Can we save the college football season together? - AL.com

Everyone remain as calm as possible.

No one panic, or lose their minds about what I’m about to say out loud because I’m just here riding this thing out with everyone else.

And thinking.

And washing my hands.

Maybe football should be the last thing on my mind, but even now as I self-quarantine and social distance and learn how to do things like boil water and cook rice, I’m left wondering how this latest news from President Donald Trump is going to affect the college football season. Call me an Alabamian.

President Trump said on Monday things might not get back to normal in this country until July or August, and that for now groups should be limited to no more than 10 people. Fewer than an offensive huddle, for example.

Or the number of coaches on a staff.

For a lot of people in my world, it’s easier to think in terms of football.

July means SEC Media Days, and August means the start of fall camp. The great wait is about to begin, and universities around the South and country have to already be thinking about how the global pandemic of COVID-19 is going to affect football season.

Will it be pushed back? Will it be canceled altogether like the NCAA Tournaments and spring sports calendar? One thing is certain: the upcoming season has already been disrupted.

Spring practices and games have been postponed, and summer workouts are starting to look iffy. It’s not possible to play football well without practice, and coaches and players are losing important time together right now.

Just how badly is this global pandemic going to affect the college football season? Some will call me crazy for even thinking about it, but those people are not coaches, players and fans in the South. Football is not just a part of our culture. It is our culture.

And it makes me feel normal to think about it.

I know you’re thinking about football, too, and I’m here to tell you it’s not wrong for you to project ahead and worry about something we all care about. That’s called searching for normalcy, and it’s natural.

Schools are closed, and businesses are shutting down. I can’t go visit my mom at her nursing home, and had to send my teenage child to stay with family members out of caution. This thing is hitting home hard, and it’s only going to get more serious. Northern California ordered a “shelter in place” emergency beginning at midnight on Tuesday.

We have a lot to worry about right now, obviously.

In light of so much social upheaval, I’m only halfway kidding when I ask this: if we social distance responsibly right now, beginning at this moment and not wait another hour or day, can we all together save the college football season?

I’m thinking that’s an idea all Alabamians can rally behind. Maybe I’m foolish for saying this, but perhaps there’s a PSA that Alabama coach Nick Saban and Auburn coach Gus Malzahn can produce together right now urging people to stay home.

Reigning college football championship coach Ed Orgeron has already offered his support with a video. Georgia coach Kirby Smart released a PSA on Monday evening explaining to everyone that we now have “a greater mission.”

How much more time can Alabama football really miss before it starts to affect Saban’s “Process?” He lost his strength and conditioning coach at the absolute worst possible time, and now he has had to send players home with individual workout plans for the foreseeable future.

If supply chains are disrupted, can Alabama finish its stadium renovation on time?

At Auburn, Malzahn’s new offensive coordinator Chad Morris was planning on a big spring to revamp the Tigers’ offense. He may have to rush through August now to implement bare-bones schemes.

Maybe Morris and Malzahn can just draw up plays in the dirt for quarterback Bo Nix.

Hey, don’t get me wrong. I’ll take ugly football over no football.

It’s going to be rough, but Alabama and Auburn are still better off than others. LSU will be far behind everyone at this point with all of their coaching and personnel changes. Georgia is putting in a brand new offense.

And best of luck to Mississippi State, Ole Miss and Arkansas, who have new coaches.

Again, these aren’t the most pressing issues facing states across the South right now, but trust me when I say people are thinking about them. And that’s totally normal. You know why?

That’s all we think about all the time.

Keep calm, be responsible and think about others. We might just save college football together.

Joseph Goodman is a columnist for the Alabama Media Group. He’s on Twitter @JoeGoodmanJr.

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