COVID-Safe Practices for Intercollegiate Sports

Intercollegiate Football Program

Updated October 5st, 2020

The following COVID-Safe Practices apply to all intercollegiate sports, including athletes, coaches, trainers and
other staff members. Universities, colleges and sports programs must also follow all applicable COVID-Safe
Practices outlined in “All Together New Mexico: COVID-Safe Practices for Individuals and Employers.”

Testing

• Colleges and universities shall regularly test athletes, coaches, trainers and staff members.
• Athletes shall be tested no fewer than three (3) times per week
• Athletes, coaches, trainers and staff members (“Team Members”) must test negative 24 hours prior
to a game or scrimmage (“Pre-Game Test”); this must be a PCR test and Team Members who either
fail to be tested or test positive shall not participate in the contest.

• Travel
• Team Members must test within 48 hours prior to traveling out of state to play; Team
Members who either fail to be tested or test positive shall not be permitted to travel.
• When traveling out of state to play a game or scrimmage all Team Members must
immediately travel to their place of lodging and remain there until it is time to travel to the
field, arena or stadium to play or participate in a conference-sanctioned pre-game
walkthrough of the facility. Team Members shall observe NMDOH COVID Safe Practices
during such walkthrough.
• Team Members may congregate amongst themselves while at their place of lodging, in
accordance with NMDOH COVID Safe Practices
• Team Members shall not permit visitors to their hotel rooms or congregant locations;
• Team Members shall have meals delivered to their rooms or provided in another manner
which ensures adherence to NMDOH COVID Safe Practices.
• Team Members shall test within 48 hours upon returning to New Mexico and must isolate
until they receive test results; Team Members who either fail to be tested or test positive
shall not be permitted to participate in athletic activities until testing negative and shall
isolate themselves pursuant to NMDOH health orders.

• Positive and negative test results are required to be reported to the appropriate State agencies as
follows:

• All positive and negative test results must be reported to the New Mexico Department of
Health.
• Cases surrounding employees and contractors associated with the college, university or New
Mexico special school must be reported the New Mexico Environment Department’s
Occupational Health and Safety Bureau (OSHA) and the New Mexico Higher Education
Department.
• Cases surrounding students, including all collegiate athletes, must be reported to the New
Mexico Higher Education Department.

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 • The University of New Mexico has agreed to the following:

The Mountain West Conference will support and coordinate COVID antigen testing of players three
times a week for UNM’s Football Program.

• The COVID antigen testing will be provided by Quest with personnel on site
• The COVID antigen testing will be core laboratory based – not rapid paper-based test kits
• The University will also partner with TriCore to provide COVID PCR testing of players once a
week and/or before competitions. The University will also work with TriCore to complete
testing (Antigen and PCR Testing) for all other sports and teams as required by the NCAA,
Mountain West Conference based on their Risk Level.
• The University will report testing results weekly, to include total numbers of test, test results,
and type of tests.

Practices, Trainings and Games

• Intercollegiate practices, trainings, games and scrimmages without spectators (see “Spectators”
section, below)

• Masks
o Masks shall be worn at all times (over the nose, mouth and chin) by all non-Student Athlete
Team Members including coaches, trainers, other relevant staff members, and visiting teams
on the sidelines. Referees shall wear a mask at all relevant times and shall also adhere to
COVID-19-specific rules promulgated by the Mountain West Conference.

o Student Athletes actively participating in the game shall wear masks as practicable on the
sideline, with the understanding that in certain sports, like football, Student Athletes are
required to enter and exit the playing surface multiple times over the course of the
competition. The university shall actively monitor its players and encourage the wearing of
masks on the sideline.

• Only athletes and relevant staff members shall be allowed to participate in practices, trainings,
games, scrimmages and recovery sessions.

• Gyms, weight rooms and recovery rooms may operate at up to 25% of the maximum occupancy of an
enclosed space as determined by the relevant fire marshal or fire department.

