To paraphrase Bonnie Raitt, are we in a daze, headed in the wrong direction?
The coronavirus was supposed to be tapering down, allowing us to reopen the country in an organized, optimistic manner. Instead, we have a university in flux with an athletic season in limbo and, consequently, a town depending on both to stay in business.
Thanks to disastrous leadership from the very top of the federal government, we have questions that no one can answer and possible solutions few parties can agree on. And it’s downright depressing.
Let’s just stick to sports, since that is what’s supposed to be in this space. Hasn’t it become crystal clear that college football cannot be played this fall unless a group of like-minded people take control?
My guess is that Mack Brown’s football team, which has some of the 37 announced COVID-19 positives among UNC athletes, coaches and staff that have been reporting back to campus over the last month, won’t be flying in one, two or three planes to Orlando to open the season on September 4 against Central Florida.
And whether the game against Auburn the following week is played inside a dome or at some outdoor stadium, that will depend on both schools complying with some yet-announced health protocols that, likely, can’t be trusted between the ACC and SEC.
The NCAA isn’t making the call because whatever they say must be approved by schools and conferences that have different agendas and goals. So, they are leaving it to the league members to come up with something, and that is probably a safe subset of the whole, like the state of North Carolina.
Isn’t it becoming obvious that schools hoping to play football against each other have to be honorable partners whose leadership can hash it out for the sake of the game under the safest conditions?
Like we’ve been saying now for weeks, how about the Big Four schools decide to play home-and-home with each other for six games, and then fill in the open dates with App State, ECU, UNC-Charlotte and Elon? Bus to the games that morning and bus home afterward. Set safety guidelines all can abide by.
Let’s go, respective leaders, get us moving in the right direction!
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