Thanks to the coronavirus, the entire sports world has been put on pause. College football, which is not scheduled to kick off until late August or early September, is in question, despite being three to four months away.
Across the globe, the answer to getting sports back may be hosting the events with no fans in the stands. This practice was something we saw in college basketball for a slight moment when Creighton and St. Johns played the first half of the Big East quarterfinals with minimal fans.
For years, college athletics have been attended by thousands of people, cheering on their favorite teams. To see sports being played on live television without any fans present seems awkward and unusual. However, to get the sports we love back, it may have to be done and people would be okay with it.
According to a study conducted by ESPN, 65% of the 1,004 people surveyed were in favor of sports returning despite no fans being in the stands. When given a scenario where players were quarantined and contact to the outside world was limited, the approval rating went up to 76%.
While this idea is mainly being discussed for professional leagues/teams, it could also be a possibility for college athletics.
As of now, Texas’ football opener is September 5th against South Florida in Austin. The atmosphere would be completely different than the 2019 regular-season finale against Texas Tech, which saw 93,747 fans pack into Darryl K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.
In a stadium that has seen over 100,000 fans on multiple occasions, going to 0 could be an awkward transition. Nonetheless, if having no fans means the college football season takes place, it will be worth it in the midst of COVID-19.
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