The Mountain West Conference should continue following the example of some professional sporting leagues by maintaining “bubble” protocols because even though it is costly and requires extreme precautions to be taken, it’s necessary during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Santa Clara County Public Health Department approved the San Jose State football team to play at CEFCU Stadium after the county moved to the orange tier on Oct. 14.
The word “bubble,” which refers to sports teams being isolated from the general public throughout the season, and includes accommodations, amenities and the location at which
the games are held, was recently added to the Merriam-Webster dictionary.
It is extremely dangerous for the Spartans to travel around the country during the pandemic to play a contact sport.
Traveling significantly increases the chances of spreading COVID-19, especially when traveling places by bus or train because of the number of individuals in a small space. Some individuals may be asymptomatic and spread the virus to others unknowingly.
According to a Sept. 22 Healthline article, a health information site, 1 in 5 people with
COVID-19 are asymptomatic but can still spread the virus.
Although there are only eight games in the season, COVID-19 cases are likely to spike if strict standards are not upheld.
Colorado State had to postpone its game against New Mexico on Oct. 20 because players and a coach on the New Mexico team contracted the coronavirus according to an Oct. 24 Denver Post article. Additionally, the coronavirus case count in San Bernalillo County in New Mexico was too high for Colorado State to risk playing there.
The NBA, WNBA and NHL all used the bubble method and showed significantly better results than leagues that did not use this method, such as MLB and the NFL.
Compromising players’ health by not taking all precautions necessary can predictably have
similar effects of the NFL outbreaks. The Mountain West Conference must prevent a spike in COVID-19 cases from happening. SJSU and the Mountain West Conference should not prioritize profiting from college football over the safety of everyone involved.
According to a Sept. 5 ESPN article, the NFL has been conducting COVID-19 tests since
Aug. 5 to players and staff every day of the regular season except on game day. But testing players and coaches hasn’t made much of a difference because multiple teams are not following COVID-19 protocols.
NFL teams are not following basic guidelines such as wearing a mask, and have proven that irresponsible actions can result in a serious outbreak.
The NFL fined the Tennessee Titans $350,000 for not following COVID-19 safety protocols. They had 24 players test positive for the virus, according to an Oct. 24 Associated Press article.
Athletes are also allowed to play games without masks according to an Oct. 13 Santa Clara County Public Health’s Mandatory Directive for Collegiate and
Professional Athletics.
The Mountain West Conference should not follow what the NFL is doing and instead stick to strict bubbling standards.
Playing without masks puts the athletes on the field at a significant risk of contracting the virus and spreading it to others. The possibility of a large outbreak poses a significant threat to a successful season and could have the county itself backtracking to the red or purple tier, which indicates substantial and widespread COVID-19 risk respectively.
While it’s exciting that the Spartans are 2-0 in the season, it is important that strong health standards are upheld in order to keep the coaches, players and community members safe.
