Granting the OSU the right to play in a mythical B1G championship is not a concern to me even with the "bending" of the rules. The problem that I have is why are they playing in the first place and why are these young amateurs being put in a position of playing a game in which the only pockets being lined are those of the university and sports bookies. College football/sports isn't that important to put people at risk of getting sick. It's disappointing.
I get that, and it's probably where I'm at, but....
-The only people "vulnerable" here are the coaches. I've seen no reports of college athletes (football players at least) dying of covid. A small handful have developed myocarditis, which is certainly unfortunate (and also happens - usually at a lesser rate, though I think data is somewhat murky on it - after other viruses as well). They may recover, we don't know yet.
-I disagree with conferences allowing x% of fans into the game to watch - even if sitting outdoors and spaced is safe, they're still congregating in the restrooms and whatnot.
-The kids would have lost out on an entire year of development, which is huge for their NFL chances, which, in turn, is their big chance to cash in on their athletic ability.
-They are probably safer being in their football "bubble" so to speak than being regular college students. They are afforded resources, like weekly testing, that they otherwise would not get. And they know if they go out or to house parties and catch covid, they could bring it back to their team and spread it and get things shut down for a few weeks. Obviously they can't just be hermits but I get the sense they are being safer than the average college student.
-Look at some of the non-Power 5 schools and what they've had to do with athletics. Some departments are just absolutely gutted. Some schools are no longer going to be fielding some types of teams. There are no good answers here. Football at Ohio State, and most schools, funds the rest of the athletic department. By playing, they're at least picking up some TV money (and as mentioned, other schools are still getting a sliver of the gate money as well).
I agree, it does seem dumb to be playing, but I think they are doing it about as safe as possible (Ohio State/Big Ten at least) and it appears, for now, the supposed ~15% of athletes developing myocarditis post-covid was overblown.