• For any practice, game or scrimmage to occur in New Mexico, the college, university or New Mexico
special school must be located in a county with a 14-day average daily case count of fewer than eight
per 100,000 and a test positivity rate of under 5 percent. Please view the map on the New Mexico
Department of Health’s COVID-19 Dashboard for the most up to date status. If the county in which
the college, university or New Mexico special school is located does not meet the criteria, it shall
adhere to the public health and executive orders, i.e., mass gathering limitations.

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Spectators and Visiting Teams

• There shall not be any spectators at any practices, games or scrimmages. This includes, but is not
limited to, recruiters, staff members not associated with the team, family members, and any member
of the general public.

• Visiting Teams
o Any team visiting New Mexico to play a game or scrimmage must immediately travel to their
place of lodging and remain there until it is time to travel to the field, arena or stadium to
play or participate in a conference-sanctioned pre-game walkthrough of the facility. Visiting
teams shall observe NMDOH COVID Safe Practices during such walkthrough.
o Visiting Team Members may assemble amongst themselves for team activities while at their
place of lodging, in accordance with NMDOH COVID Safe Practices
o Visiting teams shall not permit visitors to their hotel rooms or congregant locations;
o All visiting team members and staff shall have meals delivered to their rooms or place of
lodging in manner which ensures adherence to NMDOH COVID Safe Practices.
o All visiting Team Members shall comply with Mountain West Conference Testing Procedures.
No visiting Team member shall be allowed to travel to New Mexico if they receive a positive
test anytime within seven (7) days of anticipated travel. If a visiting Team Member show
symptoms of COVID-19 while in New Mexico, he or she shall quarantine for the remainder of
the visit.
o All visiting team members shall have a negative COVID 19 within 72 hours of traveling to New
Mexico per the public health order.
o The New Mexico college or university shall exert its utmost effort to ensure that the visiting
team follows all rules and protocols to ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of the public.

COVID-Safe Practices

All athletic departments, teams, athletes, coaches, trainers, staff members and visiting teams shall
follow all COVID-safe practices. This includes wearing a mask and six feet of social distancing at all
times including in gyms, weight rooms, locker rooms, recovery rooms, etc.

Outbreak Policies and Procedures

In the event of an “Outbreak”, as determined by the New Mexico Department of Health, the
University’s athletic program must cease operations and test all athletes, coaches, trainers, staff
members and other points of contacts, as determined by contact tracing, immediately. All individuals
must isolate until they receive a negative test result. If an individual is COVID-19 positive, he or she
must self-quarantine per the guidance of the New Mexico Department of Health. Proper
accommodations, such as housing and meals, must be provided by the athletic program to mitigate
the spread of COVID-19 to other team members, roommates, coaches, trainers, staff members and
the community at large.

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Pledge of Community Responsibility

• The university shall require each Student Athlete to affirm their personal commitment to health
and safety, to act responsibly and to follow COVID Safe Practices. This affirmation shall take the
form of a Pledge that sets forth stringent rules, protocols and procedure designed to comply with
NMDOH COVID Safe Practices. Violations of this Pledge shall result in discipline significant
enough to encourage adherence to the Pledge and to discourage future violations. Such
discipline shall be at the discretion of the university but shall be up to and including suspension
for the entirety of the sport season, or removal from the sport team. The Pledge shall make clear
that it applies to Student Athlete activity on and off campus.

• Coaches, trainers and staff members shall adhere to all Public Health Orders and University
policies, procedures, and conduct regarding COVID safe practices.

Regents and Governing Boards

Regents and Governing Boards shall review and approve all plans to ensure athletic programs,
administrators, athletes, coaches, trainers and staff members fully comply with the State of New
Mexico’s COVID-Safe Practices for Intercollegiate Sports. Additionally, Regents and Governor Boards
shall ensure compliance by all athletic departments and sports programs at the higher education
institution or New Mexico special school.