I logged into my laptop tonight hoping to write up a quick preview of this weekend’s Illinois baseball series against Southern Illinois.
That’s when I saw this tweet by the Big Ten.
Wow. This is unprecedented at least in the fifteen years I have followed Illinois baseball. Some in the college baseball media are calling it “Black Thursday“.
Because of the threat posed by the COVID-19 outbreak, the Big Ten will be “canceling all conference and non-conference competitions through the end of the academic year” according to their press release announced Thursday afternoon. The statement also placed a “moratorium on all on- and off-campus recruiting activities for the foreseeable future.” Many other conferences are following suit.
The UI Division of Intercollegiate Athletics followed up with this statement soon after. UI Athletic Director Josh Whitman added his sentiments particularly addressing the issue of cancelling the remaining competitions.
Whitman says in part:
These last 24 hours have been heartbreaking. I have such respect and appreciation for our student-athletes, coaches, and staff. I watch every day with admiration as they strengthen their bodies, their minds, and their relationships, all in the pursuit of excellence. There is so much work and sacrifice that occurs away from the eyes of the public, so much effort given so that they shine in those precious few moments each year when the lights come on, the cameras come into focus, and the stakes are high. Today, in what has been perhaps the most challenging day of my professional career, we took away those moments for a significant number of our student-athletes. I know they are devastated; I am as well.
The hardest decisions require you to resolve inner conflict between what you value most and what you value at the moment. Like many of you, I enjoy nothing more than watching our young men and women compete in the orange and blue. What we value most, however, is our students. And at the end of the day, we must act in the best interests of their health and well-being – and, in this case, in the best interests of the health of our local, regional, and national communities as well. As much as I want our student-athletes to experience the joy of competition, feel the euphoria of victory, and learn from the despair of defeat, recent events are an important reminder that life is bigger than sports. Our focus remains on being healthy, contributing members of our many overlapping communities as we work collectively to address the challenges presented by this terrible virus.
The Fighting Illini did not waste time to update their schedule on their online calendar.
Ouch! That is tough to look at.
In addition, the University of Illinois has suspended in-person classes indefinitely as well as gatherings over 50 people to help prevent the spread of the virus. Also, there are reports that Major League Baseball is pushing back the start of its season.
As a devoted fan of the Illinois Baseball program, it’s hard to put how I feel into words. Mostly, I feel for the Illinois players and their families. In particular, it has to be rough for the senior athletes of the Big Ten including Illini seniors Ty Weber, Nick Menken, Josh Harris, Ryan Schmitt and Garrett Acton.
The players are probably in disbelief at this moment… maybe even a little angry. They live and breathe baseball and now, something out of their control has taken it away from them. Two days ago, they were preparing for a weekend series against Coach Hartleb’s alum and now the future is uncertain.
It’s way too early for this right now but I want to think that there will be some “out-of-the-box” thinking going on to salvage this situation. I know nothing will replace what these boys have been working for but hopefully there will be a solution down the road.
Illini baseball team, please know that 2020 or no, your fans stand by you!
I just want to thank you and all the Illinois baseball fans. We are thankful for your kind words over the last 4 years. This is very hard.
Hi Dave,
I can only imagine. Ty was the first player I thought of when this news hit.
Thank him for his tireless work on the mound.
Good luck in these times,
Tom