Perhaps, you remember, all the way back to August, when the Big 10 Conference announced they were cancelling the 2020 Season. Some said they were being pussies - mostly idiots like Clay Travis. Some critics were a bit more measured, but also suggested that the Big Ten was overreacting to a pandemic that had done as bad as it was going to do. Then there was a good chunk of folks (like myself) who breathed a sigh of relief that somehow, the moral imperative of keeping students safe was winning out over the motivation to make a buck.
That decision lasted just about a month.
But plenty of folks scratched their heads at the Big Ten's plan of starting the season right about when the flu season kicks in - late October. People with a cynical bent (like me!) noted articles about how the Big Ten decided it was safe enough to play football, but not any other fall sports. Read between the lines of this article, and the subtext pretty much punches you in the face. Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren says things that are just blatantly nonsense.
Like this quote: “We figured once we got (football) solved, being able to apply the same policies, procedures, and protocols to other sports would be straightforward.” That's nonsense. It would be much easier to figure out policies, procedures and protocols with a smaller team sport, with more built-in social distancing. Cross-Country running, for example, might be the best place to start experimenting with student-athlete health. Small teams, spacing, etc.
And so now, the Big Ten Football season is about to begin. No other Big Ten fall sport has started up, and they won't. That should tell you everything about how safe this actually is, and how much of this is about the cash. As Michigan State Soccer Coach Damon Rensing said in the article linked above, "You've got to be realistic. Football funds a majority of our athletic department."
The Badgers of Wisconsin rolled up Illinois tonight to the tune of 45-7. Graham Mertz is a breakout QB star for the Badgers! Fantastic.
But also, from the New York Times: At least 46 new coronavirus deaths and 4,626 new cases were reported in Wisconsin on Oct. 23. Over the past week, there have been an average of 3,547 cases per day, an increase of 39 percent from the average two weeks earlier.
I promise I will be a bummer about this very ill-conceived cash grab the Big Ten has decided to embark on.
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