The NHL and the NBA have figured out how to successfully avoid the virus in picking up where they left off and now are re-starting their championship playoffs.
Hockey’s chase for the Stanley Cup is being contested entirely in Canada, in Edmonton and Toronto, in arenas devoid of fans.
The NBA has been playing in Disney World in Orlando.
It appears both leagues are playing by the rules, not leaving the comfort of residential facilities provided.
If continued thusly, it should provide us sports viewing from home for another two months or so.
Other sports face difficulties, though. College football is on the cusp of cancelling the entire season or postponing it until next spring. Outbreaks of the virus presently spreading through some teams will only be exacerbated when school opens and students by the thousands return to campuses.
If present use of masks by young people, neglible as it is, becomes the norm at schools, it will be near impossible to stem the spread of COVID-19.
MLB, trying to complete an abbreviated sixty-game season, ran into trouble early with a number of players letting down their guard and testing positive, causing games to be canceled. The lesson seems to have been learned and baseball is moving in the right direction.
But the true lesson clearly learned is we do not control the virus, the virus controls us. Baseball and football did not have the advantage of the bubble and paid the price.
Football Player Demands
During these troubling times, I have a difficult issue with college players in various conferences offering a list of demands to be met before they return to play. Especially onerous is their demand for schools to remunerate them for a percentage of revenue generated by playing games, ranging anywhere from 20% to 50%.
The college players on scholarship agreed to accept a totally free ride through college, consisting of tuition, room, and board, in exchange for representing the school on the football field.
It is a system that been in place for generations and has greatly benefited those players who have taken advantage of it by achieving a degree, the attainment of which, according to a study by the Wall Street Journal, would increase their lifetime earnings by one million dollars.
They will be playing in front of students who don’t have the benefits of scholarships, facing large amounts of schooling costs which come free for players during their undergraduate days, as well as the need to pay off student loans which players don’t accrue.
I find it troubling that enabled players would use this time to seek to expand the very generous favors they are already enjoying.
A Word About Graduation Rates
Every kid playing football dreams of playing in college and the NFL. Good for them. That’s a healthy thought. The truth is, only a minute percentage of them ever will. Their chances are dimmed if they tire of the game or vice versa. The sadness arrives when only about half the players in college stay around long enough for a degree. For all the time players spent on the practice field and in team meetings, I am in favor of granting them another year without football to get that degree. It’s that important.
Coach Reese 
I’ve thought for years that if a scholarship athlete fulfills his/her participation obligation to the school, the school’s scholarship obligation to allow that athlete to pursue an undergraduate degree should be for his, or her, lifetime..This would keep that “golden ticket” available to those who do not come to realize, or appreciate, the opportunity until later in their lives. This would, of course, include the extra year, which should absolutely be added to the scholarship programs immediately.
Strat Warden
stratwarden@gmail.com
Could not agree with you more, Strat. Big Ten made the right decision not to play🏈🏈🏈