I honestly can't remember a time when I wasn't a fan of college football. I got the bug from my father who had loved the sport early in his life, then became a fanatic about it after attending the University of Oklahoma. In my early years I listened to almost all the games on the radio because in those days television broadcast only one a Saturday and OU was lucky to be featured once a year.
Of course it helped that during the early 1950's Oklahoma didn't ever lose. I mean that literally. OU lost a game in 1953 and didn't lose again until 1957. In other words from the age of three until I was seven my favorite team never came up on the short end of a score. For a little boy that isn't a winning streak, it is a life time.
And that life time isn't over yet.
Now we come to the cursed year of 2020, my 70th on this overheating blue ball. Among other disasters a plague has burned its way across the planet and there is, at this time, no known cure. As these words are being written 772,066 human beings world wide have been killed by COVID-19--163,416 of them are Americans. In this country alone a little over 1,000 persons per day are dying.
Which is another way of saying we're dropping like fucking flies.
Against this background of rampant disease and death there are some--actually many--who want to see the college football season begin in less than three weeks. That's right baby, let's get back to the grand old traditions, marching bands, and young men smashing into each other with wild abandon. Bring us some bloody mary's, beer, and brats as we jam into stadiums by the tens of thousands while we cheer, boo, and sing fight songs.
Does anyone else think this might not be the brightest of ideas right now?
A few do. The University of Connecticut has cancelled its football season. Earlier this year the Ivy League did too. Today the Mid America Conference followed suit. Out on the west coast Pac-12 players are attempting to organize a union of sorts, demanding that their schools provide health guarantees. Some players, on an individual basis, are opting out of the season.
Other schools are saying they will limit the number of fans attending games to ensure proper social distancing, although they are still a little fuzzy on how they're going to accomplish it. The big boy conferences, the ACC, Big-10, SEC, Pac-12 and Big -12 have announced truncated schedules. Most of them have limited play to conference foes only, meaning if you want to take your chances on catching the COVID you'll be limited to places like, Ames, Iowa and Stillwater, Oklahoma to roll the dice.
Other options are still being pursued. There is one which says games will be played without fans at all. Another, the sanest of the bunch, proposes a delay of the season until late February, when a vaccine might be available.
The University of Oklahoma has given me three options for my season tickets. First, take them and do what I will. Second, tell OU I want to apply the cost to next year's tickets. Third, donate the money to the school's athletic department. I'm going with number two, because, as much as I love the Sooners and the game, it isn't worth drowning in my own mucus to see them play Baylor.
Indeed, for me, this season is a wash. I just hope everyone else will wise up in the next few days and see it the same way.
8-8-20
Hard times and even harder choices. Let's just do what we have to get COVID to manageable.
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