really sick or dies.
We can't live in fear of this thing. If you can die from catching it from a teammate, you can also die from catching it on campus, in the grocery store or anywhere else.
I live in Manhattan. I'm young and not at risk. I chose to live my life as fully as I possibly could (despite all the lock downs here). I didn't care if I got it. I volunteered providing food to those who couldn't go out. At least 3 people on my route, all older, passed away. My 79 year old friend at church died. But I go to the park and golf both outdoors and inside at the simulators. I refused to go to Mass or see my older parents until I knew it was safe. But I didn't live in fear either.
I got the disease. It was nothing. Slept it off in 2 days and was fine. I was one of the lucky ones.
We make choices all the time. People work in coal mines and build skyscrapers. People ride motorcycles and jump out of airplanes for kicks.
Stay away from older and at risk people. But don't tell me a 19 year old kid is taking a bigger risk from COVID than from playing football. I would suspect your chance of dying from COVID at 20 years old is probably close to the chance you have of getting paralyzed in a college football game. If anything, they're both pretty low.
We've scared each other and convinced each other that this disease is a once in a lifetime thing, that it significantly harms most people who get it. That's not true. We lived through the Hong Kong Flu. The Asian Flu. SARS. Swine Flu. These things come around and they barely make the history books. Schools and theatres and stores all stayed open in NY during the Spanish Flu. What is different here is the mass need for hospitalizations.
Ask yourself this - if the disease was equally as deadly, but did not require hospitalizations, would we be in any sort of lock down now? Would we be wearing masks? Debating college football?
The truth is that we really don't know the mortality rate yet, or the long term repercussions of getting a bad case of the disease. We won't for a while, despite what all the talking heads say.
In my mind, there's no risk of playing football without fans beyond living your life as you would anyway. If school opens at ND, these kids will get COVID anyway. But given all the (in some cases warranted, some cases unwarranted) hysteria about this disease, the first breakout that happens on a team is going to shut down the season.
So just shut it down now. My guess is that the next generations of doctors will believe we overreacted, but like I said - we really don't know.
first death and you become liable.
I'm sure everyone is signing waivers, but who knows how enforceable they are. And who knows what kind of insurance protection schools have.
But with liability, you're thinking totally about money - you've theoretically decided it's moral and safe enough to play the game this fall. Once you personally have made the decision and your worry is more about the offhand chance you get sued now (or the likely chance you are sued in a class action years late), then you have a money concern.
And I would guess playing now and getting the television revenue is probably what most schools would choose.
kid gets really sick... the pressure will become enormous.
I think the liability will be too great and in the end lead to a full cancellation of college football.
and likely die and then it will all shut down and lawsuits will come.
The current fatality rate for those in the 10-19 age group is 0.067% (I know, some players are older than that, but it is close enough to make my point). If there are 120 teams with 100 players each in D1A, that's 12,000 players. If a major outbreak happened and infected all players in D1A football (a little extreme, but just trying to make my point) and this statistic holds, 8 players would end up dying.
While an outbreak probably wouldn't infect all D1A football players, the risk that a large enough one happens that ends up with at least one player dying from COVID appears to be quite high, and that is before factoring in if any of these players have pre-existing conditions.
One of the most evil memes of this whole pandemic is the comparison of COVID to the flu. Hardly. Even among young people there is a range of known adverse outcomes that would have life changing impacts for elite athletes, and likely more outcomes that are not yet fully known or understood. Why should an elite college athlete risk lung damage, heart damage, blood clots leading to strokes, neurological complications for the sake of - at best - a truncated season?
It's one thing to do summer conditioning and practice under controlled conditions ... circumstances that have already proven unsustainable at a number of schools. If that can't be done safely, can there be any doubt about the chances of making it through an actual intercollegiate season without serious consequences for the players?
My main point was it's very easy to see how one could conclude there is a high probability we will see at least 1 death within D1A football using the current metrics and the likelihood infection rates would likely be high with such a close-contact sport. It certainly isn't the only outcome that could lead to a lawsuit.
Frightening
I don't think we truly know what that looks like yet.
So many people have had this without any symptoms at all. And it will take years to sort of what this disease does to the lungs, brain, etc.
