BYU 55, @ Navy 3, and why this should discredit the 2020 season

[skyway 173]

Nobody really knows what they are doing in managing this pandemic. Restrictions have been almost entirely arbitrary and the product of the whims of government officials and other leaders. Navy's coach decided to exercise MAXIMUM caution and never once had his team play scrimmages or even tackle at all leading up to the game. The first time in 2020 a Navy player tackled another player or got tackled was when the first game kicked off. BYU followed no such course. They scrimmaged and tackled and all of the usual preparation. Anyone who knows anything about football knows how badly this disadvantaged Navy. IMO, we can't even say with certainty BYU is the slightest bit better than Navy, despite the fact that the scoreboard read BYU 55, Navy 3. 

The same kinds of things can be happening at all levels of football now. Teams aren't playing by the same set of rules. And, another obvious example is the metrics being used to determine whether to cancel games and shut teams down for weeks at a time. What data, exactly, are schools and/or counties required to collect and report in regards to Covid cases? I sense that, in some places, counties will be vigilant in testing, reporting, and shutting down teams over positive cases. While other places may do next to nothing on that front. Or they may cover up or lie about positive cases. We might see a playoff matchup with Team A, which happened to have 9% of its team test positive, scheduled to play Team B, and Team B is forced to forfeit because two (2) players test positive AND were outed. Team A is allowed to advance on because they never disclosed their 9% positive cases, and/or the 9% positive rate is allowed where they are from. 

It seems to me that the inconsistencies and lack of transparency around all of this is rendering the season meaningless outside of whatever benefit is accrued from getting some games in. We shouldn't be forming meaningful conclusions about how good teams are, or who should be "champion" in this mess.

[Perspective 553]

41 minutes ago, skyway said:

Nobody really knows what they are doing in managing this pandemic. Restrictions have been almost entirely arbitrary and the product of the whims of government officials and other leaders. Navy's coach decided to exercise MAXIMUM caution and never once had his team play scrimmages or even tackle at all leading up to the game. The first time in 2020 a Navy player tackled another player or got tackled was when the first game kicked off. BYU followed no such course. They scrimmaged and tackled and all of the usual preparation. Anyone who knows anything about football knows how badly this disadvantaged Navy. IMO, we can't even say with certainty BYU is the slightest bit better than Navy, despite the fact that the scoreboard read BYU 55, Navy 3. 

The same kinds of things can be happening at all levels of football now. Teams aren't playing by the same set of rules. And, another obvious example is the metrics being used to determine whether to cancel games and shut teams down for weeks at a time. What data, exactly, are schools and/or counties required to collect and report in regards to Covid cases? I sense that, in some places, counties will be vigilant in testing, reporting, and shutting down teams over positive cases. While other places may do next to nothing on that front. Or they may cover up or lie about positive cases. We might see a playoff matchup with Team A, which happened to have 9% of its team test positive, scheduled to play Team B, and Team B is forced to forfeit because two (2) players test positive AND were outed. Team A is allowed to advance on because they never disclosed their 9% positive cases, and/or the 9% positive rate is allowed where they are from. 

It seems to me that the inconsistencies and lack of transparency around all of this is rendering the season meaningless outside of whatever benefit is accrued from getting some games in. We shouldn't be forming meaningful conclusions about how good teams are, or who should be "champion" in this mess.

Skyway, you make some good points.   But in many respects, it's no different now than it's always been.   There's just a new (perhaps more public) factor in play with Covid.    School administrators, AD's, and County athletic department officials have always varied.  Some are rule sticklers, some choose to follow what they believe to be the spirit of the rules, some look the other way when negative issues arise.  

That's been the case with eligibility, whether a kid lives in the right district, whether a family made a full and complete move, whether and when a team can practice, etc. etc. etc.  Covid is going to be no different.   Some schools will be very diligent and shut down operations with the first hint of a positive test.  At the other end of the spectrum, there no doubt will be schools that turn a blind eye to to a list of players who have tested positive (see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil).    And some kids will be unfairly punished by the decisions that adults make and others will be the improper recipients of wrongful actions taken, or not taken, by the adults in their life.   Welcome to life. 

[skyway 173]

6 hours ago, Perspective said:

Skyway, you make some good points.   But in many respects, it's no different now than it's always been.   There's just a new (perhaps more public) factor in play with Covid.    School administrators, AD's, and County athletic department officials have always varied.  Some are rule sticklers, some choose to follow what they believe to be the spirit of the rules, some look the other way when negative issues arise.  

That's been the case with eligibility, whether a kid lives in the right district, whether a family made a full and complete move, whether and when a team can practice, etc. etc. etc.  Covid is going to be no different.   Some schools will be very diligent and shut down operations with the first hint of a positive test.  At the other end of the spectrum, there no doubt will be schools that turn a blind eye to to a list of players who have tested positive (see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil).    And some kids will be unfairly punished by the decisions that adults make and others will be the improper recipients of wrongful actions taken, or not taken, by the adults in their life.   Welcome to life. 

The Covid-19 and associated mandatory shut downs of the entire program-all based on wildly differing standards from area to area- are a totally different animal. We've never seen teams have to cancel games simply because of some positive tests for viruses. Teams aren't being forced to shut down because they lack enough players to play. They're being shut down because of a few people-who may not even be sick-testing positive for a virus.