Jumbo Package: Appreciating the seniors who lost their final seasons

Happy Friday, everyone. Everything obviously feels strange this morning. We’d normally be reminding you of all of the upcoming weekend events, recapping SEC tournament basketball games, etc. Instead, we are left to look back on silly social media memes that proved prescient.

Ain’t that the truth?

For those wondering, we have no idea at this point if Alabama football will practice as scheduled.

Neither Alabama, nor Auburn has announced anything regarding spring practice or A-Day games. The Crimson Tide is scheduled to hold its first practice Friday while the Tigers first workout is set for Monday.

“I was on a conference call with one of our athletic departments where that was asked,” Sankey said of spring football practices. “Our athletic director talked about that afterwards. We’ve limited the size clearly of on campus events, and campuses are doing that individually, but I don’t have a prescriptive list right now around what’s going to happen with spring practice, spring football.”

What we do know is that spring break was extended by a week, to March 30, and that classes will be online only for some time after that. Nothing has been shared about graduation but you have to believe that it is in jeopardy as well, which would be heartbreaking for many students including my own son.

Of course, this disruption is an attempt to prevent the spread of a deadly virus. Life is far more valuable than sport, but sport is present day life for many student athletes, and today we recognize the losses of their seasons.

I’m sorry, son.

I’m sorry for every other NCAA championship-bound senior in every other winter and spring sport, all of whom had their college careers ended Thursday in a completely unimaginable way. I’m sorry for the ones you’ve heard of, like Cassius Winston and Sabrina Ionescu, but also for the ones you haven’t. I’m sorry for the wrestlers and the runners and the rowers and the softballers, all of whom worked (and worked, and worked) to get to this point. And, yes, for all the senior swimmers we’ve gotten to know and love and cheer for.

As bitter as this decision is for a young athlete he or she have bright futures ahead. A 74-year-old grandmother who catches coronavirus that didn’t have to might have no options.

This has become an increasingly divided nation, one side constantly angry at the other on many issues. Still, on Thursday, one could look on either side and see row after row of empty seats and, no matter what you thought of their emptiness, you could see heartbreak in every one.

Heartbreak, indeed, and a few of Alabama’s seniors shared theirs.

Beetle was the lone senior on this year’s men’s basketball squad, and he at least for to play his senior season. That isn’t the case, of course, for softball and baseball.

Your heart has to go out to them.

Legendary UConn women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma discussed the possibility of allowing seniors who play spring sports to return for another season.

Logistically, I don’t see how this happens. You obviously can’t play games where one team has more players than another. I assume that there would have to be an “active” and “inactive” list for each game, but even then teams with larger roster numbers would have a matchup advantage. Forcing some freshmen into taking a redshirt year to accommodate these seniors would be another option, but that seems messy as well.

Some younger players on Alabama’s baseball team, that started the season on a 16-1 tear, weighed in as well.

More of the same from #Team24.

Golfer Kenzie Wright:

Softball alum Sydney Littlejohn Watkins:

Alabama’s rowing coach:

Last, Texas Tech’s golf coach weighed in with a point that we all wondered about.

While decisive action was warranted, canceling championship events that are scheduled for two to three months from now seems like an overreaction. It may well be that competition could have started back up sometime in April, with abbreviated regular season schedules followed by the championships.

That’s all water under the bridge at this point. To all of the seniors, we too are sorry that you won’t get to play your final seasons. Hopefully you enjoyed your time as a student athlete, and may the experience pay dividends for you in the future. From the fan’s perspective, thank you for putting in the work to entertain us. Sports provide a needed distraction for many from the realities of everyday living, and you are an inspiration to so many young people in the state. You may have been denied a season of eligibility, but no one can take your accomplishments.

That’s about it for today. Have a great weekend.

Roll Tide.