Tech baseball is rambling into the season hyped with high expectations. The team, returning most of their strong but cut-short 2020 season roster, had added two of the nation’s best high schoolers to their roster- Kevin Perada and Jake DeLeo.

Parada comes into the season after coming out of Loyola High School ranked the number 6 high school player in the nation. Playing at catcher, Perada could find himself behind the plate for Tech for the foreseeable future. DeLeo, named All-American high school second team by Perfect Game, is another player who can make an immediate impact.

Thanks to a shortened MLB draft and the temporary elimination of the team size limit, Tech’s talent is incredibly deep. The team is set to play 50 games this year, 36 of them against opponents in the ACC. The team finished last season at 11-5 after COVID-19 caused an early end.

Tech’s main rival this season appears to be Louisville, who has been favored to win the ACC by analysts. Miami also looks to be a contender, having brought in the number one recruiting class.

Since the ACC lifted restrictions from roster size, the size and depth of every team will be larger than ever before. The ACC looks loaded for a competitive season in one of the deepest conferences in all of college baseball.

Georgia Tech softball is slated to start off their season this week, with a game against Boise State slated for February 12.

Each date in their conference schedule will be four games against every team. ACC play will begin February 18 with games scheduled against Clemson and Florida State.

The games are set up in a NCAA Super Regional format, a format in which one team is the home team for the first and third game. The team finished a shortened 2020 season going 2-1 in the ACC and 12-11 overall. Expectations coming into this season are hopeful as the team looks to potentially crack the top 25.

Both baseball and softball had suffered season-ending restrictions from COVID-19. It is unclear the effect an extended offseason and changed regular season will have on the respective sports. Funding for sports has decreased dramatically from school revenue squeezes.

While the sports are both revenue generators from fan attendance, decreased funding could possibly take the form of a strain on scholarships and spending as schools struggle to fund non-revenue generating sports. Baseball and softball both have the potential for a strong Tech team performance.

Renovations have been going on at Russ Chandler Stadium, while also getting a slight rebranding of the entire baseball facility. The whole complex including the field, locker rooms, stands, batting cages, and new Champions Hall will be called the Mac Nease Baseball Park. Mac Nease played for Tech, graduating in 1965. Him and his wife Brenda have contributed a lion’s share of the funds that have gone into renovating multiple aspects of the baseball infrastructure on campus.

The Atlanta Hawks, currently competing for a playoff spot for the first time in years, held their first fan attended game of the season last week.

The game featured very limited attendance, with 1,364 season ticket holders allowed into the arena. The team planned to allow only season ticket holders to attend but had to further limit the crowd after too many applications.

The Hawks improvement from last season has been driven by defense. With the addition of Clint Capela, the shot-blocking by the Hawks has reached new heights, with the center recording a triple double after an almost-unseen 10 block game on Jan. 22. Last season, the team ranked near the bottom in NBA defense, giving up the second most baskets within five feet in the entire league.

Trae Young has emerged as a potential superstar in the league, averaging 27 points per game with 8.6 assists. The young player has shown off his passing ability, with two star-level options to be found in John Collins and Capela. The dangerous trio has helped propel the Hawks offense into the top ten in the NBA by points per game.

The NBA season has struggled more than last year, when players were famously sent to quarantine in hotels in Disney. Teams this year travel around the country as in a normal season, eliminating the protection offered by the Disney bubble.

This move has caused teams to struggle with player absences due to the coronavirus, causing the Hawks to add to the NBA total of 21 games moved from coronavirus after a postponement with the Phoenix Suns. Even with the postponement, the Hawks have been more fortunate than many other teams. Jimmy Butler worried many Heat fans the previous week after appearing on the sidelines looking far skinnier after a COVID-19 absence.

Atlanta has recently been mentioned as a potential hub for the NBA All-Star game. Although there has been no formal agreement, current conditions have caused the NBA to postpone the All-Star game that was slated to be played in Indianapolis. This has caused an opening for another city to host. Talks are still in the works and any All-Star game would be played in May.

Either way, the game stands as of little importance for most of the Hawks players, with Trae Young having the most potential for an appearance. However, the star has recently come under scrutiny for attempting to draw fouls. The moves have been criticized by both former NBA superstar Steve Nash and current leading NBA player Lebron James. Drawing fouls, an action taken by most NBA players when the opportunity arises, has been something at which Young has excelled, getting to the free throw line over 10 times per game.

