UConn: Cancelling 2020 Season An Option? (Updated 8/5 to yes)

[BOHICA]

Btw, Edsall just started following Mark this afternoon. Hmmm.

Stick a fork in this season already. Upside is it'll be their 1st non-losing season in quite awhile. Blue/White at best.

 

[huskymedic]

 

[billybud]

Throwing in the towel?

 

[huskymedic]

Throwing in the towel?

See his last two “quote” tweets - I would characterize it as setting the table since it’s not his decision in the end.

 

[Exit 4]

Word is there will be news on the season this week, perhaps Wednesday.

Either we book replacement games or we recognize the reality everyone else is reluctant to accept.

 

[EJHarrington]

If we don’t play the season and the rest of D1 does they might as well kill the program.

 

[UConnTrumbull]

If we don’t play the season and the rest of D1 does they might as well kill the program.

Right because sitting out during a pandemic when your schedule has been torn to shreds signals that we don’t care about football.

 

[Hoophound]

It is becoming apparent that not playing at all is quite likely. I will double down on my assertion that we shouldn’t be first to bail on the season. Let someone else do it first.

I am backing off on the idea that we should play just a few games if that’s all we can come up with. I’d rather keep more players eligible for next year. A short schedule that takes a full season of eligibility away from our guys probably isn’t worth it.

 

[EJHarrington]

Right because sitting out during a pandemic when your schedule has been torn to shreds signals that we don’t care about football.

If everyone else can figure out how to make it work and we can’t that is what it means. Going independent was already evidence of that.

 

[Skiblets]

There may not be a team out there that benefits more from no season than UConn. Randy is continuing to re-make the roster bringing in more speed and kids with upside. There may be some fourth and fifth year seniors who were gearing up for their final season who decide after graduating that it's time to get on with their lives which would lessen the scholly log jam while allowing everyone who hadn't redshirted to get that year.....plus we get more Randy-type players into the mix with fewer Diaco-types. Mix in the way Randy is positioning this (I'm the equivalent of the players union rep) and their attitude to play anyone, anywhere, anytime plus the general positivity around the AD (Hurley, Big East and football TV contract) and the winds of positivity are starting to blow again for this program even during this pandemic.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

College Football's scheduling approach is a runaway freight train to disaster. The P5 schools keeping their existing schedules because of the TV money is so staggeringly reckless and irresponsible that they are legally negligent on their face. It would take one COVID death for an athletic department to be sued into oblivion.

The smart play for UConn may be to take this season off and then see what is left of college football next year.

Every school, even an IVY, cancelling a sport increases the legal exposure for every school that goes forward with athletics. The number of schools that suspended athletics is going to figure prominently in the opening argument of every lawsuit filed by the family of anyone that gets critically ill or dies of COVID as a result of playing. And the AD's and Presidents of schools that chose not to play will be popular witnesses in those trials.

Instead of making threats and giving ultimatums to the NCAA and small conferences, the smart move for the P5 would be to convince them to go along, or play nice in some way, shape or form.

 

[EdgewoodNHV]

If we cancelled it would be putting $$$ ahead of athletes. Any athlete worth his salt wants to play.

Ah yes the No True Scotsman argument.

any REAL athlete would want to play. If you're afraid and 19 years old, you're not a REAL athlete. Never mind that many professional athlete have decided not to play despite giving up MILLIONS of dollars, but if you're a kid and you are afraid, you aren't a REAL athlete, you heard it here, from the safety of the BlueDogs Keyboard.

 

[EJHarrington]

Ah yes the No True Scotsman argument.

any REAL athlete would want to play. If you're afraid and 19 years old, you're not a REAL athlete. Never mind that many professional athlete have decided not to play despite giving up MILLIONS of dollars, but if you're a kid and you are afraid, you aren't a REAL athlete, you heard it here, from the safety of the BlueDogs Keyboard.

That’s the great thing about freedom. The players that want to play - in MLB about 98 percent - can play and the ones that don’t can stay home.

 

[huskymedic]

 

[Ajs120102]

UConn won’t make money this season regardless. But they prioritized health over anything and I’m proud of that. Coaches can get sick. Athletes can get sick. Keep them safe. Beef up over the off season and come back strong for 21

 

[Dooooooomed]

 

[huskymedic]

Alternate access link here <

 

[huskysupporter]

I am proud that UCONN is first FBS program to announce this. I hope others will follow suit now.

 

[billybud]

What we all knew. was coming...No football at UConn...

Randy was indeed setting the table....

Not rocket science to predict...a schedule that was in tatters, a pandemic to deal with...

 

[UCFBfan]

Time to see if the dominoes start to fall now. This was absolutely the right choice.

 

[UConnJim]

They had to cancel the season as too many opponents cancelled or were about to cancel their games with UConn.

 

[billybud]

UConn was the first FBS...and was in a good position for cancelling.

....schedule would be difficult to put together
....did not have necessary covid testing resources
....did not have big money coming in for TV games
....football was not the first sport of the school or conference

 

[Brochacho]

Proud to see UConn prioritizes the heath of employees and students vs what people may tweet about this, as a select few here were worried about.

 

[huskymedic]

 

[huskymedic]

>>Members of the team will remain enrolled in classes, either virtually or in person, as full-time students at UConn. The team members will also retain access to facilities and support services in accordance with NCAA rules, ensuring that student-athletes remain on track academically and developmentally.<<

>>"The necessary measures needed to mitigate risk of football student-athletes contracting the coronavirus are not conducive to delivering an optimal experience for our team," Benedict said. "Ultimately, the student-athletes would rather preserve their year of eligibility with an eye to competing under more typical circumstances during the 2021 season."<<

>>The football student-athletes offered their thoughts in a statement. "As a team we are in full support of the decision to not compete in 2020. We have many health concerns and not enough is known about the potential long term effects of contracting COVID-19. Additionally, we have not had the optimal time to train mentally & physically to be properly prepared to compete this season. We love this game and love competing. We came to campus in the beginning of July knowing there would be challenges presented by the pandemic but it is apparent to us now that these challenges are impossible to overcome. <<