Owen Ostroski

[TU_BLA]

Since those football players are being tested multiple times a week the people they’re around during Xmas break will be infinitely safer than those around ordinary students. Yet another reason to support college football and the protocols they have in place.

I attended college in the “old” days but at least half of the 80 or so guys I lived with regularly did those activities which I listed. I personally fought and wrestled. Ran the least amount possible for those activities because a detest running.

There's a reason almost every school who has in person classes this Fall is ending that with Thanksgiving break. Everything after Thanksgiving through the end of the semester will be virtual, including final exams. Even TCC, a commuter school, is worried about people travelling for Thanksgiving and what they might bring back from family gatherings. Hell, there's a documented contact trace of 7 people dying due to a wedding in Maine. None of the 7 people actually attended the wedding and caught COVID from someone who did.

The only way to do this safely is to create a bubble. You can do it for the NBA, NHL, and MLS where the number of players is somewhat limited, the number of REQUIRED support personnel and coaches is limited. Its not feasible to do it for college football when you have 100 players, 20 coaches, 15 athletic trainers and doctors, 10 equipment personnel, untold number of needed academic support personnel. TU is about to play a team that is down 20 or so players because of COVID. Does anyone think it's actually safe for TU to go to Jonesboro right now and play that game? Hell, I'm questioning the wisdom of going to Stilly and COVID Party Central and playing there.

 

[lawpoke87]

The reason college students are on campus is money. Schools need the room and board revenue. I will continue to argue students who are tested multiple times a week and subjects to strict social protocol are safer than if they were ordinary students. No one has really contested that point which is why college football makes sense for those student athletes and in the end for the very people they will be around during thanksgiving break.

You do understand these students are at more risk of death driving home for thanksgiving break as well as driving to and from class as they are from covid. The hype as it relates to young people is very real.

 

[TU_BLA]

The reason college students are on campus is money. Schools need the room and board revenue. I will continue to argue students who are tested multiple times a week and subjects to strict social protocol are safer than if they were ordinary students. No one has really contested that point which is why college football makes sense for those student athletes and in the end for the very people they will be around during thanksgiving break.

You do understand these students are at more risk of death driving home for thanksgiving break as well as driving to and from class as they are from covid. The hype as it relates to young people is very real.

Almost all of this is true. I still disagree with the assertion that they are able to maintain a strict social protocol, especially if they are attending in person classes at all because that would assume the people you are around are also maintaining the strictest of social distancing, taking their temp daily, keeping their masks on when around people, and washing/disinfecting whenever you can after being around people or outside your personal bubble. We all know college students...it's a struggle to get them to wash their hands, shower, maintain a normal personal hygiene. So while you may be able to enforce this stuff with players, not being in a bubble is going to put them in contact who are not adhering to strict protocols and thus the added risk. And by the time a positive test comes back, now you've been in contact with 100 players on your team, and countless others.

ADDED: This is from Levit on an update to the campus community. If you're an active member of the Alumni Association, you probably got a copy of this in an email.

COVID-19 Update

We have set up a fully accessible online dashboard to report TU’s COVID-19 numbers and invite you to check in whenever you’d like. Good news: For the week of September 6-12, TU had 15 active cases, a 17% decrease from the previous week. By comparison, the 7-day case average in Tulsa County decreased by 4.4% over the same week (from 144 to 137.6), according to Tulsa County Health Department data. TU administered 405 SARS-CoV-2 tests, with a positive rate of 1.0%. These numbers are reassuring, but recent media reports of risky gatherings at other schools remind us that success depends on disciplined adherence to prevention measures. Our students play the most important role in keeping COVID-19 at bay and keeping our campus open. With our first football game on Saturday against Oklahoma State University, we know the temptations for impromptu watch parties will be great. We are confident that our students will continue to embrace best practices for everyone’s health and safety.

 

[lawpoke87]

I think your spot on. I will say this....athletic departments are taking these protocols very seriously. If a player isn’t wearing a mask in public for instance they aren’t playing. This is a fairly strong incentive for most athletes to adhere to the rules. They certainly aren’t going to group social gatherings like some of the students. We will see what happens over the next few weeks. I’m fairly optimistic.

 

[astonmartin708]

Key word: Yet.

Waiting for the first Hank Gathers type of incident during a game while on national TV.

