Warning: Political Takes Gators Players Skip Practice

Windy City Gator

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You don't have it until you get it, right?
You can't sit out and be GUARANTEED of not getting it.
Take Grimes for example. His mother is high risk. if he feels that he should not be around other people, who might have it and be asymptomatic, then I 100% support his decision to take a year off until a vaccine is developed. i just had one of my employees parents die from the virus. They were high risk and contracted it and died within a week of getting the test results back. It would be tragic if Grimes contracted it playing a childs game, gave it to his mother and then she died. Tragic. Not worth risking the life of a loved one, and we should be a bit compassionate about someone's personal situation.
 

Concrete Helmet

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Take Grimes for example. His mother is high risk. if he feels that he should not be around other people, who might have it and be asymptomatic, then I 100% support his decision to take a year off until a vaccine is developed. i just had one of my employees parents die from the virus. They were high risk and contracted it and died within a week of getting the test results back. It would be tragic if Grimes contracted it playing a childs game, gave it to his mother and then she died. Tragic. Not worth risking the life of a loved one, and we should be a bit compassionate about someone's personal situation.
He should stay away from his Mom and give all of his time to the Gators....until a vaccine is developed.
 

Windy City Gator

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He should stay away from his Mom and give all of his time to the Gators....until a vaccine is developed.
I bet you are glad that Vince Lombardi isn't our coach. "God, Family and The Green Bay Packers." .... Gator football before family????? I seriously hope you are kidding.
 

AuggieDosta

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Take Grimes for example. His mother is high risk. if he feels that he should not be around other people, who might have it and be asymptomatic, then I 100% support his decision to take a year off until a vaccine is developed. i just had one of my employees parents die from the virus. They were high risk and contracted it and died within a week of getting the test results back. It would be tragic if Grimes contracted it playing a childs game, gave it to his mother and then she died. Tragic. Not worth risking the life of a loved one, and we should be a bit compassionate about someone's personal situation.

Windy, you have a compassionate heart, I can tell. But, how do you feel about the player sitting out of football and still contracting the Rona and still giving it to mom?

People living their everyday lives still catch it.

See, that's the rub. People assign a % chance they'll get the Rona doing X based on their desires to perform X. If they really want X, then they cross mountain or stream to do X. If they do NOT want X, then they use Rona as an excuse to not do X.

While it hasn't been proven with science, it has been speculated/postulated by many coaches that being in a rigorous athletic regimen (like what's provided to UF's football players) is inherently safer in regards to catching Rona when compared to going about their daily lives if they weren't in a football program.

Also, some have tried to justify players sitting because of "lingering side affects" that might harm their NFL careers but ignore the fact that:
- these NFL careers are extremely rare
- there are no proven "side affects"
- they ignore actual side affects that harm thousands of college players almost daily like injury to muscular/skeletal parts of their bodies

In short, it's all relative. People typically take the easy way out and justify their actions to benefit only themselves. I personally view their desire to not play as one of these cases...high risk relative be damned.
 

Oscar the G

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Take Grimes for example. His mother is high risk. if he feels that he should not be around other people, who might have it and be asymptomatic, then I 100% support his decision to take a year off until a vaccine is developed. i just had one of my employees parents die from the virus. They were high risk and contracted it and died within a week of getting the test results back. It would be tragic if Grimes contracted it playing a childs game, gave it to his mother and then she died. Tragic. Not worth risking the life of a loved one, and we should be a bit compassionate about someone's personal situation.
do you believe grimes is self quarantining due to his mother's risk?
 

AuggieDosta

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That would be tragic.

Agreed.

Now, are you able to give a percentage chance that might happen?

Maybe so, maybe not. But, is it a higher percentage chance that mom could:
- catch rona on her own from another family member?
- die from cancer?
- die in a car crash?
- have a plane, on approach, land short and on her house?

At what point do we alter our lives to protect ourselves from harm versus how we choose to live our lives?

I don't have that answer and I damn sure can't answer it for anybody else. But I do know that Rona ain't gonna make me alter MY life.

Faith over Fear.

#Gator Bait
:chomp:
 

Windy City Gator

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At what point do we alter our lives to protect ourselves from harm versus how we choose to live our lives?

