There was significant news released yesterday that pointed the way to having college football this coming season!

First, the NCAA voted to allow VOLUNTARY athletic activities in football, and men’s and women’s basketball to resume on June 1st. Is it much? Maybe not, but at least it’s a sign that things are easing up and college athletics of the revenue-producing kind can get back into real weight rooms and get to work.

Keep in mind that the Big Ten must follow suit. There’s little reason to believe they won’t; it seems like just a formality. There’s so much damned money involved you know they’re going to examine every possible approach to getting teams back on the field this fall.

Does this open the dam? (Sorry, Michigan) No. You know there will be requirements on social distancing in weight rooms and protocols will have to be followed should someone test positive. I’m sure there will be tons of testing, and schools across the nation will handle this differently dependent upon their state and local governments directives.

Baby steps, people. That’s what we’re doing here.

Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith talked about having fans in the stadium (more articles linked below) and what that might look like:

There’s so much to unpack in this statement.

First, who gets to be the lucky 20,000 fans?

Are you going to let the heaviest hitters in, those that contribute the most to the athletic department? Are you going to let students in - because a constant narrative is this idea that there will be no college football unless the students are back on campus. It would seem hypocritical if you didn’t allow a large number of students in, but, the entire NCAA concept is built on hypocrisy so maybe that doesn’t matter so much.

Second, do fans really want to attend the games?

We’re seeing the economy open up again. Wisconsin’s “Stay At Home” order was shot down by their supreme court and local bars opened within minutes. I live in the Twin Cities in Minnesota - one of my IT customers informed me his wife took a group of furloughed co-workers across the border to drink in Wisconsin bars last Friday. They had fun.

Is this everyone? No. If our Slack room discussions are indicative of fans, there will be many who won’t go to the games for fear of being infected. You can social distance inside the stadium, but the university doesn’t control the RailYard or any other of a crapload of bars outside the stadium.

Third, do college football players want to play?

You have linemen mashing into each other on every play. There’s no changing that and still calling it football. This virus is varied in how it infects and damages people. Even if you recover, you can still get organ damage. If you told me at the age of 21 that this might happen, I’d probably say “fuck it” and play. If you told me this at the age of 21 with the experience and knowledge of a 58-year old, I’d say, “WHOA NELLY? ORGAN DAMAGE? FUCK THAT SHIT” and wait until I had a better idea of treatments, cures, or what exactly might happen.

Will players have their scholarships rescinded if they refuse to play? That would be pretty shitty, but the pressure on athletes might be there even if it’s not explicit. Talking to athletes from FBS schools and you’ll find that coaches use all sorts of methods threatening scholarships while pretending they’re the nicest, most wonderful father figures on the planet.

Then there’s the fact that a return of infections and deaths may return as the economy opens.

It’s a wild world, friends.

News

2020 college football coach rankings: Chip Kelly falls among Power Five coaches ranked 65-26 - CBSSports.com

Scott Frost: This is a stock that has taken a massive hit. Frost had tremendous success at UCF, so he began his time in these rankings at No. 21 in 2018. After a 4-8 start at Nebraska, he was dinged a little, dropping to No. 25 last year. Now, after a 5-7 season in his second year, he fell nine spots to No. 34. He’s one good season away from jumping into the top 20, but I feel like he’s similar

Did we miss this? We seem to be missing things. I’d like football to come back so Scott Frost can start redeeming himself. I still believe.

Creighton announces furloughs of 190 employees | Local | omaha.com
Creighton University said Wednesday that it has furloughed 190 employees because of the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

NCAA weighs moratorium amid push to offer fall sports
The NCAA Division I Council debated Wednesday whether to let a moratorium on voluntary workouts on campus expire at the end of the month as a growing number of college leaders express confidence that fall sports will be played in some form.

