President Donald Trump and prominent Republicans are saying publicly that they need to see a school football season in the fall, as plans for the 2020 season unfold, and that one of the biggest meetings has to cancel its season.
Plans for a 2020 school football season met with great fortune Monday, when news broke that the Big Ten, one of the toughest and luckiest reunions in the sport’s history, was planning to cancel. your season.
Trump then tweeted “Play school soccer!” after saying that “student-athletes worked too hard to get their season canceled. “
Shortly after the Big Ten news broke, United States Representative Jim Jordan (R-OH), who hails from a state with a Big Ten team, said in a widely shared tweet that “United States United wants school football, “joining others. Known Republicans appearing in your season.
Early Monday, US Senator Ben Sasse (R-NE), who is also from a state with a team in a Big Ten, sent a letter to the leaders of Big Ten universities, begging them to move forward with the season, arguing: without evidence, for his case that “the design and field of soccer systems will likely be safer than an 18 to 22 year old player will delight in if they don’t. There is no season. “
There are serious fears that the Big Ten decision will have a ripple effect on school soccer, and leaders of the Southeastern Conference, considered the most powerful convention in school soccer, are now making plans to meet on Monday afternoon. to talk about the long term of the season.
Florida’s most sensitive Republicans, Governor Ron DeSantis and US Senator Marco Rubio, have spoken out in favor of the school football played in the fall; the University of Florida plays in the SEC.
“Here’s the reality: many of you think that soccer is safer than anything, but you also know that you will be blamed if there is soccer, while you can avoid blame if you cancel soccer. Sasse wrote in his letter to the ten presidents and chancellors.
Republicans pushing for school football to continue into the fall could be as much a matter of politics as less than seeing their favorite groups take over. College football is more interested in markets in which President Donald Trump performed well in the 2016 election compared to other sports, such as MLB, NFL and NASCAR, according to research via FiveThirtyEight.
Some more down-to-earth school football players, like Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence and Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields, need the season to continue and have tweeted with the hashtag #WeWantToPlay. Trump shared Lawrence’s post on Monday.
College football is hugely popular in the South, and some senior officials have used concerns of missing a season to motivate citizens to stick to public fitness guidelines. Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves (right) said, “I need to watch school football this fall” after issuing a statewide mask order last week. In Louisiana, Governor John Bel Edwards (R) is known for his LSU Tigers football team and his friendship with his head coach, Ed Orgeron. Edwards had said he expected to be at Tiger Stadium “screaming for the Tigers,” but was unable to comment recently on what a game day this fall would look like when Louisiana faced an increase in play. coronavirus.
If there is a season, it is unclear how many fans, if any, could enter the stadiums to see the games in person.
Big Ten and Pac-12 to cancel soccer seasons Tuesday: reports (Forbes)
Sources: SEC Presidents in Position for Monday’s impromptu assembly (Sports Illustrated)
How fans of every NFL team lean politically (FiveThirtyEight)
I’m a Forbes reporter in New Orleans, covering the American South and the latest news. I previously wrote for The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate covering
I’m a Forbes reporter in New Orleans, covering the American South and the latest news. I previously wrote for The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate covering local government.