That's exactly what I'm afraid of. I just hope it doesn't happen to anyone from TU.

 

[astonmartin708]

I think your spot on. I will say this....athletic departments are taking these protocols very seriously. If a player isn’t wearing a mask in public for instance they aren’t playing. This is a fairly strong incentive for most athletes to adhere to the rules. They certainly aren’t going to group social gatherings like some of the students. We will see what happens over the next few weeks. I’m fairly optimistic.

I'm not worried about social gatherings for the players as much.... I'm more worried about individual gatherings. It's the same reason the NBA got mad at players who broke quarantine by going to get food... because it only takes one person screwing up and you have a potential outbreak. There's no way you can enforce the same sort of bubble as the NBA did which is basically what I think you need to actually keep players safe.

 

[lawpoke87]

I'm not worried about social gatherings for the players as much.... I'm more worried about individual gatherings. It's the same reason the NBA got mad at players who broke quarantine by going to get food... because it only takes one person screwing up and you have a potential outbreak. There's no way you can enforce the same sort of bubble as the NBA did which is basically what I think you need to actually keep players safe.

Again....they are much more monitored than they would be if they were not playing football. They are also tested multiple times a week which would not occur but for football. They also have an incentive to follow protocols which wouldn’t exist but for football. The argument here is they are less likely to become infected due to the protocols and testing they are required to follow compared to the student body at large.

I don’t understand the phrase “keeping the players safe”. Life has risks. For a 21 year old this is a very minor risk. If we’re that concerned about the safety of college kids then we shouldn’t allow those on campus to drive except to and from work. We shouldn’t allow students to drink while at school...period. We shouldn’t serve fatty or unhealthy foods on school grounds. Anyone who is overweight needs to be required to exercise under the supervision of the school. I could go on and on... I’m ok with the “safe” standard and goal to eliminate risks for our students. However, it appears we’re only wanting to eliminate or reduce one minor risk. Makes zero sense.

 

[astonmartin708]

Again....they are much more monitored than they would be if they were not playing football. They are also tested multiple times a week which would not occur but for football. They also have an incentive to follow protocols which wouldn’t exist but for football. The argument here is they are less likely to become infected due to the protocols and testing they are required to follow compared to the student body at large.

I don’t understand the phrase “keeping the players safe”. Life has risks. For a 21 year old this is a very minor risk. If we’re that concerned about the safety of college kids then we shouldn’t allow those on campus to drive except to and from work. We shouldn’t allow students to drink while at school...period. We shouldn’t serve fatty or unhealthy foods on school grounds. Anyone who is overweight needs to be required to exercise under the supervision of the school. I could go on and on... I’m ok with the “safe” standard and goal to eliminate risks for our students. However, it appears we’re only wanting to eliminate or reduce one minor risk. Makes zero sense.

The amount of kids that we've seen become infected on teams across the country tells me that they're no less likely to become infected due to the 'protocols' in place. The biggest difference is that we find out sooner that they have been infected. If they weren't playing / practicing that would be large mitigation to the risk of cardiac harm and having a season to recover would mean they wouldn't have to strain their heart practicing but could begin a slow to moderate pace of cardiac rehabilitation. Moreover, we wouldn't be having thousands of fans in stadiums spreading to each other, we wouldn't have coaches or staffers taking this virus home to their families who then spread it around the community. The most valid argument to me for playing isn't this dumb one that players are safer with the lax regulations that they're being expected to follow.... it's that not playing means layoffs for staff / athletic departments / tangentially related businesses.

If you'd like to argue that you're trying to keep the system running and keep people being able to put food on the table, fine.... but don't act like you're doing the PLAYERS a favor by letting them play in conditions that necessitate them to get tested so frequently and that could potentially harm them for relatively little gain on their part. If anything the players are doing everyone else a favor by taking their lives into their own hands to keep the schools and the athletic economy afloat.

 

[lawpoke87]

You have zero evidence that they are less likely to become infected as the student body at large because the latter isn’t being tested multiple times a week. Common sense tells you the protocols and testing reduces their risk of the same. If not then why are we promoting testing, masks, and other mitigation measures for the general public ? Unfortunately it appears common sense is absent on both sides of this issues.