As the season continues, the Hawks have an opportunity to make the playoffs for the first time in years, currently being in contention among the strong teams of the East. Currently standing at number six in the East, the Hawks are in a strong position to snatch a lower-level playoff spot.

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo held a press conference at Tech’s campus on Dec. 9. The event came in the midst of a tumultuous campaign season, with control of the Senate dependent upon Georgia run-off elections that occurred on Jan. 5.

The fact that Secretary Pompeo picked Tech to host the event had been the subject of controversy, with former Secretary Pompeo brushing off accusations of political bearings as distractive from choosing Tech.

While selecting Tech had caused an uproar, the decision was by no means the first controversial selection by Pompeo, who broke long-standing tradition by opting to speak at the Republican national convention this past summer.

Former Secretary Pompeo began his remarks with a stern warning focused on Chinese influence on United States campuses.

In particular, he focused on the University of Washington, accusing the school of refusing to assist Vera Zhou, a student detained in China in 2017.

Pompeo then extended the accusation to American campuses as a whole, accusing them of suppression due to a fear of Chinese government retaliation.

In addition, he focused on Confucius institutes, noting the Confucius institute at Wesleyan college, the only one still in operation in Georgia.

Both Emory and Georgia State closed their respective institutes earlier in 2020.

These statements furthered a long-held argument by the Trump administration, namely, that the institutes serve to enhance the image of China to college students. The Chinese government has refuted this idea, arguing that the institutes serve simply to educate American college students in Chinese history and culture.

Pompeo’s speech followed a trend in U.S.-China relations that largely began with the former President Trump’s 2016 campaign.

While bilateral relations between the two countries had deteriorated in the preceding years, exchanges between the two global powers recently reached a level of tension not seen since the United States first opened to China in 1972.

Following Pompeo’s speech was an exchange with President Ángel Cabrera. Cabrera started off the conversation asking how Tech, a school that benefits greatly from foreign students, could focus on attracting Chinese talent while protecting against Chinese government manipulation.

Pompeo argued that the balance had been completely wrong, focusing too much on openness instead of a rigorous process for Chinese student acceptance.

Although he was careful to note he appreciated the contributions of the foreign students, his call ultimately focused on a fundamental shift to a more selective acceptance of Chinese students.

Cabrera then noted that he himself had been an exchange student.

He stated that he originally came to the United States as a Fulbright scholar and wanted to know how the United States could continue to make foreign talent feel wanted.

Former Secretary Pompeo argued that his proposals had already made foreign exchange students feel welcome in his speech, insisting that the protection offered in the United States would continue to attract foreign talent.

The conversation then moved towards the role of science and technology in foreign policy.

The Trump administration had long argued that Chinese businesses experience an advantage from state-sponsorship, an issue that has played a key role in multiple trade disputes.

Former Secretary Pompeo’s discussion followed a similar pattern. First noting the differences in entrepreneurs in the United States and China, Pompeo pointed to government funding as an unfair advantage to Chinese businesses, allowing them to sell at prices lower than that of their American counterparts.

Huawei, a Chinese cellular company that has been a point of contention between the United States and China, was a serious focus in former Secretary Pompeo’s answer.

Defending the Trump administration’s push to block the company, Pompeo argued that the company’s price advantage stemmed from government sponsorship.

Noting that the majority of United States allies had banned the company, he touted the administration’s policy of pushing for such actions as an administrative success story.

Towards the end of the discussion, Cabrera asked if former Secretary Pompeo thought the policies for which he was advocating would be implemented in the future.

Secretary Pompeo was careful not to indirectly acknowledge the November election results in his answer, and said the challenge was bipartisan and would be faced by whichever administration was in office in the upcoming years.

The speech by former Secretary Pompeo was one of the last policy discussions made by the secretary while in office.

The Jackets took on unranked Duke this past Saturday in a battle that could determine who will finish at the bottom of the ACC. Tech started the game looking strong, with an explosive 61-yard touchdown run by Jahmyr Gibbs. Not to be outdone, the defense caused a quick three-and-out, giving the Jackets the ball at their own ten yard-line. 