Let's also not forget that we're dealing with a media that likes to hype the bad news. If I had a dollar for every story about how there is a worse disease already discovered in China, how there was a case somewhere of bubonic plague - even hydroxychloroquine became a political football when it was being produced en masse because doctors were prescribing it, despite the fact that it was supposedly deadly. The FDA can't get it's answer straight on that one.
Like I said in my post above - we can't live in fear of this thing. If you are older or have comorbidity, or know a family member who does, by all means take precaution. But I suspect we'll look back on this and believe we probably went a bit overboard on our response.
And our response would have been woefully insufficient.
1. They’re working to schedule these conference games starting in November rather than sticking with the current schedule.
2. Everyone feels like they’re going through the motions. The widely held belief is that a full cancellation is inevitable.
Slow march to inevitable season cancellation.
...those few days where we convinced ourselves that the NCAA Tournament was going to happen, just without fans. The snowball is rolling downhill.
Ya, I said it.
one more loss on average to each team.
Only playing 8 conference games has allowed the SEC to look better on paper than other conferences that play 9 since the non-conference schedule is usually filled with 3 to 4 easy games.
And 2021 is anyone's guess. Even if we get a vaccine in early 2021 it will be doled out bit by bit. Masks and social distancing will still be the order of the day for a good portion of next year.
Honestly, 2022 may be the earliest we get back to "normal."
Week to play Rutgers?
Makes total sense.
The purpose is to limit the number of games and to ensure that all games are against opponents who will agree to the same set of protocols (because they’re conference imposed).
be able to shitcan the "BUY" games, so athletic departments can reduce costs.
If a Power-5 school told Sun Belt school they had to do a certain test in order to play and collect the guarantee, that Sun Belt school would absolutely do it.
There's still hope for Lambeau Field; not much hope but some.
Beyond the press release...
P5 games that would be affected by a reported conference-only football schedule for the Big Ten:
— RedditCFB (@RedditCFB) July 9, 2020
• Iowa - Iowa State
• Maryland - West Virginia
• Michigan - Washington
• MSU - Miami
• OSU - Oregon
• Penn State - VT
• Purdue - BC
• Rutgers - Syracuse
•Wisconsin - ND
The rule changes and logistics needed to make the game safe for players would make it -- at best -- a ludicrous spectacle. This season needs to put out of its misery, the sooner the better.
We need to make contingencies based on losing USC, Wisconsin and Stanford. But the next contingency will be losing the fall. And maybe the spring.
I think sports for the balance of 2020 is going to be a pipe dream except for a few. Maybe the NHL can pull off their bubble playoff in Canada. Even then, a few positives and that could get shit canned.
wants to stay.
Swarbrick will not hire another FB coach.
up the program for 5 years more or longer.
Besides, Tommy's not ready yet.
What does that mean for eligibility, scholarship limits and the NFL Draft?
Scholarship limits would have to be increased or 5th year seniors would not apply to the limit. Would there even be a draft?
https://twitter.com/ByDavidTeel/status/1281316776228290567?s=20
and we'd still have our six games, and other conferences do not follow suit and go to conference-only.
Then we'd have to say "Thank God we agreed to six ACC-opponent games."
provide ND as many games as needed.
With all conferences removing OOC games, I wonder how the post season will be affected. I could see non-playoff bowl games being cancelled, and perhaps an expansion of the Playoff to 6 teams, with the conference winners getting automatic berths.
Edit: It's not clear if the ACC would actually let us win the ACC in such a scenario.
Hearing rumors that Texas HSFB might be a no-go this year, and that's when you know things are serious.
head football coaches of the Big Ten. I know we have Kelly but that group looks like a brutal hang.
If there's a reality show, expect this to be a cliffhanger from Harbaugh.
Oh, wait....
Especially if it becomes the way the P5 all handle it.
I'd still place my money on no college football this fall.
So
But I don't think we'll be playing any in 2020.
So that, in a week or two, when they ultimately have to make a decision on the season, it won't look so bad if the entire season is cancelled. Or, if they play, at least they play.
last 10 football seasons.
Wisconsin is scheduled to play at Maryland. That is ok, but it is unsafe for ND to play Wisconsin at a site TBD (probably ND)?
as things move forward.
ducks batteries.
Tulsa would like a word
Syracuse 2003 and 2008, UConn 2009, Tulsa 2010, Navy too many times...