According to Thamel, 'You can feel the tidal wave coming!'

You can feel the tidal wave coming!

Thamel Wrote:So many significant events for the sport have been squeezed into the last 72 hours that it feels like the rat-a-tat lyrics to the old REM song, “It’s the end of the world.” Except no one feels fine.

The most visceral news came with UConn football canceling the 2020 season on Wednesday morning, the first Division I program to do so. Then there are the star defections – Virginia Tech’s Caleb Farley, Minnesota’s Rashod Bateman and the expectation that Penn State’s Micah Parsons will join them soon. It continued with an internal investigation at Colorado State for its handling of COVID-19, a Stadium report that three-quarters of Idaho players don’t want to play and three Big Ten schools with significant enough breakouts and contact tracing that they’ve paused workouts.

I can feel .... the Tidal Wave of Gloom stories from writers needing something to write about.

Look, if a month from now the CFB season has been called off, nobody will be surprised. The virus is an extremely fluid situation.

But, there's ZERO evidence that *right now* things are trending in that direction. There hasn't been ANY substantive change in the virus situation since the conferences began announcing their schedules.

(08-06-2020 02:49 PM)HiddenDragon Wrote:  According to Thamel, 'You can feel the tidal wave coming!'

You can feel the tidal wave coming!

Thamel Wrote:So many significant events for the sport have been squeezed into the last 72 hours that it feels like the rat-a-tat lyrics to the old REM song, “It’s the end of the world.” Except no one feels fine.

The most visceral news came with UConn football canceling the 2020 season on Wednesday morning, the first Division I program to do so. Then there are the star defections – Virginia Tech’s Caleb Farley, Minnesota’s Rashod Bateman and the expectation that Penn State’s Micah Parsons will join them soon. It continued with an internal investigation at Colorado State for its handling of COVID-19, a Stadium report that three-quarters of Idaho players don’t want to play and three Big Ten schools with significant enough breakouts and contact tracing that they’ve paused workouts.

For those posters on this board who have at least three other strong hobbies/interests outside sports, the loss of college football will be disappointing but manageable.

For those who have only one or two (or none) hobbies/interests other than sports in general, the loss of college football will be painful.

I do agree with Thamel on this:

Thamel Wrote:“Each day, many campus executives become more unsure about playing fall sports,” said an industry source. “They read the headlines, they see the student concerns and they have a greater understanding of the risks involved. Ultimately, this may come down to simply who wants to go first.”

Pete Thamel, right now, is Bill Paxton's character from Aliens.



Some of these sports writers feel, to me, the kid on your team when we played youth sports that would always cry anytime we are down 10 entering the 4th quarter. "THE GAME IS OVER! WE JUST LOST! LET'S GO HOME! THERE'S POINT IN PLAYING RIGHT NOW!"

There's plenty of reason to have doubt, but there is plenty of reason to have hope too - and I think that is what everyone really needs right now. We have used up all the doom and gloom that 2020 has had to offer already. Nobody in April would have thought we would have the PGA Tournament this weekend, with MLB, with NBA, with NHL, with MLS and with college and high schools around the country preparing for their seasons.

It doesn't take any talent at all to spread fear and despair today. It does skill and conviction to spread hope, optimism and positivism. I'm glad I know which camp Thamel continues to fall under.

Nobody inside a P5 program wants to cancel the season because of the money involved.

Just as important, as mentioned in that article, is that no one wants to be first to cancel because they know the vultures will be recruiting their best players to transfer out within a few minutes of any cancellation. There are already teams recruiting players away from FCS teams that have canceled their season.

With all the testing and precautions being taken within college fb, are the players safer in that world or on their [/code]own at university or home where socializing, parties are the norm with no protocols or testing.

(08-06-2020 03:07 PM)GoldenWarrior11 Wrote:  Some of these sports writers feel, to me, the kid on your team when we played youth sports that would always cry anytime we are down 10 entering the 4th quarter. "THE GAME IS OVER! WE JUST LOST! LET'S GO HOME! THERE'S POINT IN PLAYING RIGHT NOW!"

There's plenty of reason to have doubt, but there is plenty of reason to have hope too - and I think that is what everyone really needs right now. We have used up all the doom and gloom that 2020 has had to offer already. Nobody in April would have thought we would have the PGA Tournament this weekend, with MLB, with NBA, with NHL, with MLS and with college and high schools around the country preparing for their seasons.

It doesn't take any talent at all to spread fear and despair today. It does skill and conviction to spread hope, optimism and positivism. I'm glad I know which camp Thamel continues to fall under.

