Poll: Will College Sports Be Cancelled for the 2020-21 School Year?

[PhDeac]

Ha! You don’t miss the lifestyle of the early career scholar?

Thankfully I lucked out and didn’t have to grind like that.

Yes, close physical contact along with heavy breathing is fairly uncommon in a lecture hall. Besides, every university that I have read about is implementing reduced spacing/capacity in lecture halls and classrooms and many are requiring masks indoors.

Yeah. We don’t know what precautions will be in place for college sports. Can’t tackle from six feet away.

And colleges are going to be hot spots anyway. So college athletes are going to be going from hot spots and traveling from place to place and engaging in close contact with other athletes from other hot spots.

It’s one thing to do that with paid professionals but “student-athletes?”

 

[Pilchard]

What about student/athlete empowerment?

If the athletes want to play, assuming schools take reasonable steps to test and limit exposure as athletes demand, why should others tell them they can’t play?

Seems like those that generally advocate for student athlete empowerment are being hypocritical if they want others to keep those who want to play from playing.

 

[CONeill]

Story on today's conversation between Nathan Hatch and the football team, their points they wanted to get across.

 

[PhDeac]

What about student/athlete empowerment?

If the athletes want to play, assuming schools take reasonable steps to test and limit exposure as athletes demand, why should others tell them they can’t play?

Seems like those that generally advocate for student athlete empowerment are being hypocritical if they want others to keep those who want to play from playing.

Because we know that student athletes aren’t making that decision in a vacuum or with all the necessary information. They’re making the decision under the pressure of people who stand to profit from their sacrifice.

 

[DistrictDeacon]

You conference that contains Clemson, Florida State and (kinda) Notre Dame?

The conference that is based in NC and has members in SC, GA, and FL.

No one should be shocked if the ACC makes the dumb decision here.

 

[DistrictDeacon]

What about student/athlete empowerment?

If the athletes want to play, assuming schools take reasonable steps to test and limit exposure as athletes demand, why should others tell them they can’t play?

Seems like those that generally advocate for student athlete empowerment are being hypocritical if they want others to keep those who want to play from playing.

Story on today's conversation between Nathan Hatch and the football team, their points they wanted to get across.

“It might not work out perfectly this season, but we’ll find a way. It might work and keep everybody healthy and safe, it might not. You’ll never know until you try.”

This is why you don’t let 20 year olds make the decisions.

 

[birdman]

What about student/athlete empowerment?

If the athletes want to play, assuming schools take reasonable steps to test and limit exposure as athletes demand, why should others tell them they can’t play?

Seems like those that generally advocate for student athlete empowerment are being hypocritical if they want others to keep those who want to play from playing.

There is no way to make an empowered and informed decision here since the athletes won't know what health and safety measures the opposing schools have taken and how strictly the athletes on opposing teams are following those rules. There are significant partial information problems for decision making by the individual athletes.

 

[Arsene Wenger]

I’m sure the players want to play, but it sounds like the universities and conferences are coming together to use the argument that “the players want to play, they need to play, they have terrible homes to go back to if they don’t get to play” as a shield right now. It’s gross. It feels like it’s being pitched at the public in a coordinated way. Of course most players are going to say they want to play.

 

[Arsene Wenger]

There are so many entrenched interests who make many dollars off the backs of these players who don’t make a dime. It’s frankly a disgusting system and it’s being exposed as such. Let the NFL players who make $5 million a year decide whether they want to play or not. Don’t parade a bunch of college kids who play for free in front of the cameras and the local beat writer to say how much they want to get out on the field, to try to gain public sympathy in favor of playing. It’s so unseemly.

 

[06deacon]

What about student/athlete empowerment?

If the athletes want to play, assuming schools take reasonable steps to test and limit exposure as athletes demand, why should others tell them they can’t play?

Seems like those that generally advocate for student athlete empowerment are being hypocritical if they want others to keep those who want to play from playing.

Kind of like how it should be up to people’s individual opinions and beliefs to wear a mask or reopen their bar. People should have the freedom to make their own choice.

Eff that.

The early twenty somethings in our cities are the worst spreaders because they’re packing “restaurants” and “brew pubs” (aka bars) and don’t wear masks for shit. These are not the folks we need deciding epidemiological policy.