That is for Grimes or any other player to determine, not a bunch of hacks on a message board who feel that if he thinks the virus is dangerous and serious, that he does not want to put himself, nor family in harms way h should have his scholarship revoked because he is not committed to being a Gator. Some on this board feel that if he or any other Gator player opts out because the risk IN THEIR OPINION is too high, they should be stripped of their scholarship. I prefer to be on the side of caution and let the players make their own decisions regarding the pandemic and if they decide they do not want to take the risk, then they should have a scholarship waiting for them when they return. Did you feel the same way about the player who had a heart issue. it was not gtd that he would die if he played. no one can predict the future. But yet, the Gators kept him on scholarship. The player played the odds for safety. That is what Grimes might be doing. Playing the odds as they interpret them. You might interpret them differently based on which cable show you watch. At the end of the day, they are Gators, and we should support them. Go Gators.
 
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soflagator

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That is for Grimes or any other player to determine, not a bunch of hacks on a message board who feel that if he thinks the virus is dangerous and serious, that he does not want to put himself, nor family in harms way. Some on this board feel that if he or any other Gator player opts out because the risk IN THEIR OPINION is too high, they should be stripped of their scholarship. I prefer to be on the side of caution and let the players make their own decisions regarding the pandemic and if they decide they do not want to take the risk, then they should have a scholarship waiting for them when they return. Did you feel the same way about the player who had a heart issue. it was not gtd that he would die if he played. no one can predict the future. But yet, the Gators kept him on scholarship. The player played the odds for safety. That is what Grimes might be doing. Playing the odds as they interpret them. You might interpret them differently based on which cable show you watch. At the end of the day, they are Gators, and we should support them. Go Gators.

On Saturday, I watched a group of tree trimmers raise the canopy of a neighbor's house across the street. One guy was up like 30-40 feet in the air, no rope or harness, with a gas chainsaw, taking on these limbs. It was quite a sight. But if that guy, after spending an evening with his wife and children, decided that he was no longer willing to take on that kind of risk and officially quit on Monday, I imaging his employer would understand. I can also guarantee he wouldn't receive a paycheck the following Friday. It's reality and business. A kid like Robinson(the heart situation you mentioned) who is informed by doctors that he cannot safely play and is forbidden by the school to do so, that is an entirely different set of circumstances. This is voluntarily not fulfilling your end of a business transaction. If a third or more of a team elects to follow the lead of these "opt-outs", what is Mullen supposed to do? Should he not have the ability to try and find replacements? And should those replacements not be allowed to have a scholarship given that they are in fact willing to take on a measure of risk in return, while the others are not?

Look, I get the unprecedented nature of this. But you can't just allow players to do whatever they want with no consequence. I fully respect that it's their decision and I won't look down on anyone who chooses to sit out. With all the CTE discoveries, I wouldn't care if a kid completely called it quits and stopped playing all together. It's their call. But if their education and its cost is directly tied to their playing a sport, and they willingly don't do it, I have no issue with the school thanking them and moving on to others or saving the expense. These kids want to live in the real world so badly, we may as well allow them their first glimpse.
 
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neteng

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IMO, yes. These are unprecedented times, and we do not need cookie cutter answers. These are 18-22 year old kids...remember their brains have not fully developed (science). .

These are 18-22 year old kids...remember their brains have not fully developed (science).

These are 18-22 year old kids...

Maybe you need to rethink your whole point based on the false underlying foundation of your opinion that these are 18-22yr old kids. They are not kids. They are adults. Adults make decisions and understand the sacrifice they are making in order to obtain what they are after. They are not kids.
 

