More and more people are starting to weigh in on the prospects of football this fall. Ever since every major league and college sport was either suspended or canceled entirely, the focus has moved to what happens from there.
Next up is the possibility of college and NFL football suffering the same fate. And frankly, with the state of where we are with the tragic novel coronavirus pandemic, it’s hard to imagine a scenario where we don’t have some sort of disruption to football on the gridiron this fall.
The latest person to weigh in on the matter is College Football Playoff Director Bill Hancock. He spoke with ESPN’s Heather Dinich Monday and confirmed right off the bat that things are proceeding ahead as scheduled.
“We’re planning on a CFP,” Hancock told Dinich. “That’s what our staff is doing as we speak. Planning for it on time.”
He was also asked what would happen if a college football season didn’t happen.
“It’s too soon to speculate,” said Hancock. “It’s only April. It’s just too soon. It’s premature. The decision about whether to have a season and a CFP won’t be made by the coaches and commissioners. It will be made by the medical people. We have to be prepared, and we will be prepared, to have a CFP.”
Trying to get everything in order to start the college football season on time though is quite the undertaking. You have several states, universities, students, venues and other stakeholders that have to have time to get things in order so that things aren’t rushed. Most specifically, things have to be done in such a way that the student-athletes are put in harm’s way when it comes to the time needed for conditioning.
Hancock echoed those sentiments.
“There’s a long ramp-up time for this,” he said. “Could it be shorter? Sure. What is it? I don’t know. Would it be the same? No, it wouldn’t be the same. I can promise you the Super Bowl people are knee deep into Tampa prep right now. Knee deep. We all do the same thing. We’re all very deliberate about our planning. Could we do it without that ramp-up time? Yes.”
ESPN analyst Chris Fowler says college football season in spring of 2021 gaining momentum https://t.co/y5vL8chkNF
— Buckeyes Wire (@BuckeyesWire) April 13, 2020
Everyone is anxious to get answers on where things are headed, but things just aren’t to the point where anyone knows yet. We all want our lives back, and we all want to live for the passions that excite us the most. That includes college football, but there’s just no way of knowing and predicting what this virus is going to do.
For now, be patient, stay safe, and continue to be there for each other.
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