By Arrick Wilson
Junior, Green Run High School
In my 17 years of life, sports have always had a huge impact on me. I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t wrapped and tangled up in watching or playing sports. My everyday routine is full of checking basketball stats, watching entire segments of ESPN, and filling my sports knowledge bank by watching sports documentaries.
But now, I feel robbed as a sports fan.
COVID-19 has flipped my daily routine upside down. Many sports competitions have been either postponed or canceled. No Clash of Titans with the NBA, no March Madness with the NCAA Basketball tournament, no Tokyo Olympic competition, no “America’s Favorite Pastime” with the MLB, no more Collegiate Spring Sports and more. This pandemic has robbed not only me, but all of us of our shared humanity and love for athletic competition.
But we shouldn’t let this lack of live sports get us down. For example, ESPN is now replaying a variety of different sports. Which means, there is still the ability to watch and feed your passion for sports. You could still watch ESPN or Fox Sports One or try out good shows like Skip and Shannon: Undisputed and Stephen A. Smith’s First Take. There are so many shows, documentaries and previously broadcast games for you to enjoy.
My advice to my fellow sports fans is to take this time to expand your sports knowledge, to get out in the fresh air and practice your free throws, and not to take your sports for granted.
When Schools Are Closed is an ongoing guest column that anyone in the VBCPS community may contribute to. If you are interested in writing about how the school closing is affecting your daily routine, please contact Sondra Woodward in the Department of Communications and Community Engagement.
Young man, I get what you are saying to us! My grandson plays football, and is set to report to ODU late June/July? Might not happen, but no one knows for sure at this point. We’ve been watching a lot of ESPN as well here. Personally, my life hasn’t changed except for my grandson being home from school.
Working in a hospital as a Respiratory Therapist, I have to report to work. Obviously I’m still working. I can pay my bills, and I’m not stuck in my home, as I can get out to work. I can also afford to provide food for my family, and so get out to the grocery stores as well.
Might be many who are in a really hard spot now. I have cable, internet, Netflix, Prime, etc. I’m grateful for that. Except for not being able to hit the thrift stores, I’m pretty much the same.
I have to say too, that I think my grandson is pretty much doing as you are doing, and staying in the loop, building knowledge, and getting outdoors, throwing the ball! Keep up the good work, and great advice!