Eh - actually, I was way more optimistic in April (and I'm sure a lot of these other sports executives and athletic directors were, too). At that point, the total number of cases were high but were starting to come down. We still had a hope that hotter summer weather would slow the spread of the virus. It looked like China had shown that it was possible to contain the virus after an outbreak, as well. By the beginning of May, it wasn't outlandish at all to expect a normal college football season in terms of games being played (although I was always skeptical that we could have fans in the stands for any sport for the rest of 2020) and we legitimately thought that MLB could safely start games by the Fourth of July.

Fast forward to today in August and we see that hotter summer weather did nothing to temper the virus and, in fact, the hottest states in the Sun Belt have been the hot spots for the disease for the past month. MLB hasn't even gotten to its second week of games and outbreaks have already occurred in clubhouses (and note that these teams are in significantly more controlled environments compared to college campuses). School districts across the country are going to online remote learning en masse, many of them backtracking from original plans to at least have partial in-person classes.

Frankly, the fact that we have gone back to case numbers on par with April is giving every decision maker even more anxiety today compared to the spring. At least in the spring, there was some hope that there would be a quick turnaround, whether it be advances in medical treatments, a natural decline in cases due to the summer weather or some other factor. Pretty much none of that has happened in the United States and the problem clearly isn't going to get better on its own, so many decision makers feel worse off than before.

Even the MWC in saying they are going forward "for now" with September 26th start for football, have cancelled all fall sports except Football, Women's Soccer and Women's Volleyball, the latter two only scheduling in conference.

Everyone is parring back what they will try to do. The optics problem of Football only is why you see a few other sports being held open for competition. The number of schools and conferences that have not folded shop is shrinking almost daily. ADs are in a losing war with Presidents.

(08-06-2020 02:54 PM)bill dazzle Wrote:  

(08-06-2020 02:49 PM)HiddenDragon Wrote:  According to Thamel, 'You can feel the tidal wave coming!'

You can feel the tidal wave coming!

Thamel Wrote:So many significant events for the sport have been squeezed into the last 72 hours that it feels like the rat-a-tat lyrics to the old REM song, “It’s the end of the world.” Except no one feels fine.

The most visceral news came with UConn football canceling the 2020 season on Wednesday morning, the first Division I program to do so. Then there are the star defections – Virginia Tech’s Caleb Farley, Minnesota’s Rashod Bateman and the expectation that Penn State’s Micah Parsons will join them soon. It continued with an internal investigation at Colorado State for its handling of COVID-19, a Stadium report that three-quarters of Idaho players don’t want to play and three Big Ten schools with significant enough breakouts and contact tracing that they’ve paused workouts.

For those posters on this board who have at least three other strong hobbies/interests outside sports, the loss of college football will be disappointing but manageable.

For those who have only one or two (or none) hobbies/interests other than sports in general, the loss of college football will be painful.

During times of quarantine and curfew due to war, other pandemics, etc, when people are forced into close quarters the number of extramarital affairs goes up. It's as if quarantine swapping becomes the new swinging form of entertainment and couple that with the innate need human beings have to procreate when the species is threatened and I kind of believe that people will discover a myriad of experiences with which to occupy their time. So what if you swap the USC Trojans for another variety.

So far the only ones truly affected are dutiful anal retentive rule followers. Masking and trying to have a tryst while maintaining a distance of 6 feet has already led to an increase in mental illness and suicide.

Home Depot has reported a significant rise in indoor paint sales, mostly by the unattractive, but my Home Depot associate wasn't trying to judge her clientele. Mattress sales are up, as are recliners. Hulu and Netflix and Disney + are up. I wouldn't be surprised if Adam & Eve sales are up too.

What was it the Brits said in WWII, "The Yanks are overpaid, oversexed, and over here!" (Which by the way was an improvement on WWI's "The Yanks are Coming.")
It seems that Americans are very adaptive to any crisis. During the great Con Edison blackout New York experienced the origins of its largest baby boom since 1946, with a few conceptions believed to have originated in stuck elevators.

So IMO Bill the only casualty of the football season will be football itself as people literally rediscover their neighbors, for good, or for..., well whatever. It is the American way.

Sorry, gotta go, the Post Lady is here and she doesn't ring twice.


***Sarcastic Humor filter required***

(08-06-2020 03:07 PM)GoldenWarrior11 Wrote:  Pete Thamel, right now, is Bill Paxton's character from Aliens.



Some of these sports writers feel, to me, the kid on your team when we played youth sports that would always cry anytime we are down 10 entering the 4th quarter. "THE GAME IS OVER! WE JUST LOST! LET'S GO HOME! THERE'S POINT IN PLAYING RIGHT NOW!"

There's plenty of reason to have doubt, but there is plenty of reason to have hope too - and I think that is what everyone really needs right now. We have used up all the doom and gloom that 2020 has had to offer already. Nobody in April would have thought we would have the PGA Tournament this weekend, with MLB, with NBA, with NHL, with MLS and with college and high schools around the country preparing for their seasons.