            Pushed back by a false start, Tech continued their season-long struggle with passing. It would be the same story all evening. Receivers, finding themselves open downfield, were missed multiple times by freshman Jeff Sims. Other times, Sims looked as if he expected the receivers to be somewhere they were not. The disconnect between quarterback and receivers was magnified by an offensive line that struggled to block the pass rush. Oftentimes, Jeff Sims would have to dodge multiple Duke defenders to get a pass off. Gibbs and Jordan Mason both helped rescue the offense by providing a strong running alternative for the offense.

            The first Duke touchdown came from a fumbled Tech punt return in their own end zone tied the game at seven. Special teams have been a challenge all season and would continue to plague the Jackets throughout the evening. 

            Tech was quick to respond. A deep run downfield by Jordan Mason put the Jackets on the Blue Devil 20 yard-line. Sims lobbed a perfectly placed pass to Malachi Carter on third down for the Jackets second touchdown of the evening. 

A few drives later, the Blue Devil showed momentum for the first time in the evening, moving the ball successfully through a combination of runs and screen passes. The end of the first quarter saw the Blue Devils right outside the Tech red zone, by far the furthest their offense had made it in the game. A quick slant route by tight end Noah Gray put the Blue Devils on the Jackets three yard-line, and two plays later, the Blue Devils found themselves in the end zone after a short, one-yard run. The play tied the game 14-14. 

            Duke came out with the same momentum on their next drive, with a deep pass by Blue Devils quarterback Brice Smith to Dennis Smith putting the Jackets defense on their heels at their own 27 yard-line. The next play turned what seemed to be an upcoming Duke touchdown on its head as a high snap led to a fumble, giving the Jackets the ball on Duke’s 42 yard-line.

             Sims showed his unique playmaking ability on the ensuing, avoiding multiple defenders who slipped through the offensive line on third down and making a quick pass to move the chains. Two plays later, a 26-yard run by Jahmyr Gibbs put the Jackets in the end zone.   

            A few drives later, a refocused Blue Devil offense took the field, finishing their steady march downfield with a deep pass into the endzone to tie the game at 21-21. A poor return on the ensuing kickoff put the Jackets on their own four yard-line. Once again, a porous offensive line let multiple Duke defensive players through, causing a safety.

            In a surprising turn of events, a mistake by the Duke kicking team put the Blue Devil offense on their own 1-yard line. This time it was the Jackets who had the opportunity for a game-changing play, with a fumble by Chase Brice in his own end zone giving the Jackets a touchdown to go up 28-23.

            At the end of the half, Sims, scrambling from pressure, threw an interception and gave the Blue Devils the ball on the Jackets’ 17 yard-line. Once again, the Tech defense made the necessary stop, forcing the Blue Devils to settle for a field goal and closing the Jackets’ lead to 28-26 going into the half.

            An interception by the Tech defense put the Jacket offense deep inside Duke territory to start the second half. Sims took advantage of the opportunity, completing a 24-yard touchdown pass to Jalen Camp to put the Jackets up 35-26 

            Duke found themselves in the end zone a few drives later, connecting on a short pass that cut Tech’s lead back to just two points. 

            Sims continued to face relentless pressure from Duke blitzes, but he showed his running abilities the next drive and connected with Adonicas Sanders for his third touchdown pass of the evening, putting Tech up 42-33.

            The fourth quarter began with a 36-yard Dontae Smith touchdown run, helping solidify both the Jacket lead and the dominant run game that had given the Blue Devils trouble all night.  Tech was in total control from this point on as another touchdown by Smith put led to the final score of 56-33.

            Though not without its mistakes, the victory was a breath of fresh air for Tech. The Yellow Jackets arrived needing a victory after a tumultuous season. Some of the same problems that have shown themselves throughout the season plagued the Jackets, but the win will put them one game away from improving their record from last year.

Tech will play its first home game of the season this week, facing off against the Knights from the University of Central Florida at Bobby Dodd Stadium. The game, which will be aired nationally at 3:30 p.m. this Saturday, is the second week in a row that Tech will be the underdog, with UCF coming to Midtown as 8.5-point favorites. It is also the first time head coach Geoff Collins will face his former school, having served as the linebackers coach there for two years.

Saturday’s game could very well turn into a quarterback battle as both teams will showcase their young talent under center. Jeff Sims, having taken the helm in an impressive debut for the Jackets last week against Florida State, will face off against Dillon Gabriel, who threw for 29 touchdowns and 7 interceptions in his first season. Gabriel is surrounded by a talented core of wide receivers, whose quick-paced offense has scored under 30 points in just one game since 2017.

