The uproar over the cancellation of the Big Ten college football season, possibly until the spring, was loud and overwhelming on Monday. It’s been widely reported,although not officially confirmed , that the Presidents of the Big Ten schools, voted 12-2 to postpone the season. The two no votes are reportedly Iowa and Nebraska. In fact, Cornhusker coach Scott Frost said yesterday that his school will be looking to play this fall, with the Big Ten or without it. The players and many coaches are banding together in a “We want to play” stance and who can blame them. The amount of work that goes into becoming and excelling as a college football player is immense. The rewards for those who make it are also life-changing. And, lets face it, 18-21 year olds think they are indestructible. The one’s who have contracted the virus and have seen how bad it can be are having their voices drowned out. And they are out there. Many in the “bro” football culture have opined that there is no question there should be a season now. That the school presidents are pencil-necked weenies for suggesting otherwise. These are the same folks that see no problem with gathering in the hundreds of thousands in Sturgis or partying like its 1999 with thousands of their mask-less friends at the lake. And there are more of those folks then there are the others. But the power presides with the school presidents. And even in the face of millions (maybe billions) of lost revenue if football isn’t played they are still willing to go this route. My question was why? What was their reasoning? They had to know the backlash they would receive. I thought maybe they hoped to recoup some of the lost revenue by being able to have fans in the stands come spring. But that’s not it. There is a report this morning that a rare heart condition that may be linked to COVID-19 is fueling the Power 5 conferences’ concerns about starting fall sports. Myocarditis , which is an inflammation of the heart muscle, has been found in at least 5 Big Ten conference athletes. The condition is typically caused by viral infections and could lead to heart damage and cardiac arrest. Now, I love watching Badger football in the fall as much as the next person. But that passion would be deadened immensely if even one of those players had his life impacted so negatively for my entertainment. We already put the idea of concussions and other life changing injuries behind the curtain…maybe the school presidents finally decided to not ignore the doctors. You may hate the decision but if you look at the big picture, for just a moment, maybe you can understand it. At least we know there is a reason and it’s not a decision being made lightly.
Also this
“Keep in mind that the politicians bitterly complaining about how we “need” sports and why we should all “listen” to the players are the same ones who lose their collective minds anytime those same players kneel in protest or say anything else the politicians don’t want to hear.”- Steve Vladek
Back to Nebraska coach Scott Frost and his comment about playing with or without the Big Ten. Many on Twitter were suggesting that Frost and the Cornhuskers should not let the door hit them in the ass on the way out. And take Rutgers & Maryland with them. When they came into the league, it was thought to be a good fit. But they never have been competitive and many traditionalists wouldn’t even blink if they scurried back to the Big 12 or elsewhere.
The playoffs can’t come soon enough for the Bucks. They lost again last night but it’s hard to judge why because Giannis sat out after undergoing oral surgery. The surgery was done within the bubble so he will not have to quarantine. The Bucks have two seeding games remaining tonight and Thursday. They already have the top seed in the East.
Covers Of The Day (one of my faves…Joe Jackson turns 66 today. Saw him once at First Avenue in Minneapolis. Excellent show!)
Joe Jackson covers Louis Jordan
Joe Jackson covers Fleetwood Mac
The Lincoln Project strikes again…not that the cult members will care….
The graft of Kushner laid bare and the Trump cult will shrug their shoulders. Read it here
“Has any other President of the United States ever gotten so much, so often, so wrong about the basic fundamentals of American history?”-Jerry Steffen
“An important Confederate statue that needs to be removed on November 3rd, is Mitch McConnell.”-Jesse Lifson
“I used to think Mitch McConnell was the greatest traitor to this country since Robert E. Lee. Bill Barr has proven me wrong. My bad.”-Mary Trump
If you were wondering why President Drink Bleach has botched the response for 7 straight months: In 1917 “the great pandemic certainly was a terrible thing where they lost anywhere from 50 to 150 million people. Probably ended the second world war. All the soldiers were sick.”-Donald Trump
“I’ll tell you who’s meddling in our elections,” Trump says when asked about US counterintelligence officials saying Russia, China and Iran are trying to interfere. “The Democrats.”-
“Pissed off about schools? Blame Trump. Pissed off about college football? Blame Trump. Pissed off about 165,000 dead? Blame Trump. Pissed off about an economy still on its back? Blame Trump. He didn’t listen, didn’t prepare, didn’t lead. He lied. He f**ked up. Blame him.”-former Republican Congressman Joe Walsh
Don’t mail ballots in. Drop at board of elections or a polling site. This is an inside tip from a postal worker. “Can’t say any more than that.”
“GOP “deficit hawks” like Ted Cruz have doled out: $1,900,000,000,000 in tax cuts to big corporations and the super-rich $2,800,000,000,000 to the military We have a magic money tree — just not for working people.”-Robert Reich
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