COVID-19’s hold squeezes out optimism
The optimism is understandable, if perhaps misplaced. I get that. We all need hope, now more than ever, to help us get through the COVID-19 pandemic. What do we have if we don’t have hope?
But it’s hard to feel any better about President Donald Trump’s prediction Saturday, according to ESPN, that football should be able to start on time in September in stadiums full of fans. After speaking on a conference call with the commissioners of the country’s major sports leagues, Trump said in a media briefing, “I want fans back in the arenas. As soon as we can, obviously. And the fans want to be back, too … [the leagues] want to get back. They’ve got to get back.
They can’t do this. Their sports weren’t designed for it, the whole concept of our nation wasn’t designed for it. We’re going to have to get back. We want to get back soon, very soon.”
Hope, right? Unfortunately, wanting something doesn’t always mean getting it.
Did you read what the NFL’s chief medical officer told NFL.com’s Judy Batista last week? “As long as we’re still in a place where when a single individual tests positive for the virus that you have to quarantine every single person who was in contact with them in any shape, form or fashion, then I don’t think you can begin to think about reopening a team sport,” Dr. Allen Sills said.
“Because we’re going to have positive cases for a very long time.”
Did you hear what Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said on ESPN last week about the NBA resuming its season sometime this summer? “It won’t happen until we can be absolutely certain everybody can be safe. It’s safety first, no ifs, ands or buts about it.”
Did you see what California governor Gavin Newsom said Saturday, speaking before Trump made his comments, when he was asked if there will be fans at games in September? “I’m not anticipating that happening in this state. One has to be very careful here. One has to be careful not to over-promise.”
Did you catch what New York governor Andrew Cuomo said at his media briefing Sunday morning? “I’d love to see sports back, help with cabin fever, but this isn’t about hopes and dreams and aspirations. None of us like being here. Follow the data, follow the science, let the professionals tell us when it’s safe to reopen.”
Did you read what Pitt athletic director Heather Lyke said last week about the possibility of games in empty stadiums? “If there’s a concern about human contact, we won’t be playing the game.”
Lyke’s point is spot-on. It’s impossible to imagine games without fans in the stands. By, say, August, if we’re not to the point where it’s safe for people to gather at the barbershops or at the bars and restaurants or at the stadiums, how can we guarantee the safety of the players? Many are not going to want to play the games without that guarantee. At least a few already have asked about their obligations to their contract if they have health concerns.
Meanwhile, the researchers and medical community keep working tirelessly to find something — anything — to beat COVID-19.
There were a couple of encouraging developments late last week. There was news that a University of Pittsburgh researcher is making progress toward a vaccine. There also was a story that UPMC researchers are close to completing a blood test to determine immunity against the coronavirus.
That news provides a lot more hope than what Trump had to say about the start of football.
But to think that everything will be figured out by
September? When the pandemic isn’t close to reaching its peak? When so many people still are suffering and dying? When so many more will? When it could take up to a year before a vaccine is approved?
You know how you feel now without sports, not even a month since the NBA became the first professional league to suspend its season March 11. There is a significant void in your life, right? That certainly is far from your greatest problem, at least in comparison to your health, your job and your ability to feed your family and pay your mortgage. But it still hurts. “We need sports, we need something to rally behind,” Cuban told ESPN. “It’s just too important to the United States of America.”
It’s hard to imagine our sports world without football. Losing the NHL, NBA and MLB would be painful enough. But no NFL and college football. It’s unthinkable, actually.
It goes to reason that, if we get to that point when the NFL and the NCAA join the others in canceling their season, the death toll of COVID-19 will be horrifying and the devastating impact on the economy will be felt by everyone. But what about our mental wellbeing? What about the impact on our day-to-day life?
Where will we look for hope then?