The Jackets will face a stronger, more robust defense than last week, particularly on the defensive line. Where Tech faced a porous defensive line last week, the Knights’ front helped make them the third-best team in the nation last year in tackles for loss. With over 20 linemen in the roster, they are deep and talented on the front line. This will undoubtedly give them an advantage against Tech’s rebuilt offense which, while ultimately successful (Tech’s 437 yards of offense last week were more than any other game since 2018), also showed its inexperience on multiple occasions. With a stronger defensive line, look for Sims to make more use of the run this week, an area where he showed great potential against Florida State.

This week’s game will prove to be a test for Tech’s defense. Last week saw Tech’s defense step up and make several key stops, mostly notably stifling the Seminoles on back-to-back fourth downs deep in the fourth quarter.

UCF will be entering their season opener fresh off a highly successful season in 2019. The Knights have gone 35-4 over the past three seasons and are used to being in control of games. If the Jacket defense comes out with the same force they showed last week, they may have a chance at wearing down an offense that relies heavily on speed and quickness.

Controlling the clock could be something to watch this week. UCF, like Florida State, is known for its quickness of play. Staying on the field and controlling the clock will give Tech an advantage if the game comes down to the final minutes.

Special teams was the Jackets’ Achilles heel last week. Kicker Jude Kelley was blocked on three different field goals, an stat almost unheard-of in college football. Such a colossal failure would wreak havoc on any game plan this week, and the Jackets were fortunate to leave Tallahassee with the victory. After ranking last in FBS touchback percentage last year, Tech needs to secure its special teams if it intends to compete with a top 20 team this week.

Facing UCF is a test that could show whether the momentum gained from a surprise win in Week One is just a fluke or a sign for the season to come. Last year was undoubtedly a transition year, but the victory over FSU has given the team a confidence boost, and the Jackets have the opportunity to make a statement this week against a ranked team on national television. Doing so will require a coalescing of all the improvements Tech has made into a solid performance.

Tech took on 14th-ranked UCF this past Saturday in their first home game of the season. Bobby Dodd looked quite different this year but was just as loud as ever when the Jackets returned the opening kick deep inside UCF territory. Tech found itself in the endzone just a few short plays later, scoring a touchdown in the first 55 seconds of the game.

The UCF offense responded forcefully with a flurry of quick-paced passes, matching the game at 7 with just under 12 minutes to go in the first. Tech freshman Jeff Sims led a promising ensuing drive, showing his dual-threat potential as he led the Jacket offense down the field with a combination of impressive throws and runs. However, a fumble inside the red zone stopped them in their tracks.

After a defensive stop, Sims came back undaunted. The Jacket spread offense started to take shape, ending the first quarter in the red zone.
Like last week, special teams cost the Jackets yet again, this time in the form of a missed field goal. After two consecutive trips in the red zone ending with nothing, the Jackets defense took the field, getting pushed back into the end zone as UCF went up 14-7.

Tech’s defense continued its struggle, leaving receivers open and giving up a 21-yard run to go down 21-7. A quick three and out gave the Knights back the ball and an opportunity to take a commanding three touchdown lead. The momentum seemed to be heading towards the Knights until a fumble recovery by Avery Showell, giving the Jackets a much-needed break.

Unfortunately, the ensuing possession ended in an interception by Sims, and UCF came back with a deep touchdown pass to take a 28-7 lead. Tech’s offense responded with just over two minutes to go until the half, marching down the field and getting a nine-yard touchdown pass from Sims to Jahymr Gibbs.

The second half began with Tech launching a failed onside kick. Getting the ball at midfield, the Tech defense was pushed against a wall after a converted first down by UCF, but responded with a fourth down stop. A Tech fumble gave UCF the ball, who then threw an interception. The strange exchange led to Tech punting deep in its own territory. A long punt by Pressley Harvin III put the Knights inside their own 10 yard-line.

A few exchanges later, the Jackets found themselves at 4th and 9 inside the UCF 30 yard-line. With little faith in the ability of the field goal squad, Collins elected to go for it, ending with a turnover.

Entering into the fourth, the Jacket offense charged downfield, culminating in a 33-yard touchdown run by Jahmyr Gibbs. UCF responded with a touchdown of its own, setting the game at 35-21.