It doesn't take any talent at all to spread fear and despair today. It does skill and conviction to spread hope, optimism and positivism. I'm glad I know which camp Thamel continues to fall under.

My issue with some of you that think these college sport reporters/writers want to see doom and gloom are forgetting one thing: this can affect their financial income and job security. If an opinion doesn't reflect your thoughts then it's view negatively regardless of side you fall on in this debate as to whether or not these games should be played.

Back in April, I knew plenty of people that thought sports would return. Are some sports safer to return than others? Absolutely! The PGA, NASCAR, MLS, WNBA and NBA has shown that is can return safely, at least so far! MLB is stumbling but we'll see how that works out. But they have circumstances that are uniquely different than football.

But lets be honest, most of you don't give a damn about these athletes or their families, you only care about having a sport that you love get played come hell or high water. It doesn't take skill to spread negativity or optimism, but it does some decency to be respectful of someone's opinion whether you like it or not. And apparently it also takes some skill to wear a f'n mask too!

Regardless, being optimistic or pessimistic about college football doesn't affect whether it will or will not be played.

(08-06-2020 03:36 PM)HiddenDragon Wrote:  

(08-06-2020 03:07 PM)GoldenWarrior11 Wrote:  Pete Thamel, right now, is Bill Paxton's character from Aliens.



Some of these sports writers feel, to me, the kid on your team when we played youth sports that would always cry anytime we are down 10 entering the 4th quarter. "THE GAME IS OVER! WE JUST LOST! LET'S GO HOME! THERE'S POINT IN PLAYING RIGHT NOW!"

There's plenty of reason to have doubt, but there is plenty of reason to have hope too - and I think that is what everyone really needs right now. We have used up all the doom and gloom that 2020 has had to offer already. Nobody in April would have thought we would have the PGA Tournament this weekend, with MLB, with NBA, with NHL, with MLS and with college and high schools around the country preparing for their seasons.

It doesn't take any talent at all to spread fear and despair today. It does skill and conviction to spread hope, optimism and positivism. I'm glad I know which camp Thamel continues to fall under.

My issue with some of you that think these college sport reporters/writers want to see doom and gloom are forgetting one thing: this can affect their financial income and job security. If an opinion doesn't reflect your thoughts then it's view negatively regardless of side you fall on in this debate as to whether or not these games should be played.

Back in April, I knew plenty of people that thought sports would return. Are some sports safer to return than others? Absolutely! The PGA, NASCAR, MLS, WNBA and NBA has shown that is can return safely, at least so far! MLB is stumbling but we'll see how that works out. But they have circumstances that are uniquely different than football.

But lets be honest, most of you don't give a damn about these athletes or their families, you only care about having a sport that you love get played come hell or high water. It doesn't take skill to spread negativity or optimism, but it does some decency to be respectful of someone's opinion whether you like it or not. And apparently it also takes some skill to wear a f'n mask too!

Regardless, being optimistic or pessimistic about college football doesn't affect whether it will or will not be played.

MWC has cancelled cross country which is probably the safest. Golf and tennis are pretty safe too. Not sure when those seasons start but some is fall

(08-06-2020 03:34 PM)JRsec Wrote:  

(08-06-2020 02:54 PM)bill dazzle Wrote:  

(08-06-2020 02:49 PM)HiddenDragon Wrote:  According to Thamel, 'You can feel the tidal wave coming!'

You can feel the tidal wave coming!

Thamel Wrote:So many significant events for the sport have been squeezed into the last 72 hours that it feels like the rat-a-tat lyrics to the old REM song, “It’s the end of the world.” Except no one feels fine.

The most visceral news came with UConn football canceling the 2020 season on Wednesday morning, the first Division I program to do so. Then there are the star defections – Virginia Tech’s Caleb Farley, Minnesota’s Rashod Bateman and the expectation that Penn State’s Micah Parsons will join them soon. It continued with an internal investigation at Colorado State for its handling of COVID-19, a Stadium report that three-quarters of Idaho players don’t want to play and three Big Ten schools with significant enough breakouts and contact tracing that they’ve paused workouts.

For those posters on this board who have at least three other strong hobbies/interests outside sports, the loss of college football will be disappointing but manageable.

For those who have only one or two (or none) hobbies/interests other than sports in general, the loss of college football will be painful.

During times of quarantine and curfew due to war, other pandemics, etc, when people are forced into close quarters the number of extramarital affairs goes up. It's as if quarantine swapping becomes the new swinging form of entertainment and couple that with the innate need human beings have to procreate when the species is threatened and I kind of believe that people will discover a myriad of experiences with which to occupy their time. So what if you swap the USC Trojans for another variety.

