakes and desserts and the juniors did a great job with all the normal senior day gifts and presentation.  So our seniors at least got to enjoy their Senior Night at an incredible house on the beach in 75-degree weather with all of the team and most families there to celebrate.  

RTS: As a coach what are your opinions on how NCAA has handled the outbreak and the cancellation of the 2020 season?

Abraham:  It seems to me the NCAA should have been in closer contact with the conference commissioners.  The NCAA cancelled its championships before any conferences except the Ivy cancelled their seasons, so the NCAA almost left the conferences no choice.  I still haven’t read a good reason why games nationwide couldn’t have been shut down for a few weeks and then re-evaluate.  But by now with many schools having sent students home, the cancellation of the season was probably inevitable.  

RTS: How does the cancellation affect what you will do in the future from an operational and progressive program standpoint since you are losing the season?

Abraham:  We first have to find out what will happen with that potential extra year of eligibility and scholarships.  If everyone receives an extra year of eligibility and scholarship levels remain at a maximum of 12 beginning in 2021/2022 (with maybe a waiver for this year’s seniors for next year regarding scholarship limits), what happens to the verbals for the 2021 class?  I know the NCAA doesn’t recognize verbals, but we all have all kinds of money committed to 2021s that our current juniors now have.  If those juniors stay an additional year, do we have to pull verbals or re-apportion that money?  I think the NCAA will be flying in the face of reality if it forces us to make those types of decisions. Other than those considerations, the cancellation of this season won’t affect how we do things in the future.  One would think this will be the once-in-a-lifetime exception.

RTS: With the information at hand in which NCAA seems to be granting a year of eligibility back to the student-athletes that lost the 2020 season; How is this affecting your roster, recruiting, and scholarship management over the next year? 

Abraham:  We first have to see the parameters of how scholarships will be handled, but I hope we’re not put in a position of having to decide how to fulfill promises that all of the sudden we might not be able to keep.  I would think pretty much all of us are going to figure out a way to honor our 2021 verbals.  Our roster was already going to be really large the next couple of years and now it might get larger, so our 2022 and 2023 classes would likely be very, very small if the current players are all granted an additional year of eligibility.

RTS has received information that the NCAA Council Coordination Committee is moving forward in granting relief to spring sport athletes in regards to the 2020 season. This move would be the first step in the process of allowing student-athletes to recoup a year of eligibility.