With a comeback all but out of reach, Tech struggled to find itself the rest of the fourth quarter. Failing to answer its special teams’ weakness from the previous week, the Jackets were simply unable to find a rhythm after a stellar first drive. UCF went on the score one more time, finishing at 42-21 and handing Tech their first loss of the season.

Looking forward, Tech’s next game will be against Syracuse, who currently sit at 0-2 after losing to Pittsburgh. As Tech heads into conference play, its question of special teams play remains unanswered.

Freshman Jude Kelley has had four kicks blocked over the first two games. Gavin Stewart, another freshman, kicked the last two extra points for the Jackets on Saturday, and may see more action against the ‘Cuse. If the offense can cut down on the turnovers, Tech will have a great chance of coming away from their first trip to the Carrier Dome with a victory.

After months of uncertainty and speculation, Tech is set to take on the Seminoles as underdogs this Saturday in what promises to be a tough matchup. The away game could make for an electrifying win for Tech, currently trying to rebuild from a disastrous 2019 season. Florida State has also struggled in the recent past and has not won a season opener since 2016.

The year before, the Seminoles had lost to Tech in one of the most incredible season openers in recent history, with Tech scooping up a blocked field goal kick in the final seconds of the fourth quarter. A lot has changed since that fateful night. Both teams have different head coaches and totally new systems. Now, five years later, Tech will take the field as double-digit underdogs, facing a team under the leadership of a brand-new coach.

Mike Norvell took control of the Seminoles last December, having just delivered Memphis its first 12-win season in school history. He came to Memphis from Arizona State, having coached the Sun Devil offense to a 473.8 yards per game as offensive coordinator. Known for high-tempo, powerful offenses, he brought the same approach to Memphis, calling the plays himself.

Coming with him from Memphis, Adam Fuller brought along a new philosophy as defensive coordinator. Having been impressed with his defensive acumen, Norvell brought Fuller with him, who gained notoriety by instituting quick defensive turnarounds.

What does this mean for Tech? For starters, Tech will face a team that will look entirely different from the year before. In his initial press conference, Fuller had promised a much more aggressive defense. Fond of big plays and momentum-changing moments, Tech’s offense should be on the lookout for turnovers. For the offensive line, whose two returning members consist of Jack DeFoor and Zach Quinney, this means winning a decisive upfront battle against a stout Seminole defensive front.

Behind them at quarterback presents an entirely new set of issues. Freshman Jeff Sims has shown some talent during the offseason and might see some playing time. The very fact the quarterback position is currently known says enough for itself. Last season saw a rotation in the position, before settling upon James Graham, who saw more than his fair share of struggles. For Tech to win Saturday, whomever is selected to play needs to put on an impressive and dependable performance.

On the defensive side of the ball, Tech looks to make progress specifically on the defensive line. Having struggled the past few years, the team looks to use this season as a reset. With seven returning players who’ve previously started, experience could prove to be very useful. Florida State’s offense was the number 26 -fastest in the nation last year, a ranking the team considers outdated after working to quicken the tempo during the off-season. A quick offense can present problems for a defense, especially when it has the talent of a Florida State team.

Saturday presents an opportunity for Tech, currently predicted to finish last in the ACC. A big win over double-digit favorites could energize the team for a surprisingly successful season. Either outcome, the game marks the first in a season that looks to have its fair share of surprises.

This past week, the Institute released their long-awaited fan safety protocols for the 2020 football season. With stadium capacity limited to 11,000 and fans prohibited from interacting with others, this season will look a lot different than previous ones. The release follows many months of speculation, much of which centered on whether a season was going to actually happen at all. In the end, the ACC, SEC and Big 12 decided to press on with a modified schedule, while the Big 10 and PAC-12 postponed their seasons altogether.

Upon leaving their car, fans will be asked to wear masks while on the Tech campus. While this is requested everywhere on campus property, it will only be required on stadium property. This provision allows fans to go unmasked when tailgating before or after the game. In an effort to prevent the potential contraction and spread of the novel coronavirus at tailgating events, sanitation stations have been added throughout the area around the campus.

There have been multiple standards put into place for masks this year. In order to be allowed, they must contain two layers of breathable material, cover the face and mouth, and be self-supported against the face. Stadium entrances will be more widely distributed, with assigned entrances being noted on tickets. Many security officers have been replaced with metal detectors, a move designed to make things as contactless as possible throughout the process. Fans will be allowed to carry one gallon bags “Ziploc” style bags into the stadium, along with a water bottle and hand sanitizer.