“Taking their lives in their own hands”...driving, drinking, eating unhealthy, etc... all of which will eventually kill many more of these kids than covid. Yet we don’t give a damn about any of these activities which increase the risk of death except covid. It’s ridiculous. Why are some overhyping such a minimal risk for 21 year olds? We’ve lost touch with the realities of life. Can’t imagine living life scared of everything. Because if one considers covid and a 21 year old as taking their lives in their own hands I can’t imagine the daily stress driving causes for these people. What a miserable existence.

 

[astonmartin708]

You have zero evidence that they are less likely to become infected as the student body at large because the latter isn’t being tested multiple times a week. Common sense tells you the protocols and testing reduces their risk of the same. If not then why are we promoting testing, masks, and other mitigation measures for the general public ? Unfortunately it appears common sense is absent on both sides of this issues.

“Taking their lives in their own hands”...driving, drinking, eating unhealthy, etc... all of which will eventually kill many more of these kids than covid. Yet we don’t give a damn about any of these activities which increase the risk of death except covid. It’s ridiculous. Why are some overhyping such a minimal risk for 21 year olds? We’ve lost touch with the realities of life. Can’t imagine living life scared of everything. Because if one considers covid and a 21 year old as taking their lives in their own hands I can’t imagine the daily stress driving causes for these people. What a miserable existence.

Except we do give a damn about those things Lawpoke... that's why we passed laws that made drinking illegal for people under 21, drinking and driving illegal, required seat belts, made it illegal to speed or talk on the phone while driving, etc moreover those activities are unlikely to harm anyone but the individual that is partaking in them, or at most a few others in another vehicle. With this virus we're talking about exponential growth. 1 person can mean hundreds of infections and 10's of deaths on top of their own. The players are less likely to spread it amongst people outside the program, but the coaches, the staff, and all the people tangentially related to the season have a large opportunity to as do the fans that are let in to watch the games (which I would be more comfortable with if people actually wore masks and social distanced, but as the OU AD said .... he was disappointed in the fans)

 

[lawpoke87]

We’re talking college kids here. Schools are serving unhealthy foods. Schools take zero action with over weight students. Schools allow kids who live on campus to drive. Schools allow half of their students to drink while attending school. All of which I would argue pose a greater risk to a 21 year old than covid. All of which you would described as “taking their lives in their own hands” based on pure risk. Yet, colleges not only don’t attempt to prevent them but in some cases promote said activities with zero thought about health. I simply don’t understand how people who see the world and risk this way function day to day.

 

[TU Sepp]

Regardless of all the other stuff in this thread...

Congratulations to Owen on his acceptance to Army.

Also congratulations to Jerry and his family for raising a fine young man!

 

[TU4ever2]

Regardless of all the other stuff in this thread...

Congratulations to Owen on his acceptance to Army.

Also congratulations to Jerry and his family for raising a fine young man!

Indeed, I am beyond happy that Jerry O is part of Tulsa. He is a positive influence where ever he goes and represents the university extremely well. It is always enjoyable to watch those type of people and families succeed. It is a blessing to have them turn around and give back even more.

 

[TU 1978]

Regardless of all the other stuff in this thread...

Congratulations to Owen on his acceptance to Army.

Also congratulations to Jerry and his family for raising a fine young man!

He could still change his mind...

 

[Weatherdemon]

I heard on the radio today that Jerry O was no longer with TU.
No other info was given.

 

[red dirt]

Yes, because there have been so many issues with college age kids.

 

[TU4ever2]

I heard on the radio today that Jerry O was no longer with TU.
No other info was given.

Ah, what? Damn. Although this could have more to do with covid and the lack of possible attendance this year, I don't like that.

 

[TU Man]

I can pretty much guarantee the big 10 players want to be playing and not sitting on their rears.

these kids will be fine playing. Maybe if we go through the college and high school seasons with Zero youth fatalities or health events then some will realize We don’t have to stay locked inside forever.

there is little difference in playing football and going to a mask less college dance and getting after it. One just happens to be ruled By administrators

 

[TulsaFan2000]

Scathing piece from Haisten about Montgomery’s decision not to recruit Owen: https://tulsaworld.com/sports/colle...campaign=user-share&__twitter_impression=true

 

[maverickfp]

Scathing piece from Haisten about Montgomery’s decision not to recruit Owen: https://tulsaworld.com/sports/colle...campaign=user-share&__twitter_impression=true

There's really nothing left to say about monty. inept at everything he ever thinks about doing on or around a football field.