On Monday, President Donald Trump called for college football to play this year. “The student-athletes have been working too hard for their season to be canceled,” the President tweeted on Monday, adding the hashtag #WeWantToPlay. “And later on, adding, “Play College Football!”
This movement to bring college football back started earlier this week when, most notably, Clemson star-quarterback Trevor Lawrence and other college football players took to Twitter and stating their case for why there should be a season this year. Lawrence said, “People are at just as much, if not more risk, if we don’t play. Players will all be sent home to their own communities where social distancing is highly unlikely and medical care and expenses will be placed on the families if they were to contract covid19. Not to mention the players coming from situations that are not good for them/ their future and having to go back to that. Football is a safe haven for so many people. We are more likely to get the virus in everyday life than playing football. Having a season also incentivizes players being safe and taking all of the right precautions to try to avoid contracting covid because the season/ teammates safety is on the line. Without the season, as we’ve seen already, people will not social distance or wear masks and take the proper precautions.”
It is unclear whether or not these messages will work especially considered the inherent disorganized nature of college football and its many divisions and conferences, but it feels like too little too late for a fall season with students returning, or not, to campus over the next couple of weeks.