Upon entering Bobby Dodd, fans will be directed to their assigned seats. Seating will be socially distanced and separated into clusters based on the accounts that purchase tickets. The idea is that groups that come to the game together will sit together, at least six feet away from everyone else.

Fans are prohibited from leaving their zones and are only allowed to leave for food and restrooms, with the act of eating being the only reason for which a fan will be allowed to take off their mask. Wait lines at ticket counters have been set up to maintain social distancing. In an effort to decrease the length of the lines, alcohol will now be sold in the stands, a move that has never been seen before at Bobby Dodd.

Water fountains, widely considered to be one of the worst mechanisms for spreading germs, will remain open. However, stadium crews will cleanse them regularly throughout the game. Payment systems have been upgraded to accommodate touchless methods such as Apple Pay and are meant to keep fans from touching objects as much as possible.

Ticket demand has been put into a hierarchical system, with season ticket holders getting first access to the 11,000 available tickets. Paper tickets have been switched out for mobile tickets, with fans asked to use barcodes on their phones to gain entry to the stadium. In an effort to conserve money, season ticket holders who cannot attend have been asked to consider their payments for tickets as donations to the athletic department. All proceeds that are not refunded will be put into The Swarm Fund, whose goal is to help make Tech’s athletic financials more comparable to big-name schools such as Clemson and Alabama. Leftover tickets will fall to Stinger Mobile Pass holders. After that, any tickets that are still not taken up will be released to the general public.

This setup means that students might end up comprising a smaller portion of the fans at the game than in previous years, as many depend on the free tickets that were typically released the week of the game for entry.

While once-in-a-lifetime changes seem to be occurring weekly across the college football landscape, the announcement of regulatory procedures for at-home games alleviates many questions. The release of the regulations comes with a bit of controversy, with many in the student community questioning the practicality of hosting a crowd of this size amidst a pandemic that is currently circulating around the campus.

Whatever the outcome, the decision to host in-person games will put Tech among the first institutions in the world to host live sporting events for thousands of people since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The uncertainty that has existed across the globe over the past four months can also be felt hovering over the 2020 fall sports season in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). 

The first fall sports decision by the ACC came when they announced that all Olympic sports would be postponed until the beginning of September. The decision, unanimously approved by the ACC board of directors, pushed back women’s and men’s cross country, volleyball, soccer and women’s field hockey. 

Schools are under the understanding that financial penalties for cancelled events will be lifted if they are not able to be rescheduled. This move was the first by a Power 5 conference and followed the cancellation of the fall season by the Ivy League. The football season is set to begin on Sept. 2 and has been altered to include ten inter-conference games (there will be no Atlantic and Coastal divisions this year), plus one game against an out-of-conference opponent. 

The Big Ten, Pac 12, and SEC conferences all announced that their games would be in conference only, meaning that the annual rivalry game between U[sic]GA and Tech will not be played for the first time since 1925. Other classic ACC-SEC rivalry games with a long and storied history, such as South Carolina/Clemson and Florida/Florida State, will also go unplayed this season. 

This move would also seemingly leave Notre Dame, a school unaffiliated with any conference, with no football schedule. However, the program was saved from this doomsday scenario when the ACC agreed to “adopt” the team for the year. For this year only, they are eligible to compete for the conference title, and are currently scheduled to face off with the Jackets on Halloween. 

Some schools have taken a more drastic approach. This past week, the University of Connecticut followed the lead of the Ivy League and became the first FBS school to cancel their football season entirely. It is largely understood that every school considers the cancellation of football as a financial reckoning. The loss of ticket sales, merchandise, and televised games would cost colleges billions of dollars in revenue typically spread out among less profitable sports. 

Most of the talk surrounding college football is highly speculative, with the many possibilities including socially distanced stadiums, moving certain sports to the spring, and including “make-up weeks” in the schedule that would allow for the sudden cancellation of a game due to an outbreak of the coronavirus. Several such outbreaks have already been seen within the ACC, with Clemson having 37 players test positive at one point. 

The University of North Carolina had to temporarily cancel practices after multiple athletes tested positive. Tech itself has had several of their athletes test positive, all following the quarantine protocols set by the NCAA.

