Do sports, and more specifically NCAAB, return?

[sagegrouse]

This is big news. And clearly the first domino to fall.

While I understand UCONN may not prioritize its football program like its basketball program, football is arguably only one of two revenue-generating sports. To give that up is a biiiiiiiiig deal.

I wouldn't be surprised to see a lot of schools where the football program isn't that highly regarded or isn't the sole (or dominant) revenue generating sport cancel their fall sports (schools like Duke, Kentucky, Kansas, etc. Basically, any D1 schools whose basketball program is significantly more powerful than its football program).

Personally, I applaud UCONN for this decision. With COVID in the US out of control, it needs to be safety first, safety second, and safety third.

UConn is one of only a few schools without a conference affiliation for football. It gives the school the opportunity to make an independent decision without being "yoked" to ten other schools or more.

The only FBS independents for football are Army, BYU, Liberty, New Mexico State, UConn and UMass.

[sagegrouse]

UConn didn't make a decision, it was made for them. As an independent, there were no conference games to save. Once the P5 went to 9/1, the likelihood for money-making games went out the window. UConn football is actually a huge money pit for the athletic department. UConn is probably saving money by not having a season.

Hah!! Great insight!

[budwom]

https://www.espn.com/college-footbal...dress-concerns

Big Ten players have formed a unity group, like that in the PAC 12, and a major demand is that all Covid testing be done by a third party which they approve...and said party will also enforce all health and safety protocols.

I guess they see the obvious conflict of interest which some coaches have. Good for them. Sad that they obviously don't feel they can necessarily trust their schools to act honestly on their behalf.

[jimsumner]

Here is a link:

https://www.espn.com/college-footbal...irus-protocols

People should lose their jobs over this. No severance pay, no buy-out, clear out your office by the end of the day.

[arnie]

People should lose their jobs over this. No severance pay, no buy-out, clear out your office by the end of the day.

Agree; if the allegations are verified to be true.

[PensDevil]

More news from the Big Ten..

Penn State All-America linebacker and reigning Butkus-Fitzgerald Linebacker of the Year Micah Parsons will reportedly sit out the 2020 season because of coronavirus concerns.

https://sports.yahoo.com/source-penn...020419910.html

[duke79]

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/artic...son-to-proceed

The latest from the NCAA. College athletes can sit out the season and not lose their athletic scholarship. IMHO, this will be HUGE for many schools and athletes (I assume it applies to all sports?). I'm guessing many college athletes will go down this road.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Does it count as "sitting out" if there's no games?

Spoiler alert:

There aren't gonna be many games...

[Steven43]

Calhoun is a piece of work. I still remember when, on the heels of the 2008 crisis and Connecticut’s mandatory furloughing of state employees, he was asked by a reporter if he would give back some of his salary. Calhoun was the highest paid state employee (by a lot), and all other state employees were giving up some of their salary in order to help alleviate the state’s budget woes. He immediately, and angrily, answered “not a penny...I want to retire some day”.

Yeah, Jim Calhoun has always seemed like a bit of a jerk. And he ran what appeared to be somewhat of a shady basketball program at UConn.

But I don’t blame him for not being willing to give up some of his salary to help alleviate the state’s budget woes. Did other state employees really give up part of their salary? I have a hard time believing they did it willingly, if they did it at all.

[Stray Gator]

https://www.espn.com/college-footbal...dress-concerns

Big Ten players have formed a unity group, like that in the PAC 12, and a major demand is that all Covid testing be done by a third party which they approve...and said party will also enforce all health and safety protocols.

I guess they see the obvious conflict of interest which some coaches have. Good for them. Sad that they obviously don't feel they can necessarily trust their schools to act honestly on their behalf.

For those who are interested in reading the text of the Big Ten players' statement, here's a link:

https://www.theplayerstribune.com/en...ootball-season

Unlike the list of grievances and demands published by the "Players of the PAC-12," which included mandates to (among other things) "[d]istribute 50% of each sport’s total conference revenue evenly among athletes in their respective sports" and implement various measures intended to remedy racial injustice, the Big 10 players appear to have confined their demands to matters directly related to ensuring that they are protected from undue risks of harm associated with COVID-19 -- demands that are, in my opinion, entirely appropriate.

[duke79]

Does it count as "sitting out" if there's no games?

Spoiler alert:

There aren't gonna be many games...

Yea, as I've stated several times before, I'd be very surprised if we see the Fall sports (football, soccer, etc.) take place at many, if not all, colleges. And I also think there is a strong possibility that on-campus classes will be canceled and everyone will be sent home.

[OldPhiKap]

Does it count as "sitting out" if there's no games?

Spoiler alert:

There aren't gonna be many games...

Yeah, I wonder if the "three games or less and you can still redshirt" rule will apply. Because otherwise you may have to weigh the risk of a really short season burning one of your years.

[uh_no]

People should lose their jobs over this. No severance pay, no buy-out, clear out your office by the end of the day.

that was my initial thought.

[budwom]

Yea, as I've stated several times before, I'd be very surprised if we see the Fall sports (football, soccer, etc.) take place at many, if not all, colleges. And I also think there is a strong possibility that on-campus classes will be canceled and everyone will be sent home.

I just wish Kevin White would stop sending me his stupid, self-serving "updates" on Duke's plans, which at the present time are, to me at least, laughable.

I'll simply await the ultimate option: either donate the price of this year's football tickets to Duke, or roll them into 2021.

[jimsumner]

Louisville shuts down four sports due to off-campus party.

https://www.wdrb.com/sports/crawford...c38a5c1d3.html

[rasputin]

Louisville shuts down four sports due to off-campus party.

https://www.wdrb.com/sports/crawford...c38a5c1d3.html

How else could they keep the hookers safe?

[jimsumner]

How else could they keep the hookers safe?

Who knew those cross-country runners were such party animals?

But this shows how pessimistic many of us are about college athletics reaching normality anytime soon. We're asking college students to behave in ways that college students just don't behave and it only takes a few to muck it up for the majority.

[Tooold]

Yeah, Jim Calhoun has always seemed like a bit of a jerk. And he ran what appeared to be somewhat of a shady basketball program at UConn.

But I don’t blame him for not being willing to give up some of his salary to help alleviate the state’s budget woes. Did other state employees really give up part of their salary? I have a hard time believing they did it willingly, if they did it at all.

What I recall (I was living in CT at the time) was that there were mandatory furloughs of many or most state employees. Tried to find an article to link, but I only found articles which described Calhoun’s rant to the question from an ESPN journalist. I DO remember this got a lot of press in CT at the time, and the gist was that he was unwilling to do what many making far less were forced to do...give up some pay.

[uh_no]

Who knew those cross-country runners were such party animals?

you clearly never knew the right cross-country runners

[jb75]

www.ncaa.com

Both D-2 and D-3 Fall Championships have been cancelled in all sports.