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Temple is now set to start on Sept. 26 with a game against Navy, but there is still plenty of uncertainty as the calendar creeps closer to September.
The Owls recently began their workouts under a host of restrictions, but coach Rod Carey says his players are doing what they need to do to stay safe as they prepare for what they hope will be a full season of football.
"You're on the field coaching," said Carey. "Even though in between drills, we’re staying 6 feet apart, but when you’re actually doing the drills, doing the things, that’s coaching. That hasn’t changed."
What has changed is the way the Owls go about their business on the field.
Players get a temperature check before they enter the field, the team is divided in half, and many of the drills involve social distancing.
Linebacker Isaiah Graham-Mobley says the players are adjusting to this "new normal.”
"I think guys are starting to really understand that the coaches and everyone else around us just wants to take the correct protocols and wants to keep everyone safe,” he said.
Several conferences have already canceled their seasons.
While Temple and the rest of the American Athletic Conference is planning to go forward with football, everyone knows how quickly circumstances could change.
Carey has been impressed with how his players have handled both the uncertainty of what lies ahead and the new rules for practice due to COVID-19 restrictions. Graham-Mobley and the rest of his teammates are using football as an escape from the issues that await when they step off the practice field.
“It feels wonderful," Graham-Mobley said. "It’s kind of like our own little oasis away from the chaos outside our gates."