AuggieDosta

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That is for Grimes or any other player to determine, not a bunch of hacks on a message board who feel that if he thinks the virus is dangerous and serious, that he does not want to put himself, nor family in harms way. - Agreed

Some on this board feel that if he or any other Gator player opts out because the risk IN THEIR OPINION is too high, they should be stripped of their scholarship. I prefer to be on the side of caution and let the players make their own decisions regarding the pandemic and if they decide they do not want to take the risk, then they should have a scholarship waiting for them when they return. - No, not necessarily. It's fairly arbitrary IMO to allow a player to "make their own decision" on this topic if it means they do not contribute to the team. They accepted an offer to play and have been given something in return in the means of a 1st class education, clothing, food, a stipend, medical care and now possible endorsement opportunities to make money, and if they're really good then a shot at an NFL career, and even if the NFL career doesn't pan out then a networked community of highly influential people that will likely give them a fallback job. If they don't play then what do we take back? Fair is fair and both parties went into this agreement knowing the risk of injury, and even death, was there.

Did you feel the same way about the player who had a heart issue. it was not gtd that he would die if he played. no one can predict the future. But yet, the Gators kept him on scholarship. The player played the odds for safety. - I view this as different because Medical hardships have been previously granted and handed out and a part of the agreed upon language, or intent, of every player on every team in the NCAA already. If you want to group Rona into this category then the NCAA needs to change their rules/standards and let's spell this out. Until then, it's a personal decision to play or not.

That is what Grimes might be doing. Playing the odds as they interpret them. You might interpret them differently based on which cable show you watch. - Notice the bold. And I don't "watch" tv, I listen to it. I'll usually put on some music because there's no college football on ATM. I can't stand (today's) politics and don't watch pro sports.

At the end of the day, they are Gators, and we should support them. Go Gators. - I agree we should support Gators but not Gators that do wrong or refuse to uphold their end of a bargain. I'm loyal but not blindly so.

Figured it would be easier to reply in-turn, above.

Also, as good as I tried to reply, it pales in comparison to Sofla's attempt above (post #71). He really nailed it.

#Gator Bait
:chomp:
 

oxrageous

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If Grimes doesn’t want to play, yank his scholarship without a second thought.
 

PastyStoole

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If Grimes doesn’t want to play, yank his scholarship without a second thought.
You want to put that kind of Sophie's choice on this kid? Like 70% of the football team, he was raised by his grandmother. When he goes to see her after slapping ass and dogpiling his teammates after touchdowns, he'll put her at risk too. She's at a higher risk because she's 36. As Biden would say, "have some sense, man!"
 

Oscar the G

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i live 2k miles away from Gville and do not know him, nor have spoken to him nor have seen interviews from him.
I do not know him either. But as a college kid, I'm relatively sure he is not quarantining. I am relatively sure he is engaging in practices much more "covid" dangerous than football practice.
 

soflagator

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I do not know him either. But as a college kid, I'm relatively sure he is not quarantining. I am relatively sure he is engaging in practices much more "covid" dangerous than football practice.

I don’t know him personally, but can definitely say that he and Fred Johnson were by far the most respectful, courteous players that my children and I encountered after games. I posted as much back in 2018. Great kid who took a moment to speak to my oldest, which made his day. We’re taking this way off course here. It has nothing to do with anything personal. It’s basic common sense. We’re trying to run a football team here. We can’t “pay” a kid who doesn’t play any longer—regardless of readiness—any more than the Lions continued paying Barry Sanders after he abruptly retired. It sucks, but welcome to 2020.

The good news for him is that he should be graduated, or close, and is probably a decent draft pick next year. The other 2-3 guys have a much tougher decision on their hands. But there’s absolutely nothing wrong with the school spending it’s resources on others who actually want to play, and there’s not an endless supply of money either. Just got an email on Monday that implied a lost season could cost upwards of 50mil for UF. At some point, math rules.
 

RiverRat

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Question. Would you guys rather see college football played without some of the best players(guys who choose to sit out)and see them lose their schollies? Even if it meant a slightly lower level of play(from all teams not just UF).

Put me in the hell yes category....
Hell Yes!!
 

Marine1

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I can’t get angry or upset over a kid opting out over the virus while entire leagues are opting out. I also don’t support yanking their scholarship immediately if they do. But there should be some reasonable timeline established. At some point you must accept the consequences of your decisions.

Maybe a redshirt granted this season with a re-evaluation next season. If we are good to go...you get on the field or be let go.

If your holdout is related to securing increased financial payouts then you either play through any negotiations or you sacrifice your benefits immediately. You must honor your commitment even as you try to change the system.
 

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