Even the most powerful forces in college football feel powerless to keep the sport on course as coronavirus cases surge across the U.S. Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick is one of the most powerful figures in college football. But as the coming season slowly falls apart, even the game's most powerful figures feel powerless to stop it. "With each day where the country doesn't get a better handle on the pandemic, the risk to the fall season growsand the only two options are no season or to explore the spring," said Swarbrick. "We're mid-July and the trends are the wrong way."
Distress signs are everywhere in college football. In the Southeastern Conferencewhere big programs have vowed to play onAlabama's elephant mascot is wearing a mask, coaches are taping public service announcements, and the outlook is grim. Meanwhile, moves by the Big Ten and Pacific-12 Conferences to cancel nonconference schedules have raised questions that are difficult to answerlike how Colorado can play Pac-12 rival Washington, which is over 1,300 miles away, but not Colorado State an hour's drive north.
As cases soar in the south, the SEC feels that its season is enough at risk that its football coaches suited up for selfies in school-themed masks for a public service announcement-type video begging people to wear masks.
"The direct outlook is not good," said commissioner Greg Sankey on social media before pleading fans to "consider our behavior to make possible what right now appears very difficult."
In the meantime, college officials are trying to stave off a canceled season with conference-only slates. Other conferences may soon follow the Big Ten and Pac-12 in canceling nonconference games. SEC leaders are meeting in Birmingham, Ala., this week and will make an announcement about their season by the end of the month.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/notre-dame-and-everyone-else-is-feeling-bleak-about-college-football-11594814400
Distress signs are everywhere in college football. In the Southeastern Conferencewhere big programs have vowed to play onAlabama's elephant mascot is wearing a mask, coaches are taping public service announcements, and the outlook is grim. Meanwhile, moves by the Big Ten and Pacific-12 Conferences to cancel nonconference schedules have raised questions that are difficult to answerlike how Colorado can play Pac-12 rival Washington, which is over 1,300 miles away, but not Colorado State an hour's drive north.
As cases soar in the south, the SEC feels that its season is enough at risk that its football coaches suited up for selfies in school-themed masks for a public service announcement-type video begging people to wear masks.
"The direct outlook is not good," said commissioner Greg Sankey on social media before pleading fans to "consider our behavior to make possible what right now appears very difficult."
In the meantime, college officials are trying to stave off a canceled season with conference-only slates. Other conferences may soon follow the Big Ten and Pac-12 in canceling nonconference games. SEC leaders are meeting in Birmingham, Ala., this week and will make an announcement about their season by the end of the month.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/notre-dame-and-everyone-else-is-feeling-bleak-about-college-football-11594814400
