College Sports and Covid-19

Pandemic Effects

Playing a sport in college has always been a relatively straightforward concept. If a player is talented enough at the sport, college coaches will scout them while the player is still in high school and will offer them a scholarship or a spot on their team accordingly. Similarly to how Covid-19 and quarantine affected many aspects of our society, this time not only influenced people’s college decisions, but also changed many student athletes' directions completely.

Class of 2020

The class of 2020 who were high school seniors when Covid-19 hit were arguably the class affected the most. As a class of 2020 student myself, I felt the effects of this unmarked territory and am a prime example of how quarantine largely affected those last key months of high school athletics in preparation for college. As someone who waited until senior year of high school to try out the sport I ended up committing to a college for because of continuous injuries in my other sport, my recruitment process was somewhat unconventional. Track is a spring sport, and when Covid-19 hit our area, the season was cut short immediately. Only having run in 2 indoor track meets, my options for college were limited and my actual track meet experience was miniscule. My 400 meter time was 60 seconds exactly, and had I been able to finish out the season, I would have been able to get it in the 5os; prime scholarship times. My times were fairly even with Furman track team times, but having even a little bit more experience would have made all the difference in not only my scouting and recruiting experience, but my college athletics experience.

Financial Implications

Furman University is also a prime example of a school whose athletics were deeply affected for financial reasons after the shut down. Once a

Photo Creds: Chris Baird. Photo Creds: Furman Athletics

school with a Division I men’s lacrosse team and baseball team, these two teams were cut. Like many athletic programs, Furman’s lacrosse and baseball teams felt the direct impacts of budget cuts that were necessary at the time. Along with this budget cut, Furman also had no choice but to cut the salaries of athletic administrators. As an article from the FurmanPaladins suggests, Furman’s focus was placed on getting students back on campus and getting back in person classes. Even so, many student athletes that were either on the men’s lacrosse team or the baseball team had no choice but to transfer schools and leave their now empty facilities. College athletics can be many individuals’ tickets to college and how many of them fund such an expense. According to an ESPN article, a staggering 352 NCAA teams were cut, many of those being Olympic sports. These changes displaced many students not only in their college experiences, but even their life plans. To the right, the now abandoned Furman baseball complex.

Change of Plans

As previously mentioned, the college athletics recruitment process looked different during Covid-19 and has arguably not been the same ever since. Even student athletes who committed to schools for a sport prior to the outbreak experienced a rapid change. Elle Santora, a junior at Furman University, is an example of this. Already committed to College of the Holy Cross for tennis her junior year of high school, she was forced to reconsider her decision when Holy Cross announced that they would be online in the fall because of the pandemic. She, along with many others, was faced with the tough decision whether or not her athletic career was important enough to her to sacrifice her college experience and it ultimately was not, resulting in her choosing Furman.

Lasting Impact

Covid-19 was hard on all aspects of our society, but college athletes are still feeling the lasting impacts. Whether it was a potential college athlete, a high school athlete wanting to get recruited, or college athletes who’s seasons were cut short or who’s team was cut, lives were drastically changed and people who chose their college purely for athletic reasons may be the ones feeling the lingering effects.