Concerns over whether or not we will have a 2020 college football season is continuing to grow.
ESPN college football analyst Kirk Herbstreit said that he would be “shocked” if we were to have any football, collegiately or professionally, this fall given the current coronavirus pandemic in the United States and around the world.
Fans were split on Herbstreit’s statement. Many agreed but a bigger number thought it was far too early to even discuss the possibility of no football this fall.
One man who does not agree with Herbstreit is Clemson’s two-time national title winning head coach Dabo Swinney.
Swinney discussed the pandemic and its potential impact on the sport we all love during a conference call with the media on Friday.
“My preference is let’s get to work and go play,” Swinney said. “That’s the best-case scenario, and I think that’s what’s going to happen. I don’t have any doubt. I have zero doubt that we’re going to be playing and the stands are going to be packed.”
Swinney sounds very optimistic that there will be a 2020 college football season despite concerns of it being delayed from a number athletic directors and analysts.
He is not thinking like that just yet. For the time being at least, Swinney is preparing as if his team will be reporting to camp in August.
He told the teleconference participants that he has created a T.I.G.E.R.S. acronym for his team. It stands for “This Is Gonna End Real Soon.”
“That’s just my mindset. I’ve got one plan, and that’s to get the Tigers ready to play in late August, early September,” Swinney said. “I’ll leave it to the smart people to figure out the doomsday scenarios. We’ve got one scenario, and that’s to run down that hill and kick it off in the valley.”
Swinney also mentioned that he is hopeful that players may actually be able to return to campus as early as next month, even if classes are still being conducted online only.
“This is America, man. We’ve stormed the beaches of Normandy. We’ve sent a rover out on Mars and walked on the moon. This is the greatest country. We’ve created an iPhone where I can sit here and talk to people in all these different places. We’ve got the smartest people in the world. We’re going to rise up and kick this thing in the teeth and get back to our lives.”