So far the only ones truly affected are dutiful anal retentive rule followers. Masking and trying to have a tryst while maintaining a distance of 6 feet has already led to an increase in mental illness and suicide.

Home Depot has reported a significant rise in indoor paint sales, mostly by the unattractive, but my Home Depot associate wasn't trying to judge her clientele. Mattress sales are up, as are recliners. Hulu and Netflix and Disney + are up. I wouldn't be surprised if Adam & Eve sales are up too.

What was it the Brits said in WWII, "The Yanks are overpaid, oversexed, and over here!" (Which by the way was an improvement on WWI's "The Yanks are Coming.")
It seems that Americans are very adaptive to any crisis. During the great Con Edison blackout New York experienced the origins of its largest baby boom since 1946, with a few conceptions believed to have originated in stuck elevators.

So IMO Bill the only casualty of the football season will be football itself as people literally rediscover their neighbors, for good, or for..., well whatever. It is the American way.

Sorry, gotta go, the Post Lady is here and she doesn't ring twice.


***Sarcastic Humor filter required***

Would that I had a "Post Lady" who would ring twice — and even thrice.

You could post on a message board devoted to adult diapers and I would read, JRsec. Yours is magical wordsmithing.

(08-06-2020 02:52 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  I can feel .... the Tidal Wave of Gloom stories from writers needing something to write about.

This.

"Omigawd UConn shut down the season that's the beginning of the end."

https://www.espn.com/college-sports/stor...ding-party

This is why there is no chance in hell we have an NCAA season for anything this year.

(08-06-2020 09:16 PM)Stugray2 Wrote:  https://www.espn.com/college-sports/stor...ding-party

This is why there is no chance in hell we have an NCAA season for anything this year.

Maybe, maybe not, but nobody should trust a soccer player.

(08-06-2020 09:16 PM)Stugray2 Wrote:  https://www.espn.com/college-sports/stor...ding-party

This is why there is no chance in hell we have an NCAA season for anything this year.

Kudos to Louisville for doing the right thing.

(08-06-2020 02:49 PM)HiddenDragon Wrote:  According to Thamel, 'You can feel the tidal wave coming!'

You can feel the tidal wave coming!

Thamel Wrote:So many significant events for the sport have been squeezed into the last 72 hours that it feels like the rat-a-tat lyrics to the old REM song, “It’s the end of the world.” Except no one feels fine.

The most visceral news came with UConn football canceling the 2020 season on Wednesday morning, the first Division I program to do so. Then there are the star defections – Virginia Tech’s Caleb Farley, Minnesota’s Rashod Bateman and the expectation that Penn State’s Micah Parsons will join them soon. It continued with an internal investigation at Colorado State for its handling of COVID-19, a Stadium report that three-quarters of Idaho players don’t want to play and three Big Ten schools with significant enough breakouts and contact tracing that they’ve paused workouts.

DOOM! GLOOM! MISERY! DESPAIR! BARREN WASTELANDS! DEATH WILL BECOME US ALLLLLLLL!!!

(08-06-2020 03:36 PM)HiddenDragon Wrote:  But lets be honest, most of you don't give a damn about these athletes or their families, you only care about having a sport that you love get played come hell or high water. It doesn't take skill to spread negativity or optimism, but it does some decency to be respectful of someone's opinion whether you like it or not.

Eh, if it's "disrespectful" to say (as I did) that you think a sportswriter is talking Gloom to fill some pages (and I'm not sure it is) it's at least as much so to say that most of us don't "give a damn about the athletes and their families".

My objection to this article was technical - I don't see the basis for a claim that a "tide" is moving towards cancellation. The announcement of new schedules by conferences is seemingly the exact opposite, reflecting an intent to play, though we all know things can change any time. Which led me to the conclusion he was filling pages.

(08-06-2020 03:26 PM)Frank the Tank Wrote:  Frankly, the fact that we have gone back to case numbers on par with April is giving every decision maker even more anxiety today compared to the spring. At least in the spring, there was some hope that there would be a quick turnaround, whether it be advances in medical treatments, a natural decline in cases due to the summer weather or some other factor. Pretty much none of that has happened in the United States and the problem clearly isn't going to get better on its own, so many decision makers feel worse off than before.

Note that the hopes were not, as in the EU, that implementing policy which acted upon the advice of the experts would yield results, since by May it was already clear that the national policy was effectively "LOL, YOLO".

Also note that so far as "we all" had hopes that warmer weather would lead to a magical decline in the spread of the disease, it wasn't quite "all" ... those looking outside the confines of the US for information were not hopeful for any such thing. That wishful thinking talking point was mostly circulating within the US