COLUMBUS — Ohio State football players will soon step back into Mickey Marotti’s lair, the 17,000-square-foot state-of-the-art weight room in the Woody Hayes Athletic Center.
Chances are they’ll be equal parts excited and terrified, perhaps yearning for the comfort of their own homes. The three-month reprieve is coming to an end.
“You hope everybody is doing what they need to do,” Marotti, Ohio State’s assistant athletic director for football sports performance, said recently during a conference call with reporters. “Our challenge to the team is that when this is over you’re either going to be better or worse. You can’t use the shutdown as an excuse. I know you don’t have equipment. I know you don’t have weights. I know it’s raining. I know. I know. I know. I know. But at some point this thing’s going to be over. You’re either going to be better or worse.”
On June 8, players will begin returning to the football facility in waves. The weight room will have a maximum occupancy of 10 players at one time and only 50 per day. Equipment will be cleaned thoroughly and players will receive a temperature check and symptom assessment, new realities of the coronavirus era.
But it’s the surest sign yet that college football could be played in 2020. As recently as one month ago, there was little optimism about the looming season. Now, most administrators believe an avenue is opening.
“I would do anything to play this season,” Ohio State center Josh Myers said. “I don’t know what I would do without football, to be honest with you. With that would come sacrifices, and I personally am also willing to make those sacrifices. That would be doing whatever I would need to do to quarantine, to make sure I’m not getting anybody else sick.
“I think we’d have to do it in a very orderly way just to make sure that other people aren’t getting sick. I would sign any waiver or anything that would say I’m willing to play and quarantine myself and do whatever it takes.”
With players spread out across the country, Zoom calls and FaceTime have become the mode of communication. Instead of using world-class machines, some Buckeyes have resorted to elastic bands, milk jugs filled with sand, and pieces of wood.
Offensive lineman Nicholas Petit-Frere, a 6-foot-5, 305-pound mountain of a man, thought doing pull-ups on his gutters would be a good idea. His weight and strength caused them to separate from the house, resulting in a strong lecture from mom.
“It is by far the most difficult endeavor of my professional coaching career,” said Marotti, who’s entering his ninth season at Ohio State and 34th overall. “Obviously, there are harsher things going on in the world right now, so I’ve got to put it in perspective. But at least in my little world of coaching it is so hard. I’ve never been away from a weight room for more than seven days at a time.
“All of a sudden you’re Zooming and FaceTime. It’s a tough time when you’re on Zoom and a player is in front of you. You want to reach out and smack him in the back of the head or mess around with him or give him a hug. But you can’t. But I look at it as an opportunity to grow.”
Which is why the brutish Marotti picked up a book for the first time in 25 years. And not just one but 11.
Marotti is not allowed to observe player workouts on video and physical activity must be defined as voluntary. Players have access to an app that has workouts designed by Marotti uploaded to it.
“You’ve got to get in a routine,” he said. “You can’t stay up all night playing video games. You can’t be all over the place. You have to be in a pretty accountable routine. As time has gone on, you can really see and hear the maturity of some guys. Nine, 10 weeks ago, it was almost an anxious despair. Now, it’s actually kind of promising.”
Toledo’s Dallas Gant is one of the fortunate few. He has had access to a gym throughout quarantine and maintained good weight. Ideally, he would be at 232 pounds, but he’s happy with his current 234.
Gant described Ohio State’s workouts as “terrible,” although it’s a love-hate relationship. There’s bonding between teammates and an appreciation of Marotti for putting them through lows that build into indescribable highs on and off the field.
“All the coaches expect high standards,” Gant said. “I know when we get back we’ll be tested a lot to see what we have been doing. They expect the best for us. We’re all held to the same standards, but not everyone has the same access.”
As players are repatriated at the WHAC, Marotti expects 50 percent to be in good shape, 30 percent to be in perfect shape, and 20 percent to have fallen behind. The differing levels will add another difficult element to Marotti’s job.
In his inner sanctum, however, Marotti will be able to cajole players, bark orders, and offer encouragement. The facility won’t be at capacity, so it might still be an odd feeling. But it beats the alternative and gives rise to the belief that football will be played in the fall.
“It’s a critical time for development and getting that experience and elevating our games to even higher levels, as high as we can possibly take them,” Myers said. “I know if anybody can get us completely right in two weeks, it’s coach Mick.”
First Published May 24, 2020, 11:30 p.m.
