Arizona’s Kevin Sumlin ‘alright’ following positive coronavirus test

Though it was announced Monday, Arizona Wildcats head football coach Kevin Sumlin has been dealing with coronavirus for about a week.

The head coach acknowledges that while it’s a difficult time for he and his family, they are making the best of it given the circumstances.

“I’m doing alright. It’s a process, it’s unfortunate but we’ll see where we are at the end of the week,” Sumlin said Wednesday. “From a timeline standpoint, I was tested last week but it wasn’t confirmed until this weekend so it’s about a week into this thing.

“I don’t have symptoms, neither does my son. I get up in the morning and go through a checklist with him and how he feels. He’s in my office next door here doing his school work and I’m back here in the bedroom so other than that, it’s a tough time but we’re getting through it.”

It may not be business as usual for the head coach, who enters a modified 2020 season due to COVID-19, but there’s still work to be done. Even with Sumlin locked in his home until he tests negative, football must go on, especially with a Nov. 7 start date quickly approaching.

The Wildcats’ plan is to slowly move into the locker room this weekend and Monday. There will be a ramp-up in testing, and team meetings will continue to be conducted through Zoom teleconferences for at least another week, Sumlin said.

“You do the best you can, right?” Sumlin said. “I still don’t know how or why or what happened but the lesson is this thing is serious. No matter what precautions you have, you have to be extremely aggressive about your protection about your health as well as others.

“It’s an unfortunate situation … but I’m not the only one it’s happened to even though I’ve been really vigilant about what’s happened. … You cannot be too careful. You just can’t.”

As for the thought that games could be postponed due to positive tests, or even worse, the season getting canceled? Preparation is key in mitigating as much of the risk as possible in Sumlin’s eyes.

“It’s always a concern,” Sumlin said. “If you look at professional sports, some have hung on real well. Then you have the [Titans’] situation. There’s a real possibility something like that can happen at any time and what you do is do the best you can and prepare.

“I think our league with our testing protocols and everything else and playing a conference schedule and controlling what that looks like … gives us the best chance to play all of these games.”

Follow @AZSports