HEADLINE

From plastic to cloth, NCAA teams mask up

Field Level Media

July 31, 2020 at 8:53 pm.

Select NCAA football teams unveiled on Friday how they intend to protect players amid the coronavirus pandemic, showing helmets with clear plastic shields and even cloth masks attached.

The Twitter account of the LSU football equipment staff shared a photo of the Tigers helmet with plastic attached from its top to the bottom of the face mask, commenting, “Adapt. Adjust. Splash shields ready to go.”

Texas did the same, posting a plain white helmet that displayed the shields the Longhorns will wear this season.

“Masked up. Looking a little different this season,” Texas football posted on Twitter.

Some teams have decided to go the cloth route, however.

USA Today reported Friday that Oklahoma is among the schools that have turned to the Performance Award Center of Carrollton, Texas, manufacturer of a cloth mask that attaches to helmets, for protection.

Matt Entz, the head coach of eight-time FCS champion North Dakota State, told WDAY-TV on Friday that the Bison will put the cloth coverings on their helmets.

“If we want to play a football, this is what we have to do,” Entz said. “Our players are wearing masks in the weight room, everywhere they go. This is what we need to do.”

WDAY’s Dom Izzo said North Dakota State is one of eight teams in the Missouri Valley Conference to buy the fabric masks.