Photo by: Adam Creech | Louisville Athletics
Satterfield Working Through Another Set of Challenges
March 27, 2020 | Football
The Cardinals were able to work in seven spring practices before being shut down.
LOUISVILLE, Ky .-Â University of Louisville football coach Scott Satterfield hasn't had an easy time since taking over the program in 2018.
He had the unenviable task of taking over a program that went 2-10 the year in 2018, and had to face one of the school's most difficult schedules in his first season.
The native of Durham, N.C., conquered that challenge by going 8-5, earning Atlantic Coast Conference Coach of the Year honors, and defeating Mississippi State in the Music City Bowl.
The second-year coach is facing a new, but more difficult set of challenge this year as the Coronavirus has rocked the entire world. Satterfield hasn't seen his team in over two weeks after the school shut down following spring break, and really doesn't know when he will be with them face-to-face.
"It's been difficult," Satterfield said. "We have tried to monitor some of the players' workouts and what they are putting in their bodies, but it's been hard. We're in the process of sending the players some of the things that they would be receiving in the weight room."
Coaching a team remotely isn't an easy task, but Satterfield and his staff are doing the best that they can during these uncertain times.
"Our coaches have been in constant contact with our players," Satterfield said. "They are monitoring their players to see what they are doing and getting them to stay active. It's a challenge for a lot of guys trying to find healthy meals. There are a lot of things going on. Some families have lost jobs and are just trying to make ends meet."
Louisville started spring ball in mid-February and was able to get seven practices in before spring break. The Cardinals were fortunate to have more spring practices than nearly every other school in the country.
"We were very fortunate to get seven practices in before spring break," Satterfield said. ". . . But just to get those seven in, golly it was great for us. It was great for the newcomers we had and also for the guys coming off our great bowl win."
After seven practices in the spring, Satterfield thought his team never skipped a beat coming off one of the top turnarounds in college football last season. The six-game improvement was tops among all Power 5 programs.
"It was like we were hitting on all cylinders," Satterfield said. "This is unfortunate for everybody and for a lot of reasons, but if you look at it just from a football perspective, we've got to find a positive.
The positives are that we did get six or seven weeks of lifting and running when we first got back, and we did get seven practices in, so this semester of football was not a total loss. We were able to get a lot of work in. And it's something to build off of.
"And another thing is you have film from those seven practices, and all these guys have their iPads back home and can go watch some of the film from spring practice, and that's beneficial. So, a lot of great things happened and we're so excited about being able to get those seven in. Now, as you move forward when are we going to be coming back? That's the big question and then we will have a plan when that happens."
Satterfield said the players are scattered throughout the country with only a couple of players remaining in Louisville to receive rehab from surgery.
As the world continues to battle this invisible enemy, Satterfield said he's not sure what the next steps will be.
At some point, the players will be welcomed back to campus and in the workout facility, but no one knows what they rules will be to combat a lot of the lost training time.
"Whenever it does open back up going (schools) are going to have to be able to do some things may be on the calendar before and not in the rules," he said. "The NCAA will certainly look at that, and it all depends on what the timing is.
"Can we have some extra timing with these guys? No. 1 to get them back into shape, the football physical part of the game and then also working on the fundamental part. Our guys have been gone now they're in the third week and as the weeks go by it will turn into months.
"They will have the tweak some of the rules."
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He had the unenviable task of taking over a program that went 2-10 the year in 2018, and had to face one of the school's most difficult schedules in his first season.
The native of Durham, N.C., conquered that challenge by going 8-5, earning Atlantic Coast Conference Coach of the Year honors, and defeating Mississippi State in the Music City Bowl.
The second-year coach is facing a new, but more difficult set of challenge this year as the Coronavirus has rocked the entire world. Satterfield hasn't seen his team in over two weeks after the school shut down following spring break, and really doesn't know when he will be with them face-to-face.
"It's been difficult," Satterfield said. "We have tried to monitor some of the players' workouts and what they are putting in their bodies, but it's been hard. We're in the process of sending the players some of the things that they would be receiving in the weight room."
Coaching a team remotely isn't an easy task, but Satterfield and his staff are doing the best that they can during these uncertain times.
"Our coaches have been in constant contact with our players," Satterfield said. "They are monitoring their players to see what they are doing and getting them to stay active. It's a challenge for a lot of guys trying to find healthy meals. There are a lot of things going on. Some families have lost jobs and are just trying to make ends meet."
Louisville started spring ball in mid-February and was able to get seven practices in before spring break. The Cardinals were fortunate to have more spring practices than nearly every other school in the country.
"We were very fortunate to get seven practices in before spring break," Satterfield said. ". . . But just to get those seven in, golly it was great for us. It was great for the newcomers we had and also for the guys coming off our great bowl win."
After seven practices in the spring, Satterfield thought his team never skipped a beat coming off one of the top turnarounds in college football last season. The six-game improvement was tops among all Power 5 programs.
"It was like we were hitting on all cylinders," Satterfield said. "This is unfortunate for everybody and for a lot of reasons, but if you look at it just from a football perspective, we've got to find a positive.
The positives are that we did get six or seven weeks of lifting and running when we first got back, and we did get seven practices in, so this semester of football was not a total loss. We were able to get a lot of work in. And it's something to build off of.
"And another thing is you have film from those seven practices, and all these guys have their iPads back home and can go watch some of the film from spring practice, and that's beneficial. So, a lot of great things happened and we're so excited about being able to get those seven in. Now, as you move forward when are we going to be coming back? That's the big question and then we will have a plan when that happens."
Satterfield said the players are scattered throughout the country with only a couple of players remaining in Louisville to receive rehab from surgery.
As the world continues to battle this invisible enemy, Satterfield said he's not sure what the next steps will be.
At some point, the players will be welcomed back to campus and in the workout facility, but no one knows what they rules will be to combat a lot of the lost training time.
"Whenever it does open back up going (schools) are going to have to be able to do some things may be on the calendar before and not in the rules," he said. "The NCAA will certainly look at that, and it all depends on what the timing is.
"Can we have some extra timing with these guys? No. 1 to get them back into shape, the football physical part of the game and then also working on the fundamental part. Our guys have been gone now they're in the third week and as the weeks go by it will turn into months.
"They will have the tweak some of the rules."
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