Podcast: A deeper look at UM’s COVID issues and the chances season will finish as planned
It has been a week since Manny Diaz revealed he tested positive for COVID-19 and almost two weeks since the Miami Hurricanes shut down their facilities because of COVID-related issues throughout the program.
The weight rooms are closed. Practices are on hold. The numbers of players and coaches currently unavailable, although currently unspecified, are significant.
On Monday, Miami hopes to resume some sort of normalcy, though. The No. 10 Hurricanes are slated to return to Greentree Practice Fields and Diaz said he expects to be there.
“I’ll tell you I’ll be there,” the coach said Wednesday, “but I don’t know too much other than that.”
He did, however, give some insight about what it’s like behind the scenes in Coral Gables and it’s not a great picture. On the Eye on the U podcast, David Wilson and Susan Miller Degnan, the Miami Herald’s Hurricanes beat writer, run through everything we know about Miami’s issues with the coronavirus, which have led to two weeks of postponements and a danger of more.
What we know: The Hurricanes haven’t practiced in nearly two weeks, the Carol Soffer Indoor Practice Facility has been closed to players, a small group of “previous positives” have been doing some outdoor conditioning, some combination of players and coaches are currently in isolation, and practices will resume Monday with Diaz’s presence.
What we don’t know: How many players and coaches will actually be at practice Monday? Will Miami hit the marks to actually be able to face the Wake Forest Demon Deacons next week? Will Wake Forest, dealing with its own virus issues, hit the marks to face the Hurricanes?
Those are just the immediate concerns. The release of the College Football Playoff rankings Tuesday also raise some big picture concerns. Miami (7-1, 6-1 Atlantic Coast) is No. 10 in the initial batch of rankings, which puts the Hurricanes on track to potentially make a New Year’s Six bowl game. If Miami misses some more games, though, how will the committee weigh its resume?
This entire year has been defined by uncertainty. As the end of the regular season nears, the Hurricanes are surrounded by it as much as ever.
