UC football preparation

Pioneers virtually meet and train

Three athletic programs, calling it d-3 week.

-- i caught up with utica college football head coach blaise faggiano to see how he's been preparing for what will be their 20th season.

The coronavirus has forced classes online and student athletes out of action.

Not just for winter and spring sport seasons, but there's also some uncertainty for fall sports as well.

-- like the utica college football team.

In division three football, they aren't allowed to wear pads in spring practices but this spring they were scheduled to play a game in montreal until everything changed.

But what do all athletes do?

They adjust.

Blaise faggiano: what we teach our student athletes all the time as how to adapt and deal with adversity and try to find solutions and right away he met with our players weekly we have academic mentoring meetings so we should do that we just do it virtually and it's changed the recruting format as well.

Blaise faggiano: i lost track at maybe 30 videos conferences that we did with families where we were really kind of set up an appointment so that we were like right in the living room in a time like this where students are adjusting to a new way of learning, academic success is even more important.

Blaise faggiano: our focus has a moron their academics and make sure the address to the online environment which is an adjustment particularly for the younger students and then our leadership development so we did virtually the guys going to figure leadership council the pioneers leadership council consists of three rising seniors out on the 18 in class on the roster.

Coaches now rely on the self- discipline of their players to stay in shape during this time.

What about guys who don't have gym resources?

Blaise faggiano: it all depends i was talking to one young man has from queens in this house in the backyard where another student on long island the high school field is still open they limit the number of students and they can still get the run again so everyone is different but we have to buy them at the work out that you can do without any lights at all coach faggiano says that there are some postives that have come out of being in quaratine blaise faggiano: take the recruiting aspect i will always do a video conference calls after this i think it's really going to change us in ways i can't even imagine check in day for the pioneers is scheduled for august 11.

We keep our fingers crossed that it will