In lawsuit, NFL player says he was sexually harassed, assaulted during United Airlines flight
According to the lawsuit, the men first alerted flight attendants that the woman was disruptive and belligerent and appeared to be intoxicated. They notified the flight attendants again when the woman made sexual advances toward the NFL player, massaging his knees and thighs. More than an hour into the flight, the woman's advances intensified, the men allege, and she allegedly grabbed and groped the player. Flight attendants again were notified.

Ohio State game models show potential for 20,000-50,000 fans
Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith said Wednesday that his athletic department has run several social distancing models to consider having fans in stands at games this fall, and Ohio Stadium, with a normal capacity of more than 100,000, would hold a crowd closer to 20,000-22,000 fans and up to 40,000-50,000 "if guidelines are relaxed."

Oregon signee Luke Hill arrested on eight different charges

The eight charges that are listed against Hill are as follows: attempted loaded handgun on person, handgun on person, possession of a firearm by a minor, use of an assault weapon, use of a firearm, attempted first degree murder, reckless endangerment and first degree assault, according to arrest records. Hill is listed to appear for a preliminary hearing on June 19, 2020, at 8:45 a.m. ET in Prince George County in Maryland.

Holy cow!!!!

UC president Napolitano: Campuses will open in the fall

University of California president Janet Napolitano said Wednesday that “every campus will be open and offering instruction” this fall despite the coronavirus outbreak that has shuttered most campus activity across the state.

“The question will be how much of that instruction is in-person versus how much is done remotely,” Napolitano added during remarks to the UC Board of Regents.

Note that the California STATE system has already announced that they’ll do online classes only through the fall. I think that was premature. No doubt they’ll expect to be bailed out as California thinks they’re the fucking epicenter of the world.

Life as the Perpetual Underdog - Hammer and Rails
Purdue is the team that history often happens against.

USDA meatpacking inspectors receive hand sanitizer made at Nebraska U | Nebraska Today | University of Nebraska–Lincoln

Food safety inspectors employed by the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service are receiving a supply of hand sanitizer thanks to an innovative partnership between Nebraska’s ethanol industry and the University of Nebraska–Lincoln.

Jim Harbaugh reveals stance on playing football with no fans - Maize n Brew
Michigan’s head coach spoke on ESPN’s Get Up yesterday.

Delayed or not, college football will be back, but prepare for a new normal
The momentum building for the return of some semblance of sports feels like the boulder bearing down on Harrison Ford in a Peruvian cave. Everyone’s pushing it. Ready or not, here it comes. Doesn’t matter how your political persuasion may dictate your sensibilities. Andrew Cuomo, Democratic governor of the nation’s coronavirus cauldron, is waving any and all pro teams into New York like the mayor of Amity proclaiming the bloody beaches wide open.

Nebraska Picked Up A Graduate Transfer Wide Receiver From South Dakota

Levi Falck will join the Nebraska football team as a walk-on. The more the merrier, right?

Screw Facebook

I have de-activated my Facebook account for the time being. Tired of going on and seeing constant arguments about masks, conspiracy theories and hoaxes. I know - “you don’t have to log on”, but I am contractually obligated to be on Facebook, and let’s face it, I had been using it to stay in touch with family and friends, some of whom I haven’t communicated with in some time.

Time to take a break.

I’ll try to get better at Instagram. It seems like a much nicer place.

Or maybe I should be writing more. I have been sitting on a book about my heart attack, brain injury and recovery for quite a while now. It’s time to get it published. I thought about putting excerpts here. We’ll see what happens.

Then There’s This

Nurse disciplined for wearing only bra and panties under PPE gown

Marina Astakhova added, “Well done, she raised the mood of the patients.”

And Valery Kapnin asked, “Why punish the nurse? You need to reward her. Seeing this outfit, no one wants to die.”

It’s hard to disagree with this sentiment.

Beware of emails with “horrible charts” about Covid-19 – Naked Security

These charts aren’t “horrible” because of their coronavirus data - they’re horrible because they could let criminals conquer your computer.

Hackers know that you’re under stress. They know you’re not as focused as you would be otherwise. They are attacking now more than ever.