COVID-19 Is a Concern for Older NCAA Basketball Coaches

Mike Krzyzewski, Roy Williams and Jim Boeheim could potentially be sidelined

Mike Krzyzewski of Duke
Head coach Roy Williams of North Carolina (left) and Mike Krzyzewski of Duke (right).
Streeter Lecka/Getty

When colleges open and students return to campuses across the country, experts are suggesting it may not be safe for older teachers and professors to return to work.

In theory, students returning to school should also mean that NCAA student-athletes will be returning to their respective sports. Does that mean that their coaches, many of whom are older, should return as well?

Coaches like 75-year-old Jim Boeheim at Syracuse, 74-year-old Mike Krzyzewski at Duke and 69-year-old Roy Williams at North Carolina are “at high-risk for severe illness from COVID-19,” according to the CDC.

Therefore, it stands to reason that they may be a little wary of returning to the sidelines for their respective programs once games begin again, whether there are fans in the stands or not.

“I don’t think it will be safe,” Dr. Jon McCullers, the associate dean at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine, told CBS Sports.

McCullers, an expert on influenza and pandemics, is recommending that University of Tennessee professors 60 and older work remotely or take a year off once school resumes. That’s the same recommendation he’d give for coaches in the same age group.

Older NCAA coaches aren’t the only ones who are in danger of contracting COVID-19 once sports resume play. In the four major American sports (MLB, NBA, NFL and NHL), the average age for a head coach is 52.

Amongst the best coaches in those leagues — like Bill Belichick (68), Gregg Popovich (71), John Tortorella (61) and Joe Maddon (66) — the average age is even higher, which puts them at even more risk.

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