Student Athletes and the Corona Meltdown

Student Athletes and the Corona Meltdown

Student Athletes. The desire to win. Scholarships. Dedication. All of these come to mind when you think of college sports, but with the current Corona virus epidemic ongoing and colleges looking at possible collapses of their sports and current schooling systems as they know it, where does that leave hopeful student athletes and current college athletes? An article from the New York Times glossed over the fact this means a short ending to some athletes careers who were graduating this year. Take for instance the Utah State Guard Sam Merill who hit a game winning shot over San Diego State to win in the first round of the March Madness, when Corona was a distant concern. This team defied the odds and won on a buzzer beater, but got their hopes and dreams of trying to win the championship crushed by the virus. Athletes who are graduating or pro hopefuls won’t get this chance again, the senior year of college is a once in a lifetime and missing that means missing a stepping stone into the life of an adult. Now the situation for college effects seniors the hardest, but also take a look at those who haven’t even started college yet, Seniors in high-school, where does this leave them? Uncertainty over where to choose, athletes that were committed may have their scholarships cut due to funding or may even decide going out of state isn’t worth the risk with the epidemic. One athlete from Faith Lutheran, Ari Gronauer, who’s committed to Iowa State University for women’s soccer said, “In my case there isn’t much uncertainty over my scholarship. The coaches reach out every once in a while to make sure I’m doing good and still staying in shape for when I go there next year,” said Gronauer. This may be the case for larger D1 and D2 universities, but regarding those committed to D3 schools, they may lose their scholarships or athletic programs entirely. In the struggle of survival to keep smaller schools afloat amid an uncertain time of students not wanting to go out of state over a killer Corona Virus, student athletes are stranded in the middle of it. With nowhere to go and no where to run from what’s going on across the globe, we need to help these athletes and those graduating in this dire time of need