 

[awaken]

Actually lawyers are making this decision based on future liability.

 

[DCDeac]

It's not that hard, just look at the NBA and NHL versus the rest of the country. The bubble should be non-negotiable. If the players, coaches, and staff for each participating school commit to it, done. If not, sit out. Let players opt out and then hop in after a negative test and quarantine.

Sure, the logistics are really difficult. At the same time these are campuses with dorms and food systems and internet and pretty much everything you could imagine needing to isolate 100 people for a few months.

It's either hard but worth it or it's not worth it. Trying to skate some kind of middle ground is barely working for professional baseball, let alone amateur collegiate athletics.

 

[Gooner]

What about student/athlete empowerment?

If the athletes want to play, assuming schools take reasonable steps to test and limit exposure as athletes demand, why should others tell them they can’t play?

Seems like those that generally advocate for student athlete empowerment are being hypocritical if they want others to keep those who want to play from playing.

The topics that normally fall under the umbrella of "athlete empowerment" are vastly different than the potential life-threatening impacts of COVID and whether or not it will ever be safe to play this fall

 

[Gooner]

I’m sure the players want to play, but it sounds like the universities and conferences are coming together to use the argument that “the players want to play, they need to play, they have terrible homes to go back to if they don’t get to play” as a shield right now. It’s gross. It feels like it’s being pitched at the public in a coordinated way. Of course most players are going to say they want to play.

The sad reality is that university athletic departments and administration are hiding behind "football or no football" instead of having to answer the more pertinent question of "why are you forcing young adults to come to campus in the first place for in-person classes?"

 

[Gooner]

It's not that hard, just look at the NBA and NHL versus the rest of the country. The bubble should be non-negotiable. If the players, coaches, and staff for each participating school commit to it, done. If not, sit out. Let players opt out and then hop in after a negative test and quarantine.

Sure, the logistics are really difficult. At the same time these are campuses with dorms and food systems and internet and pretty much everything you could imagine needing to isolate 100 people for a few months.

It's either hard but worth it or it's not worth it. Trying to skate some kind of middle ground is barely working for professional baseball, let alone amateur collegiate athletics.

I agree that bubbles like the NBA and MLS are really the only strategy that could work but it is in all practical senses impossible to do this for college athletics considering the geographic sizes of just conferences let alone the entirety of the nation. Also it makes an absolute farce of "ThEy ArE nOt PrOfEsSiOnAlS" if you were to try to bubble college football teams so you can have a season. At least NBA and MLS players were still getting their salaries for participating in the bubble.

 

[vtwhat etc]

There are so many entrenched interests who make many dollars off the backs of these players who don’t make a dime. It’s frankly a disgusting system and it’s being exposed as such. Let the NFL players who make $5 million a year decide whether they want to play or not. Don’t parade a bunch of college kids who play for free in front of the cameras and the local beat writer to say how much they want to get out on the field, to try to gain public sympathy in favor of playing. It’s so unseemly.

Yeah, the absurdly paid coaches need to STFU on this issue.

"I trust my University and our team to handle this virus responsibly" . Boiler-plate. Hit 'em with it again, and again. You're just here so you don't get fined.

 

[06deacon]

Quick question, have they cancelled other fall sports. If so, did they ask the players in those sports whether they wanted to play and they all said no, we don’t feel it’s safe to play?

 

[CONeill]

Quick question, have they cancelled other fall sports. If so, did they ask the players in those sports whether they wanted to play and they all said no, we don’t feel it’s safe to play?

Uh, no.

From the ACC about two weeks ago:

Fall Olympic Sports competition may begin on Thursday, Sept. 10
Team sports will play a conference schedule that meets the NCAA minimum amount of games: field hockey (6), women’s soccer (6), men’s soccer (6) and volleyball (10)
Schools will continue to schedule regular season cross country competitions at their discretion
Any additional games against conference opponents or non-conference opponents are at the respective school’s discretion and all opponents must meet the ACC’s medical standards

 

[Buttermaker]

Story on today's conversation between Nathan Hatch and the football team, their points they wanted to get across.

Interesting. No player demands, they just want to play?

 

[Buttermaker]

Actually lawyers are making this decision based on future liability.

That’s part of it fore sure. But if it was 100% about liability, the season would have been cancelled weeks ago.