Not sure what the "so what" is with what follows but...
There are still only 2 of 30 mlb teams with outbreaks (only 1 with an active problem). This virus is contagious. IF by luck or by adherence to protocol or both... a team manages to avoid an outbreak, it's really possible to play. MLB is proving that. The catch (excuse the pun) is how do you avoid outbreaks.... & what is your tolerance for outbreaks?
I have made points about MLB vs NCAA football before. MLB tests more than any conference has stated, except what the SEC says they are going to do. (MLB every other day vs SEC three times a week) MLB has fewer people in their "bubble". MLB players don't have to attend classes with other people. Baseball isn't a contact sport. The players aren't in scrums pushing against each other all game long.
As far as how to avoid outbreaks. It isn't quite like an STD, where you can absolutely prevent infection by abstaining from sex. You can minimize risk of infection by staying away from other people. NCAA football is not going to have a "bubble" like the NBA. They will have players, coaches, medical staff, support staff in contact with people not associated with the team. If everyone involved with the team: Stays away from crowds, wears masks, washes their hands frequently, etc.: then the risk of infection reaching the people around the team can be minimized, but not eliminated. If the infection reaches inside the "bubble" around the team, the MLB example is evidence that it cannot be contained by symptom checking or frequent testing.
The tolerance for outbreaks in college football will be extremely low. If there is an outbreak that affects 20 athletes on 1 team, that will be the end of the season no matter when in the season it happens. If only one game has been played, it will shut down. If only two games are left, it will be shut down. If one team has an outbreak and it spreads to another team, which is much more likely in football than baseball, it is likely that lawsuits will be filed.
If such an outbreak occurs, the NCAA players will be touted as pawns who are forced to engage in dangerous activities without pay while the coaches are making millions off of them. Congress will not only protect the NCAA from a players union with monopoly protections, congress will assist players to form a union.
I don't see this as a political issue. I see this as a question of what college athletics are. If it is an amateur sports organization, then safety should be a bigger concern than entertaining middle aged men. Unknowns should side with being overly safe, instead of waiting until there is an issue. If entertaining middle aged men and bringing in money to pay salaries to coaches is more important than unknowns about the health of athletes, then all pretense of amateur college athletics is gone and it should be turned into a professional sports league apart from universities.
www.ncaa.org