With the financial impact of the coronavirus looming over athletic departments, some have already started instituting pay cuts. Wake Forest head coach Dave Clawson was one of the first to take a voluntary pay cut in April. Around that time, Louisville furloughed some of its staff members. Virginia and Syracuse soon followed suit. 

According to an ESPN survey, six ACC schools have handed out pay cuts to football and men’s basketball coaches, who are known to receive sizable contracts. The highest paid name on the list, Duke men’s basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski, makes $7.3 million per year. Notably absent from the list was Clemson football coach Dabo Swinney, who currently stands as the highest paid coach in all of college sports at $9.3 million per year. 

Tech has instituted furloughs and cuts of its own. Any faculty or staff making over $154,000 per year will face a 6.2% reduction in pay, which will affect football coach Geoff Collins along with athletic director Todd Stansbury, basketball coaches Nell Fortner and Josh Pastner, and many assistant coaches.

So far, Tech has avoided cutting any sports due to COVID-19, something that has already been seen across the landscape of college sports. The virus has put the NCAA in a reactionary position with little concrete information or a clear path forward, and the decisions that are made now are likely to have consequences for many years down the road.

While most of the sports world has gone dark during the current COVID-19 pandemic, the NFL offseason has been in full swing over the last month. It has been an unusually busy time for the league as multiple superstars have decided to try their luck in new places while some of the top teams have added firepower in preparation for what promises to be an exciting and highly intriguing season.

Of all the big moves so far this year, the most notable one by far was the league-shifting decision by Tom Brady to join the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. This stunning move caused sports bettors in Las Vegas to increase the Bucs’ odds of winning the title. It also opened up the question of who will be starting at quarterback for the most notorious team in the NFL for the first time in two decades. The New England Patriots have long relied on their historic quarterback, a man who has been to the Super Bowl more times in his 20-year career than any other team in the 100-year history of the NFL, with the exception of his own.

While their division rival was adding the greatest football player of all time to their roster, the Atlanta Falcons made some moves of their own, signing former U[sic]GA star Todd Gurley after he was released by the cap-strapped Los Angeles Rams. The one-year contract is essentially a bet on Gurley’s ability to recover from injuries he sustained last year, and the Falcons hope he can be the MVP caliber running back he was two years ago when he helped the Rams get to the Super Bowl. The Falcons also signed tight end Hayden Hurst from the Baltimore Ravens, a move aimed at replacing Austin Hooper, who decided to leave the team in favor of a bigger deal with the Cleveland Browns. The Falcons are hoping to rebound from back to back disappointing seasons, but they will have to deal with a rejuvenated Bucs franchise as well as the defending division champion New Orleans Saints in the NFC South.

Another surprising move this offseason was the Houston Texans trading star wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins and a fourth-round pick for Arizona Cardinals running back David Johnson, a 2020 second-round pick, and a 2021 fourth-round pick. The move was surprising given that Hopkins was arguably the best receiver in the league and had attended Clemson University, the same school as Houston’s star quarterback Deshaun Watson. The apparent reason for the trade was that Hopkins wanted a new contract with higher pay even though his current contract still had three years left on it. In an attempt to fill the gaping hole left at wide receiver, the Texans brought in wide receiver Randall Cobb, a veteran receiver who has been prone to injuries the last few years and has not been able to complete a season in over four years. 

In yet another high-profile quarterback move, the Colts brought in former Chargers’ quarterback Philip Rivers. The Colts, recovering from the surprise retirement from Andrew Luck, made the trade in order to have a decent quarterback on the team while they try to find a long term solution.

The defending champion Kansas City Chiefs decided to franchise-tag Chris Jones, one of the premier defensive players in the league. Using the franchise tag gives a team multiple options — everyone in the league knows that Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes is a superstar and will be paid accordingly. Giving Jones the franchise tag allows them to trade him should they not want to commit to offering him a big contract. The move comes as the team looks to bring back most of their roster to defend their Super Bowl title. With a lot of young talent, they look to be well-positioned to do just that. 

While COVID-19 has had minor impacts on the NFL compared to other sports, the threat of the virus persisting into the fall in the U.S. has begun to cast a shadow on the offseason. While filling stadiums with fans might not be possible, NFL owners remain hopeful of having games and showcasing their brand new acquisitions, even if it means playing in empty arenas.