Are all student-athletes on board with getting vaccinated? Some reasons why student-athletes on your campus may not be in favor of getting the vaccine
Athletics Veritas is a weekly series aimed at helping higher education executives, faculty, and other stakeholders stay tuned in on trending national issues impacting college athletics, especially NCAA Division I. Athletics Veritas is created by senior DI athletic administrators around the nation.
The Race to College Athletics Herd Immunity: Are All Student-Athletes On Board With Getting Vaccinated?
Executive Summary
Once 85% of Tier 1 individuals (e.g., student-athletes; coaches; trainers; etc) are vaccinated against COVID-19, those programs can begin easing restrictions
Institutions anticipate vaccination numbers of Tier 1 individuals to increase over summer as unvaccinated college athletes return to campus this summer and have immediate access to vaccination centers
College athletes (or their parents/guardians) are citing a variety of reasons for not getting vaccinated
Not reaching the 85% threshold could result in vaccinated individuals pressuring unvaccinated individuals to get vaccinated
Back in December, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), told Vox, “If you really want true herd immunity, where you get a blanket of protection over the country...you want about 75% to 85% of the country to get vaccinated. I would say even closer to 85%.”
As SI reported this May, the vaccination rates of several Division I football programs were quite varied. Ohio State, Notre Dame and Navy had at least 90% of their football team vaccinated while Clemson, Charlotte and Ole Miss were below the 20% mark. In the midrange, Tennessee, Oregon State and Troy were around 50–60%. Athletic administrators told SI that they expect a surge of vaccinations when football players return to campus in June; however, many of them fear that athletes will continue to eschew the shots for the same reasons as many in the general public: religious beliefs, conspiracy theories and misplaced guidance from others.
The misguided beliefs of student-athletes may include overestimating their immunity or invincibility to COVID-19 as well as a distrust of the medical and pharmaceutical industries. Student-athletes may also be staying away from the vaccination line for other reasons including:
Student-athletes had COVID-19 already and believed the symptoms were not too bad
Student-athletes that had COIVD-19 believe they have developed antibodies and are now immune
Student-athletes may lack a clear understanding of whether certain vaccines have even been approved by the FDA
Student-athletes are unsure about long-term effects of the vaccines
Student-athletes may not trust doctors and nurses about the long-term effects of a new vaccine
Vaccines were developed and approved too quickly
Student-athletes’ parents are not vaccinated and/or do not believe in vaccinations generally or COVID-19 vaccination specifically
People have died from the vaccine or have had blood clot issues
NCAA schools’ sports medicine staff and administrators will continue to educate their athletes and staff who have reservations or questions about the need for, and safety of, the vaccines.
Ohio State Athletic Director Gene Smith: “We understand that student-athletes have different views around the vaccination, so we accept that and embrace that, but we are really doing our best to make sure we educate them. And then they make a choice. And to me, I’m hopeful that all of our athletes get vaccinated. I haven’t actually been tracking it, but I’m hopeful that they do. But otherwise, you end up having to be tested. So that is a choice that they have to make. It won’t be similar to this year, I know that, because I think we’ll have a supermajority, if not all of our student-athletes vaccinated. So that will make a difference.”
In addition, Division I institutions’ medical personnel and administrators are presenting the practical benefits to college athletes for getting the vaccine: no longer requiring athletes to wear a mask and no testing required unless the vaccinated individual shows symptoms of COVID-19.
Other protocols such as daily symptom questionnaires are also disappearing from the required list as vaccination numbers increase.
In its recently released “Resocialization of Collegiate Sport: 2021 Summer Activities” publication, the NCAA Sport Science Institute notes that vaccination levels across the country are not high enough to reach effective immunity nationwide: “This suggests virus transmission will continue at the local level rather than large outbreaks across the country, emphasizing the need to carefully monitor local trends and immunity levels.”
Additionally, the report suggests that athletic departments pay special attention to the first two weeks after athletes return to campus, as students will be converging from multiple parts of the country, as well as other countries, and unvaccinated individuals could be asymptomatic, pre-symptomatic or symptomatic COVID-19 carriers. Extra consideration should be given to the timing of isolation periods for those who contract the virus as well as exercise and cardiac considerations for student-athletes returning to sport after a positive infection.
For unvaccinated individuals, schools are generally requiring them to wear face coverings while in athletic facilities. Unvaccinated individuals will need to continue being tested, too. A sample testing approach for unvaccinated individuals at Division I schools may consist of the following:
One negative test prior to a team training activity and a second test to be performed on day four or five of an individual’s return to campus from travel.
High-Risk Sports (football, men’s and women’s basketball): once or twice per week
Medium- and Low-Risk Sports: once per week, 50% of Tier I roster (all other sports)
Other best practices related to sanitization and personal hygiene -- hand sanitizers, disinfecting equipment, more deliberate hand washing, increased availability of masks -- may become part of everyone’s daily lives including those involved with college athletics.
Peer pressure may enter into the picture, too, when relaxing COVID-19 protocols within a college sports team. For example, teams that have not reached the 85% vaccination rate as a group may still need to physically distance while dining and traveling together, and those vaccinated may grow frustrated with what they view as unnecessary inconveniences.
College athletes may observe and learn from pro athletes and pro sports, too. As Yahoo Sports reported recently, two-thirds of Major League Baseball’s 30 teams have been able to relax coronavirus protocols after four additional clubs qualified and raised the total to 20 franchises reaching 85% vaccinations for players and other on-field personnel.
With teams and on-field personnel reaching the 85% vaccination threshold, MLB relaxed the required protocols, including the requirements for facemasks in dugouts and bullpens, while also loosening restrictions on mobility during road trips.
The expansion of vaccines and the ability to eliminate contact tracing and quarantine has college athletics leaders hopeful for normalization at college sporting events this fall. SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey told SI: “Vaccination can shift the testing requirement away. Looking forward, it removes people from close contact isolation. The bulk of game disruption was an outcome of contact tracing and quarantine. If we can move beyond that reality, that presents a return towards normal.”
Athletics Veritas is presented for information purposes only and should not be considered advice or counsel on NCAA compliance matters. For guidance on NCAA rules and processes, always consult your university’s athletics compliance office, conference office, and/or the NCAA.
