While I'm not saying that we should bring sports back (I do believe the suspending/postponing was the obvious option, though I'm pressed about the idea of cancelling the spring sports in the NCAA) I do believe that this is going to be a dark period in many lives as a result. This is going to be a four-part series of how I've seen this impact each branch of the sporting world.
For the athletes: On a professional level this is the inability to earn your paycheck. You, like many others, have families to feed. However, most of you have been blessed with multitudes and you aren't going to suffer. Instead, you shed light on others by donating to the employees that work in your home stadium. You heed the warnings of social distancing, and you reach out on social media to tell others they should do the same because it's what's right. You understand that you have this massive following of supporters that might think that they are better or above the virus, but we're now seeing that to be false information, so you show them that you are quarantining, so they should too. Others, like Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz, made the mistake of taking the virus lightly. In his presser, he made sure to touch every other microphone and recorder in the room, only to be tested positive for COVID-19 later. In this time he's apologized and expressed his regret from his childish actions, but it doesn't change anything since he now could've spread the virus to countless others. Others have taken the opportunity to fix certain situations, Trevor Bauer has taken the opportunity to give MLB fans what they want, player interactions. With the help of other players, Bauer hosted a Wiffle ball game that allowed us to hear from the players and just hear some banter in such a dark time. But these are just the professionals, there are still the amateurs involved.
Following Gobert's case, the NCAA decided to cancel their tournament. The basketball tournament is the biggest moneymaker in the school year for them. Beyond that, the NCAA is always looking for a way to profit, so knowing that they decided to cancel the tournament (albeit at the last minute) shows that this is serious. However, that does leave these college athletes out to dry. Teams that had their dream team (like UNT men's basketball, or UNT softball) are being shut down before given the opportunity to reach their fullest potential. Seniors who might've had their first chance at a ring or a national championship are now graduating with the thought of what could've been. Even with the NCAA's decision to allow for another year of eligibility, it doesn't necessarily fix anything because what if these seniors can't afford a fifth year, or can't take more hours. The thought and the gesture are honestly very admirable, however it doesn't seem practical, nor do I think that it would be pulled off effectively.
Then there's even the high school athletes, many of whom have played all their life and maybe made varsity for the first time, or made the team for the first time, or even knew that this was their last opportunity to play the game they love before heading off to college. I am very close with many players on my high school soccer team and I've never seen a band of brothers so sad about losing their season, senior night, Saturday practice, or just downtime in the coach's classroom. The team this year is comprised of six seniors, one captain is signed to play at the University of Dallas in the fall, but for the other five, their last game has already passed. These guys were lucky enough to be a part of the core that took this program to their first playoff appearance in 10 years, yet this year they haven't even won a game. Despite this circumstance, they're devastated knowing they won't play with these guys again, and for the five unsigned seniors, they'll never play again.
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